February 08, 1996 - Camping Out in a Camper's, Paradise4A ••The,80olk Times,* february 8,, 1996
Camphig Out in a Campery, P a r a
dise
After spending the night at our old
campsite at Ortona Locks we went into
the busy suburbs of Fort Myers, Fla., on
the west coast to visit Barbara's brother
and his wife. It was good to visit with
them, but the Everglades beckoned us
on so we left early the next morning.
The last big town before entering the
Everglades National Park is Homestead.
We remembered it well from our last
visit here years ago, for it was at the air-
port we photographed bur-
rowing owls, those curi-
ous- looking little owls
with their long legs that
nest in burrows in the
ground. A maintenance
worker had taken us out on
the runway of the airport
where they were nesting.
Homestead took the
brunt of one of Florida's
last great hurricanes and was now strug-
gling to get back on its feet. Actually,
the town seemed more alive and pros-
perous than when we'd seen it last.
Once through the town we were off on
the long, straight, level road to the
Everglades. Thirty -eight miles of mi-
rage- shimmering road lay before us. Our
campsite at Flamingo was at the bottom
of the Everglades. Here a lodge, restau-
rant, modern marina and beautiful, spa-
cious campsites were located. We signed
up for Site 23 and settled down for a
well- deserved drink and cheese and
crackers.
Campers of all sorts surrounded us
and off to the east were acres of tenters.
How that industry has changed. I re-
member our first tent years ago — big,
heavy and cumbersome. Now the pop -
up, lightweight, quick -to- assemble
dome tents in their various colors look
like giant mushrooms in an open field.
One of the nice things about a camper is
it doesn't take long to set up. In no time
we had our bikes off the rack and were
ready to peddle the various roads and
trails that crisscross the park.
First we'd explore the visitor center,
then the marina and then the food-sup-
------- ply store, just in case we
needed something. After
our reintroduction to the
park we settled in and had
a wonderful supper and
were off to bed. We'd
signed up for four days
and wanted to be fresh for
the next day and the chal-
lenges ahead. The next
days blended into a maze
of mini - adventures that reacquainted us
with this vast and wonderful national
park; Eco Pond, where hundreds of
white ibis dotted the trees; Mahogany
Hammock, where we were fortunate to
spot a sleeping barred owl; and Anhinga
Trail, where a Louisiana water thrush
bobbed its tail while picking insects
from lily pads.
Hawk Poses for Photograph
Before we'd gone but a short distance
from our campsite we spotted a red -
shouldered hawk that, like some small
kid, just waited to have its picture taken.
It was something to see as Barbara
slowly walked toward the bird perched
on a nearby road
sign. She'd take a
picture, then walk
two or three steps,
then another, until
she got so close the
telephoto lens was
Focus
on
Nature
by Paul
Stoutenburgh
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Peconic a year or so
ago. The area was
blocked off until the
bird completed its
incubation and then,
as usual, the young
were off and running.
That pair was the
topic if much conver-
sation.
Vultures were con-
tinually in the air
above us. Some
would land in the
campsite to scavenge
for bits and pieces
that some careless
camper might have
left behind. We even
saw an osprey fly by
with a fish. How that
brought back memo-
ries of our own
ospreys on the North
Fork. Another couple
of months and they'll
be back. March 21 is
the date I always use
as a benchmark for
their return.
Photo by Paul Stoutenburgh
WHITE IBIS —This beautiful bird, with its long,
curved bill, can be found in great numbers at
Everglades National Park.
The weather was beautiful during the
day, but at night the temperature would
drop into the 40s to send a chill through
the camper. It was odd to see people
early in the morning walking around all
bundled up and by afternoon running
about in shorts. Each day brought us
into a new place to explore. Either it
`Each day brought
us into a new place
to explore.'
too much and she
had to change to the normal lens. It was
still there as she backed away, hardly
believing what she had seen.
Kildeer, those wonderful birds that
nest in the open fields back home, were
everywhere in the campground. How I
remember the pair that nested on the
blacktop in back of the senior center in
was a walk out on the
coastal prairie or to
some pond that
seemed alive with
wonderful colored
birds. The most abun-
dant was the white
ibis — with its long,
curved, reddish - orange bill — that was
everywhere. Flocks of 10 and 20 would
fly by; their white bodies and black -
tipped wings seemed to tell the wonder
of this enchanted land. Wading birds of
all sorts strutted by: reddish egrets,
snowy and great egrets, great blues,
glossy ibis, green- backed herons,
gallinules and others all caught our at-
tention.
At the marina one morning we pho-
tographed black skimmers, those won-
derful fishermen that skim over the wa-
ter trailing their bills until they hit a fish,
then bring it up only to continue on their
graceful sweeps. Cattle egrets hunted
the roadside for crickets while land birds
like gnatcatchers, catbirds, vireos, palm
warblers and others kept our glasses
busy wherever we went.
Of course, alligators were a common
sight in and about every waterway. We'd
see them spread out like some great,
flattened black tire. We were enjoying
our visit to the Everglades and we had
hardly touched its treasures. How fortu-
nate that we have such a rich heritage of
national parks where all can go and see
what's left of our cherished natural
world.
P.S. As darkness comes over the
campsite I see fireflies blinking while I
write.
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