Manatees, gators and birds – oh, my!
Fort Lauderdale is a nature lover's eco-paradise, offering close encounters with creatures of the land, sea and air. All within minutes of downtown.
Stepping into the Everglades is like stepping back in time, to see Florida the way it was long before the first Europeans set foot in this new, primitive land. Prehistoric alligators drift lazily in the brown swamp water of the river of grass, winding past cypress knees and saw grass.
Whisking through in a shallow-bottomed airboat covers the most territory in the least time, or you can paddle through in a kayak or canoe for a more leisurely tour.
Several operators offer airboat eco-tours, including Everglades Holiday Park Airboat Tours at 21940 Griffin Road, www.evergladesholidaypark.proxy.voicestar.com/ or 954-874-1124; and the day or night Everglades airboat tours at Sawgrass Recreation Park at 1006 N. U.S. 27, http://www.evergladestours.com/_index.php or 888-4-AIRBOAT.
Three-hour and day-long kayak eco-tours starting off in Everglades City are available through Crystal Seas Kayaking from December through April, www.crystalseas.com/or 877-732-7877.
But you don't have to go that far west to get close to the creatures of the wild. The Anne Kolb Nature Center at West Lake Park, 751 Sheridan St., Hollywood, www.broward.org/PARKS/WESTLAKEPARK/ or 954-357-5161, offers environmental pontoon boat tours through a 1,501-acre coastal mangrove wetland just south of the Fort Lauderdale International Airport. It's a place to get close to manatees and a wide variety of birds, including cormorants, pelicans and egrets, as well as raptors such as hawks, osprey, and falcons.
For those who prefer a self-guided eco-tour and the comfort of their own two feet, the Secret Woods Nature Center at 2701 W. State Rd. 84, Dania Beach, offers close encounters with local flora and fauna on two nature trails. The Laurel Oak Trail leads through a hardwood hammock and a tidal marsh area where you're surrounded by laurel oaks, sabal palms, white mangroves, pond apple trees and a variety of palms. The longer New River Trail winds through three different ecosystems – a hardwood hammock, a coastal marsh, and a tidal marsh.
