Nov. 30 MYAKKA RIVER STATE PARK..... UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL W/ THE GATORS
The Mayakka River flows through 58 square miles of wetlands, prairies, hammocks and pinelands. There is a 7 mile scenic drive that winds through shady oak-palm hammocks and 39 miles of hiking trails.
First Gerry and I parked the car and walked through the palms to the dam that separates the lake from the river. The shoreline was covered in alligators and we saw one take down a white shorebird. Gerry said at this point "I think your going to be kayaking by yourself".
Next we biked for an hour or so and then went out on the boardwalk that's there for the birdwatchers. It was now time to take the plunge and launch the kayak. I sat in the front so Gerry's head wouldn't be in the pictures and off we went. There were gators everywhere both on the shore and cruising by with just their eyes showing (sizing us up). The paddling disturbed them and they would hustle in the water at a high speed. I was suprised at how fast they could move when they wanted to. The water in most places is under 5' deep so we knew when they went in that they were probably swimming right underneath us. The smallest one we saw out of around 200 was about 6' long and the largest was 15-16' and bigger around than a garbage can. Coming back to the dam where we had to portage we got lost several times and ran aground a few times. All the tributaries look the same so it took a while to find the right way although we'd been paying attention on the way in. It would be very easy to get lost in here and you definitely wouldn't want to go ashore.
The white bird in the picture is about to see the inside of the gator.
The Mayakka River flows through 58 square miles of wetlands, prairies, hammocks and pinelands. There is a 7 mile scenic drive that winds through shady oak-palm hammocks and 39 miles of hiking trails.
First Gerry and I parked the car and walked through the palms to the dam that separates the lake from the river. The shoreline was covered in alligators and we saw one take down a white shorebird. Gerry said at this point "I think your going to be kayaking by yourself".
Next we biked for an hour or so and then went out on the boardwalk that's there for the birdwatchers. It was now time to take the plunge and launch the kayak. I sat in the front so Gerry's head wouldn't be in the pictures and off we went. There were gators everywhere both on the shore and cruising by with just their eyes showing (sizing us up). The paddling disturbed them and they would hustle in the water at a high speed. I was suprised at how fast they could move when they wanted to. The water in most places is under 5' deep so we knew when they went in that they were probably swimming right underneath us. The smallest one we saw out of around 200 was about 6' long and the largest was 15-16' and bigger around than a garbage can. Coming back to the dam where we had to portage we got lost several times and ran aground a few times. All the tributaries look the same so it took a while to find the right way although we'd been paying attention on the way in. It would be very easy to get lost in here and you definitely wouldn't want to go ashore.
The white bird in the picture is about to see the inside of the gator.
posted by AL COTTON | 6:09 AM
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