Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary

Painted buntings at a feeder

We both had some things to do in the morning so we awoke at 6 am then did some things in the room and left at 8 am following our Kashi breakfast.  We drove to the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary.  We arrived a little after 9 am and paid the $28 fee for our admission then signed up for a guided tour at 10:30.  Our guide, Phil, a retiree from Athens, Ohio, was a knowledgeable and capable guide.  He gave us an overview of the area as well as the variety of plants and animals that inhabit the 17 square miles of the sanctuary.  We walked along part of the nearly 2.3 mile board walk with visitors from New York, New Jersey, Seattle and Kentucky.  Phil pointed out all of the birds that we saw and shared a lot of information about the history of the area.  After we completed the tour around 12:30, we returned to the car and had our normal travel lunch of peanut butter, crackers, apples and carrots. 

Red and grey lichens

We went back to walk the entire trail including the parts that were not on Phil’s tour.  There are some huge cypress trees in the swamp some of which had strangler figs growing on them.  We saw many epiphytic bromiliads growing on branches as well as many varieties of lichens.  We were amazed by the tiny floating ferns that we thought were duckweed plants, there were also resurrection ferns that appear dead until the wet season when they rejuvenate.  There were also strap ferns and leather ferns that grew in profusion in the swamp. 

Along the way we saw a number of song birds including painted buntings, gnatcatchers, phoebes, black and yellow crowned night herons, ibis, grebes and many others.  One small adult alligator was seen but we did not see her babies.  We saw a raccoon foraging for food in the swamp and a small frog swimming on the surface.  A cottonmouth water moccasin was sunning in some plant matter not far from the boardwalk.  Probably the highlight of the trip caught us quite by surprise.  As we were back on the road leaving the area, we saw a large cat running across the highway.  It took us some time to realize that we had seen a Florida Panther!  

There are only about 80-100 panthers still alive and we saw one today.  Most people in the area have never seen a Florida Panther.  These cats are the same species as a puma, cougar or mountain lion but inhabit the Everglades area of Florida.  The population is sharply down because of habitat encroachment and deaths on the highways.

When we left the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary we drove to Marco Island to meet our friends, B. J. and Diana Johnson.  The Johnsons are here spending a few days before leaving on a 20 day cruise throughout much of the Caribbean.  Their condo is very nice and convenient to many interesting areas.  They told us about one of their favorite restaurants on Marco Island, Snook Inn.  

Cypress tree with strangler fig

We all decided to go there for dinner.  We had a boiled shrimp appetizer.  B. J. and Diana had a large lunch so only had a bowl of conch chowder Mary had broiled grouper stuffed with crab.  One fillet had a dill sauce and the other had hollandaise.  I had a broiled seafood combo platter that had Mahi Mahi, grouper, crab, three scallops and three shrimp. Mary and I both had a baked sweet potato and a small salad.  We were very happy with our meals.  The quality of the food and service were both very good.  We really enjoyed chatting with the Johnsons.  They have been our good friends for over 35 years and we enjoy seeing them only regretting that we don’t get with them more often. 

We drove back to our hotel through Naples.  We were aware that Naples has an overall very high income.  The size and quality of homes is an indication of the resources of the residents.  Another indicator is the number of golf courses in the Naples area.  The flat sandy land, the warm climate and the high income people in the area who golf creates a need for the many links in the Naples area.  One thing that did surprise us is the cars in the area.  In driving in and through Naples during our trips to the Everglades or to Marco Island we have seen Bentleys, Ferraris, Maseratis and Lamborghinis not to mention the BMWs, Mercedes, Lexis and other luxury cars.

We plan to leave the Wyndham Garden Fort Myers Beach tomorrow morning and drive to the Tampa area where we will visit some local attractions then check into our hotel near the airport where we can get to the terminal at PIE in time for our Thursday morning flight.