Summer Days: Swamp Walk

Recently we found ourselves visiting family in Florida.  While the white sands and clear blue water were a definite draw, we spent one afternoon touring my sister's university which happened to have a nice little "swamp walk."  There were signs posted to beware of alligator and venemous snakes.   The kids were very excited about seeing an alligator.  My father was very excited to see turtles.  He had even bought turtle food for the hike. My sister warned everyone that we might not see anything and that seeing turtles was far more likely than seeing any alligators.  When the boardwalk stretched over the marshy water, we paused to throw turtle food into the water.  Several were sunning themselves on half submerged logs.   Then a movement caught our attention.  It looked like a water snake at first.  But as it came closer it was clear it was an alligator hatchling.

The kids were over the moon with excitement.  From closeby on the banks we could hear a reptilian chirping and concluded that there was at least one other hatchling close by who was calling for his mother.  Although we looked hard, we could not see anything lurking in that murky water.   None-the-less a fun experience!