Gator Park

Today we decided to take a little trip into the Everglades. It started with an airboat tour.


Kyle was required to wear a life vest, which he didn't mind too much, amazingly.


We started off going pretty slowly, so everyone could stand up and take in the scenery and get out their cameras. It was gorgeous and full of wildlife. We saw fish, birds, turtles and, of course, GATORS!


The largest bird that lives in the Everglades is the blue heron. Here's one perching right behind Kyle and then taking off to find more food.


After the slow part of the tour, we sped up and the motor was REALLY loud. You can tell how fast we were going by our messed up hair in these pictures! We had to put in some earplugs, which Kyle DID NOT like. (On the way back, we just plugged his ears with our hands. He did much better on the return trip.)

After the airboat tour, we got to meet some animals, up close and personal. We went to a show and saw a scorpion from Africa, a South American toad, a skunk, a cockatoo, a lemur, and, of course, MORE GATORS!




Kyle loves animals, especially birds, and was paying CLOSE attention to the show.


That is, until he started having to answer some texts:

After the show, we all got to hold "Larry," a three-year old alligator. Even Kyle, our little scientist, wanted to grab on and see what Larry felt like!


We walked around the park and saw a few more gators.

Then, our little adventurer spotted a waterfall. He pointed in that direction and then started to walk right over there and climb up on the rocks. He saw some ducks, a peacock, and his dad pointed out some ciclids in the water. (Stephen used ciclids in the research for his Master's Thesis, so he knows a little bit about these fish!)


What a fun day! We have now seen a major part of Southern Florida's natural environment. Just doing our part to support this ecosystem!