The Washington Post - USA (2022-03-06)

The coronavirus pandemic has disrupted travel domestically and around the world. You will find the latest developments at washingtonpost.com/coronavirus/

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Travel

EZ EE

NAVIGATOR

Tr avelers are anxious

about visiting Europe

in the wake of Russia’s

invasion of Ukraine. F2

FOOD

In London’s vibrant bar

scene, an enduring debt

to American drinking

culture. F3

TRENDS

Guidebooks were once

expected to go the way

of the dodo. Instead,

they evolved. F4

in 30 years. All I remembered from before

was that the trail was paved, that there

was a lookout tower at t he end and that I’d

had to cycle around (and I mean way

around) a sunbathing alligator that was

blocking my path. That left a lasting

impression.

This time my wife was with me, and I’d

all but promised her we’d see alligators.

We had only 24 hours to spend in the

Everglades and were determined to see as

many of the prehistoric-looking creatures

as possible. Such a vow is much easier to

keep during the dry season, December

BY DIANE DANIEL

That can’t be real.

Of course it’s real. This is a national

park known for alligators. Do you think

they’re going to have a fake one at the

entrance of a trail?

But it’s so big! Maybe it’s a statue to let

people know what to look for?

Those thoughts spun through my mind

as we cycled from the parking area to the

15-mile loop at S hark Valley Visitor Center

in Everglades National Park in South

Florida.

Upon closer inspection — but not too

close — I concluded that the alligator was

definitely real. About eight feet long and

lying in the grass alongside the trail, it was

a scaly harbinger of things to come.

My early-January visit was my second

through April, so I intended to try.

I’ve lived on and off in Florida’s Ta mpa

Bay area for some 50 years, so I’ve admired

occasional alligators along riverbanks, in

lakes and even on golf courses. I have a

healthy fear of them and would never

swim in fresh or brackish water, nor walk

my dog along a lake or canal.

But Shark Valley, much farther south

and inside a 1.5-million-acre wetlands

preserve, is on another level. Only about

one hour west of downtown Miami and

about 90 minutes southeast of Naples, it’s

chock full of gators, which you can easily

spot while biking, hiking or going on the

park’s two-hour narrated tram tour.

“But is it safe?” you ask.

Human conflicts with alligators are

rare and generally not serious. Most alli-

SEE ALLIGATORS ON F6

On the lookout for gators

Florida’s Everglades

offers an abundance

of up-close sightings

ISTOCK

SUNDAY, MARCH 6, 2022. SECTION F

An alligator peers out among the lily pads at Everglades National Park.

Florida is thought to have about 1.3 million of the prehistoric-looking creatures.