Everyone has heard of “The Everglades National Park”. But did you know there is another , equally beautiful, tract of land just east of the Everglades called Big Cypress National Preserve? What’s the difference between a national park and a national preserve? Land use is restricted more tightly in a national park, for example you can not legally hunt in most national parks, but you can in national preserves. Big Cypress was the first national preserve, established Oct. 11, 1974.
“The concept of a Preserve was born from an exercise in compromise. Everyone saw the importance of protecting the swamp, but many did not want this region merely added to nearby Everglades National Park that was created in the 1940s. Many felt that national parks were managed in a restrictive manner and access to the swamp would be lost. The resulting compromise created a new land management concept – a national preserve. An area that would be protected, but would also allow for specific activities that were described by Congress within the legislation that created the Preserve.”
Steve and I recently spent 10 days exploring Big Cypress. We stayed at Burn Lake Campground which was a perfect jumping off spot for our day trips. There are no services at Burns Lake (electric, water or sewer), perhaps that is why it was so much less crowded than some of the other campgrounds. With only 10 RV sites (sites 1 & 2 are reserved for camp hosts) and 6 tent sites crowding is seldom an issue. Several nights during our stay, we were the only RV in the campground other than the camp hosts.
No matter where you travel within the park, you are guaranteed to see 2 things – alligators and birds!
Frequently near each other. These wood storks aren’t paying any mind to the alligator on the shore. I don’t know how often a bird becomes a snack but…
This vulture was more than happy to feast on these alligator remains, while the rest of the flock waited their turn…
While many of the birds are out in the open and easily seen…
Others challenge you to find them…
Some birds strike regal poses for you…
While others appear to be having a “bad feather” day…
And speaking of feathers, I loved the way this one was drifting along in the current…
Some of the other birds we saw…
But, the most exciting bird encounter we had was at nearby 10,000 Islands National Wildlife Refuge. Steve and I had been there several days earlier, but wanted to go back for a sunrise view from the observation platform. While the sunrise was beautiful, I didn’t really get any images I thought were spectacular. Not wanting to waste our visit, we walked along the refuge’s Marsh Trail. We stopped for a time to enjoy the peaceful surroundings…
When to our amazement, an osprey decided to search for breakfast right next to us! The scene went something like this. The osprey flies in, literally, not more than 20 feet over my head…
Sees something good to eat and prepares to dive…
Gaining speed…
I lost sight of him in the brush, but I heard the splash. Then he re-emerges and flies off with breakfast…
Steve and I were stunned to witness this so closely! On our way back to the Jeep, we stopped at the observation platform and I think this picture is perfect. To me it shows what a wide variety of people enjoy the refuge…
Ok, so about those alligators. There are signs everywhere, warning people not to feed or harass the alligators. In the visitor’s center, they tell you to stay at least 10 feet away from them. That’s it? 10 feet? Hmmm, okay. My picture…
Sorry, wrong one. My picture…
And my proof I was 10 feet away…
We happened upon lots of gators soaking up the sun…
One of the hardest animals to get any photographs of were the turtles. Yep, the turtles! Nearly every time I would see one, Steve would stop the Jeep and they would disappear into the water. I did manage to get a few images…
If you are lucky, you might get a chance to see some of the other animals in the preserve. While we did not see any bears or panthers, we did see a few deer off in the distance…
What else is there to see and do? Stay tuned for Part 2!
Thanks for coming along!
The Wandering RVer 
Wow, your bird photos are fantastic, and what great luck with the osprey being so close! I am with you though on the alligators. I’ll stay much more than 10 feet away, thank you very much. That’s why God invented zoom lenses! Great photos!
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Thank you. The osprey was definitely a very cool experience. The only alligator that startled me was the one I didn’t see until I darn near stepped on it. It went one way, I went the other!
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Your photos are beautiful! You captured so many hard-to-get wonderful shots. The osprey was AWESOME! You are far braver than me–I would NEVER get that close to a gator. I didn’t know about this place, so will definitely have to explore when we are in sunny Florida again. Wonderful post with stunning photos! Dawn
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Thanks. It really is an awesome place. So much to see and do.
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