I know these devils creep many of you out; however, they fascinate me. During this excursion, we only saw 9 alligators at the Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive, from the safety of our car. The most we have seen on this beautiful 2 hour (very slow) drive was 36. These were taken with my super duper long range, zoom lens, and then cropped. Don't be afraid!
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| This was far from me, I zoomed and cropped like crazy for this closeup |
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| This was a fat one! They are all unique |
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The drive was closed in late September because of extensive damage from Hurricane Irma, and it was only reopened on Christmas Eve. With all the development in Central Florida, this (and the state parks) are some of the only wild places left where you can see the real Florida, in all her swampy, brutal, primordial glory.
Not creepy at all! They are so badass.
ReplyDeleteThat's the spirit!!!! Totally badass.
DeleteAny scaly animal with that big a mouth and belly gets a wide berth from me.
ReplyDeleteCan't argue with you there!
DeleteI like the birds in the last post. Crocks are scarrrryy! The are beautiful and amazing though. They look very prehistoric to me. As I imagine they probably are, though I'm sure they were much larger then!
ReplyDeleteThey are VERY prehistoric.
DeleteIf you haven't been on an airboat ride at Christmas, Fl you should get it done. Another of the few remaining wild places! Your photos are great!
ReplyDeleteHaving been rewarded with a new prénom following my most recent contribution to The Aging Female, etc, I feel I must go for broke. Let time slip back into the very early sixties when you, for all I know, may have been nothing more than a twinkle in your father's eye. I am surrounded by metaphor. I am drinking beer in a pub called The Cogers, just off Fleet Street, presently just a London street, then the colloquial embodiment of national newspaper journalism. I am among other journalists and if I drink any more beer I may imagine I have died and gone to Print Heaven - the only heaven that would have me.
ReplyDeleteWe are talking about - what else? - other journalists who have transcended their craft and become myths of misbehaviour, notably X of The Daily Telegraph.
"As to X's expenses," says a friend, "well they were positively saurian."
You thought I was going ga-ga didn't you? That I couldn't shape this comment to fit your post? I've always remembered that adjective and I bring it out on high days and holidays. You have flora and fauna, I have my memories.
The turtle's expression has changed, I think he/she approves. But then it's all family to him/her.
lol, sorry about the error, Roderick! I wasn't aware and when I looked back to see what you were referring to I laughed out loud.
DeleteThe word "saurian" didn't appear in my computer's dictionary so you forced me to actually open a book to learn its meaning in a heavy old dictionary I have tucked away. It was fun.
In the mid 1960's I was a hardcore Beatlemaniac. That was fun, too.
"Forced me to actually open a book" - the first step towards true enlightenment is to treat those fuddy-duddy concerns about split infinitives with contempt. If it makes for more compact prose then do it!
DeleteAll these people who worry about scaly creatures should reflect. Faced with a mobile phone all an alligator could do is eat it. We - homo sapiens - are their superior and their piglike eyes acknowledge this.
There is nothing cuddly about them.
ReplyDeleteNot a thing.
DeleteAmazing creatures, they were here long before us and will probably outlive us by aeons.
ReplyDeleteYes, although we have the power to destroy this planet and all living things. Humans destroyed 90% of the alligators in Lake Apopka in 1980 because of chemical spills and pesticide use. And they were later the subject of research and study because the pollution in the lake made the Lake Apopka alligators increasingly infertile and subject to birth defects.
DeleteBut still they survive, and have made a bit of a comeback as the lake is slowly returned to health.
DeleteThey are amazing but they scare the hell out of me.
ReplyDeleteI am very afraid of them.
DeleteYour photos are about as close as I'll ever get to seeing these amazingly scary and beautiful creatures. Thank you for taking the journey!
ReplyDeleteYou are welcome!
DeleteI was amazed when my daughters and I were biking through the Everglades how close we were allowed to come to the gators.
ReplyDeleteThey are awe inspiring.