Big Cypress National Preserve
Kirby Storter Boardwalk
We met an interesting young couple, in their mid-twenties, from London, England today. They spent the night here at the Midway Campground in their homemade motorhome. They had purchased a large European Brinks security vehicle in London and converted it into a motorhome. They had it shipped to Nova Scotia, Canada and began their journey from there into the United States. They had originally planned to travel throughout China, but concern for their safety there changed their minds. Their revised plan is to travel throughout North America and South America.
In February 2013, at the Flamingo Campground in the Everglades National Park, we had seen a similar European Brinks security vehicle that had been converted into a motorhome. It too had foreign license plates. We did not get a chance to meet the couple in this conversion at the time. We thought it might have belonged to the young couple from England. It turned out it was not them. They were surprised to learn someone else had also converted a Brinks vehicle into a motorhome.
The converted Brinks motorhomes are massive in size. They actually resemble a military vehicle that is capable of traversing any type of terrain. Since these are European motorhomes, their electrical system operate on 240 volts. The young man from England asked the campground host if it would be permissible to convert the 120 volts at his campsite to 240 volts. The campground host refused for fear the young man might cause a power outage to the entire campground.
This afternoon we visited the Kirby Storter Boardwalk. This is a one-mile round trip on an elevated boardwalk that takes the visitor through prairie, dwarf cypress and into the heart of a cypress strand. Alligators, wading birds and a variety of migrating songbirds can be found here. Our walk started out over a prairie and then transitioned to a swamp filled with clear water about three feet deep. The lush, green scenery here transports the visitor back in time to what the Earth must have looked like during the age of the dinosaurs. Egrets and Woodstorks were wading through the shallower water, feeding on mollusks and small fish. Anhingas were seen sitting on tree branches, with their wings outstretched, drying them in the sun, while others were swimming through the deeper water spearing small fish to feed upon. This is a special place to enjoy the natural world in the Big Cypress National Preserve.
On our way back to our campsite, at the Midway Campground, we stopped at the Clyde Butcher Photographic Art Gallery. We always enjoy visiting this gallery to view the black and white photography of the Everglades and the Big Cypress National Preserve. Some of the photographs are as large a five feet by eight feet in size and literally draw the viewer into the scene. The price for this size of photograph can be as high as $20,000.00. On our visit here last year we purchased a Clyde Butcher book of photographs on the Big Cypress National Preserve. On this visit we purchased a Clyde Butcher book of photographs on Florida Portfolio II. The price is $40.00 each and contain many of the large photographs on display in the gallery.
There were five alligators basking in the sun, next to the swamp, at the Clyde Butcher Gallery. Three of them were lying right next to one another. Quite a distance away from this group was another one and further away was another one. They were approximately three feet to five feet in length. This was the most alligators we have seen here since we started visiting the gallery three years ago.
Another day of adventure completed, we returned to our campsite to start preparing dinner and settle in for a relaxing evening in our home away from home.
Tomorrow another adventure begins.
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