Sounds easy enough, eh? You’d think it’d be even easier when the thing you’re supposed to stay away from is an alligator. Well, just know it’s not so easy.
Grier and I had the chance to visit Shark Valley in the Florida Everglades. You can walk all over the place, as can the gators.
The alligators wanted the warm up in the sun so many of them were just hanging out. We easily saw 50 of them in our three hours there. It was amazing, but even more amazing was how much lack of respect for the alligator’s wildness that our fellow park goers seem to have. People were about three feet away, turned away from the alligators, posing for pictures. As an avid photographer, I appreciated the photo op, but the realist in me also saw the danger of encroaching on a wild animal’s space and then turning your back to it. I should mention that, contrary to appearances, those things can run 25 miles per hour.
We also had the opportunity to take a guided tour. We learned a lot about the “river of grass” environment, the animals, and the damage people are doing to the Everglades. The park is having a terrible time with Burmese pythons. These are the pythons people buy at pet stores and release once the snakes “start eyeing Fluffy, the family cat, for dinner.”
The pythons are taking the park over. They have several methods of catching them: the scent of female pythons, licensed hunters, and the best weapon is a beagle named Python Pete. Even so, they only catch about 350 per year when there are thousands causing havoc in the park. So do nature a favor, think through the exit strategy before you buy an exotic pet. Shark Valley National Park Website
