Everglades National Park – Flamingo
Flamingo is the southernmost Visitor Center, and features a General Store (in the process of begin rebuilt at the time of this writing), a Marina, a Bait and Tackle shop, and several hiking trails.
Everglades National Park – Pa-Hay-Okee
This is the ecosystem that Everglades is most known for – the flooded grasslands that host the most iconic species like the alligator, crocodile, and plethora of wading birds.
Everglades National Park – Rock Reef Pass
Driving along the main road from Homestead to Flamingo, you’ll pass as sign that reads “Rock Reef Pass, Elevation 3 feet”.
It’s comical, but the sign is not intended to be a joke – this is one of the highest points of elevation in the entire park.
Everglades National Park – Pinelands
Pinelands is a very short and easy walk, but I think it’s one not to miss because it features an important feature of the Everglades National Park that is key to the survival of many species – solution holes.
Everglades National Park – Long Pine Key
Not far from the Nike Missile site lies Long Pine Key, an area which encompasses nearly 19000 acres of slash pines, one of the largest and most threatened expanses of pine rockland remaining in the US. At one time, these pines dominated the entirety of South Florida, but have been eliminated by the growth demands and raw material harvesting.
Everglades National Park – Nike Missile Site
There are a multitude of unique plant and animal species that set the Everglades apart, but there is another feature which separates Everglades from every other National Park – the presence of a nuclear missile base.
Everglades National Park – Royal Palm (Anhinga Trail & Gumbo Limbo Trail)
Both Anhinga and Gumbo Limbo Trails are easy hikes amongst the diverse ecosystems of the Everglades, and truly the best opportunity to spot wildlife.
Everglades National Park
I spent weeks leading up to this trip doing research and pouring over the best way to utilize our time, since I only had one day inside the largest wilderness in the Eastern US, and 3rd largest park in the contiguous US. The miles and miles of grassland are roughly the size of Delaware, over 2300 square miles. Unlike many of our National Parks, Everglades does not boast unique grandeur or geographical wonder; instead, the Everglades are unique in their ecological diversity. There are over 700 species of plants, 360 species of bird, 300 species of fish, 50 species of reptile and 40 species of mammal that call the rivers of grass home.