Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary

Still trying to catch up some.  After we left Kaila's house :), we spent the better part of the day driving down to Marco Island where we stayed at the Hilton.   Tina and I like to travel during September because it's generally a LOT less crowded.  Well, it ends up Marco Island is so less crowded in September that somewhere around 80% of the local restaurants close down for the entire month and let the employees have a vacation.  We found enough places to keep us from starving and had a great time nonetheless.

On Wednesday while we were down there we drove up to a place 20 miles outside of Naples called Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary.  The boardwalk there takes you on a 2.5 mile journey through one of the most beautiful cypress swamp in the state.  Being September it was rather hot, but we're both pretty used to that.

The Entrance to the Sanctuary

The Border of the Cypress Swamp

About 15 minutes into our walk the rather large Barred Owl you see in the middle of this next pic came swooping down at me and flew about 5 feet from my head.  I'm not sure who spooked who more.  After he was a safe distance away, he was fine with me taking pics of him.

Barred Owl

Even with it being the middle of the day, we still managed to find one good sized alligator sunning out.  When you're in the middle of a swamp like that it's hard to find creatures amidst all the plants and trees, but at least we found one.

A 10 to 12 Foot Alligator (Center of Pic)

This second alligator was easier to find as he/she was only a couple feet off the boardwalk.  Being only 10 inches long, he didn't pose much of a threat ... just yet. 

A Cute Little 10 Inch Alligator

And then of course ... saving the best one for last.

 

The Best Looking Creature in the Swamp

We'll get back to posting some house pics here shortly ... if Tina ever manages to get our pool contractor going.