Shark Valley in the River of Grass

Today we bicycled through Shark Valley in the Everglades National Park.  To Native Americans, the Everglades was known by a name meaning, "River of Grass," and that exactly describes the environment.  The Everglades are a natural region of tropical wetlands in the southern portion of the U.S. State of Florida, comprising the southern half of a large watershed. The system begins near Orlando with the Kissimmee River, which discharges into the vast but shallow Lake Okeechobee. Water leaving the lake in the wet season forms a slow-moving river 60 miles wide and over 100 miles long, flowing southward across a limestone shelf to Florida Bay at the southern end of the state. The Everglades are shaped by water and fire, experiencing frequent flooding in the wet season and drought in the dry season. Writer Marjory Stoneman Douglas popularized the term "River of Grass" to describe the sawgrass marshes, part of a complex system of interdependent ecosystems that include cypress swamps, the estuarine mangrove forests of the Ten Thousand Islands, tropical hardwood hammocks, pine rockland, and the marine environment of Florida Bay.

Shark Valley is the name for a region through which runs the Shark Valley Slough - the heart of the waterflow of the Everglades.  The water runs shallowly and slowly (it can take a year for the water to get from the Kissimmee River to Florida Bay) through grass prairieland, flooding it in the rainy summer season, but leaving dry vistas during the dry winter season.  Here is a typical panorama of the Everglades prairie:

Within the prairie are hammocks of pines and hardwoods, on the one hand, and solution holes and ponds where water had eaten through the limestone bedrock to form deeper ponds and lakes:

Here, Kathy is inspecting "solution holes" - places where, on the trail, the water has dissolved a hole in the limestone right under our feet:

The Shark Valley region of the park consists of a loop road 14 miles long, with a tall observation tower at the south end, seven miles from the visitor center:

From the observation tower, you can start to comprehend the grand vista of this prairie and river of grass:

Where the water runs a little deeper, alligators thrive.  Near the observation tower, the 'gators decided to hold a mini-convention at mid-day.  They were a bit too close to our bicycle stand, and we wondered whether we would be able to get to our bikes after stopping for lunch:

The alligators make use of all water and shelter that is available.  About every 200 yards along the loop road are culverts to permit drainage through and under the road.  Alligators have found that the culverts make great little hideouts, where they lurk to pounce on potential food sources.  We swear we did NOT see any alligators surprise little tourists.  This gator snuggles in his own particular little hidey-hole of a culvert:

Turtles are pretty common.  On a sunny day like today, they sun themselves wherever it's safe:

Wildlife abounds, particularly wading birds.  Here is a Great White Egret, lifting off from a waterway across the fields of grass:

Here, a less common Pectoral Sandpiper hides among the weeds, as concerned about being seen by us as he was with finding his meal:

This Tricolored Heron stands majestically among waterplants:

Florida Gar floated lazily in this slough, not more than 10 feet from a hungry alligator.  We were as amazed that they stayed there as that the 'gator didn't try to grab them:

This Glossy Ibis didn't seem to care whether we were in the area, and concentrated solely on his hunting:

Perhaps the most spectacular bird we saw was the Purple Gallinule, wading the shore of the slough and looking for snacks at the edge of the water:

What Everglades trip is complete without a Great Blue Heron?

This Snowy Egret and Limpkin seem to be conferring on their fishing strategy for the afternoon:

Kathy didn't believe her day would be complete without finding a Roseate Spoonbill - and, at last, we glimpsed one on the far shore of a pond, preening and fluffing his rose-colored feathers in the sun:

This Ibis is being very ibis-like in the shallow-water:

We were lucky enough to spot two collections of miscellaneous water birds, all together.  In this group, we spotted a Great White Egret, a Snowy Egret and a White Ibis, all consorting in one little pool:

This Little Blue Heron graced one little canal next to our bike path:

We took over 180 photos today!  It was all we could do to trim them down to these samples.  We saw thousands of birds and could have posted hundreds of unique photos.  But we hope you find this sample interesting - enough that you come in person to see this spectacular wildlife, all consorting in the wild not more than 50 feet from you!