Everglades National Park, a vast expanse of land and swamp covering over 4,000 square miles in between Naples and Miami, Florida, is an incredible place to visit. Because Everglades includes marshes, swamplands, wetlands, islands, forests, and waterways, there is an incredible variety of wildlife that call this park home – alligators, crocodiles, snakes, frogs, fish, turtles, and dozens of species of birds, including egrets, spoonbills, storks, bald eagles, and flamingos. With the world constantly changing, and the rising sea levels associated with climate change, it is clear that the Everglades are not only in need of protection, but will continue to constantly change, even with its national park status.
Following our time in Dallas, Texas, on our New Years 2021 RV Road Trip, our family made a huge, two full-day drive from Dallas to Miami, Florida. On our way, we stayed overnight in Lee, Florida, after grabbing some awesome barbecue from The Shed, a BBQ restaurant in Ocean Springs, Mississippi that had been recommended by a good friend of ours.
We arrived in Miami, Florida, in the early afternoon, and immediately drove into Everglades National Park. We had arranged for an airboat tour through Coopertown AirBoats, and thoroughly enjoyed this water tour through the Everglades. It was the first time on an airboat for all of us, and what a thrill it was!
On our airboat tour, we saw three alligators in the wild, and learned a ton about the vegetation and animal life in the Everglades. It was an incredible learning experience for all of us.
After our airboat tour, we attended an animal show at the Coopertown Airboat Tour facility, where we learned a lot more about the alligators, snakes, turtles, and other inhabitants of the park. Each of us also had a chance to hold a baby alligator, which was a thrill for sure!
After running a few errands on our way into Miami, we arrived at the Miami Everglades RV Resort, where we would spend the next few nights. Once we arrived, Justin spent a couple hours getting the RV networked for the start of school the next day, when the kids would begin distance-learning from the RV. We roasted some s’mores over the fire before bed, and called it a day! The Miami Everglades RV Resort was a fantastic spot for us to stay during our time in the Miami area, and we also stayed at this same RV park during our time visiting Biscayne National Park.
The next morning, we slept in, knowing we would have the three hour time difference between east coast time, and pacific time, back home in California, for the start of school. It was really nice to get some extra rest! The kids attended virtual school that morning for the first time, and everything ran really seamlessly! I am so grateful to Justin for all of his hard work and making it happen for all of us.
Since the kids only had a half day of school that Monday, we headed into Everglades again immediately following the end to their school day. First, we visited the Ernest P. Coe Visitor Center, and then afterward completed two hikes in the park. The first was the Anhinga Trail, which led us along a raised boardwalk above the swamps. We were able to see several hardwood hammocks, and spotted a few alligators on the journey, in addition to several large snapping turtles, heron, egrets, and fish! The kids really enjoyed this hike.
After our hike on the Anhinga Trail, we did another short hike on the Gumbo Limbo Trail, which took us through some deeper vegetation, and gave us a little bit of a different perspective of the vegetation growth in the Everglades.
We had such a wonderful afternoon exploring the Everglades, especially considering that this journey immediately followed a school day!
After our hikes, we made a stop in the RV at the Robert Is Here Farmstand for some highly recommended fresh fruit milkshakes. The key lime and strawberry milkshake was the family favorite, and all of the flavors we tried were delicious. Back at camp at the RV park, we played some games as a family before bed, grateful for our many adventures that day.
Our time in Miami and the Florida Everglades was truly an experience unlike any other.
