coopertown and the everglades
Posted on Sunday, 1 January 2012 at 04:32
A few days ago, Sandy and I went to a small town called Coopertown with my parents. It has a population of 8 (yes, eight!) and is home to the original Coopertown airboats that take you through part of Florida's Everglades. The main reason we went was to see the alligators up close, but we were also curious about the airboats... they were nothing like I was expecting, but pretty cool all the same.
Unfortunately for me, we had to wait quite a while before we got onto our boat. Since it was extremely hot that day (or "warm" if you were to ask Sandy haha), I got irritable pretty quickly and definitely wasn't as excited as Sandy or my parents. When our boat finally came and we were able to get on, I banged my leg on the back of the metal seats and am now left with a huge lump and bruise! Typical me :p
Each boat had a "tour guide". They drive the airboats and also tell you lots of interesting facts about the Everglades and the alligators. Our tour guide was really funny and had us laughing every time we stopped to take in the view or to watch the alligators.
During the ride, we were lucky enough to see about four different alligators, including the oldest one living there; he's 60 years old and is sadly blind, but certain laws prevent anything being done to help him. We only caught a glimpse of him, but one particular female alligator took a keen interest in our boat. Our guide explained that she'd view the boat as an object, rather than a boat with people on board, making her curious about what it was. She came right up to the edge of the boat and gave everyone a good chance to take her photo c; our guide also explained that if an alligator wanted to, it would be able to bite through the metal of the boat without a problem. I'd had no idea their jaws were so strong, or that they were such fascinating animals in general!
After the boat ride, we were given the opportunity to hold a baby alligator. It didn't really seem to mind being passed around like a parcel and actually seemed to quite enjoy being held by so many people. Neither me or Sandy dared to hold it - I'm not sure if it was a girl or a boy - but we did touch it's tail and it's foot... it felt so strange, like it wasn't actually a living animal!
Unlike Sandy and I, my mum wasn't afraid to hold the baby alligator... in fact she was one of the first people to get in there and ask to hold it. Her reaction was so funny... I really should've videoed it c;
Overall, the airboat tour at the Everglades was really interesting, despite the fact it felt like we were barely on board the boat for fifteen minutes (we were actually on it for around 40). My favourite part was probably learning about the alligators, although the actual boat ride itself was pretty awesome. Needless to say, the waiting we did in the afternoon heat was definitely worth it in the end c:
