As we often like to do in the “Fall”, we like to head out early on the weekend and enjoy the nice weather outside. Today was no exception as we set our sights on the Orlando Wetlands Park in Christmas, FL. Well I don’t think Mother Nature is quite on the same page as she delivered us a beautiful 90 degree Fall morning. Even though it was on the warm side we decided to head out to the Orlando Wetlands Park as it was the last weekend they would be open until February, so it was today or 2016. We stocked our cooler with some waters and snacks and trekked the 30 minutes to Christmas Florida (for those not familiar, it is an actual city in Florida). To get us in the 90 degree festive mood Emily tuned the radio to 99.3 so we could enjoy some Christmas music on our way (yes, they are already playing Christmas music down here). I have to disagree with the lyrics “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas.”
We like to visit the Orlando Wetlands Park a couple times a year, and have frequented this location over the past few years because it is a great place to walk, enjoy nature, and see some pretty awesome alligators. The outdoor walking trails are open most days but the indoor education center isn’t always open, but is worth a visit if you are there. Luckily today the center was open so we got to explore some new additions from the last time we visited.
After a quick spin around the displays we grabbed the stroller and headed for the trail. Just before we started on the trail we spotted a turtle who was nesting in a protected area of the park so we stopped for a quick photo below.
The majority of the first half of our 1 plus mile trail was unique birds and pretty wetlands areas but no gators. We brought our binoculars this time to get a closer look at some of the wildlife. Most of the visitors to the Orlando Wetlands Park are bird watchers, often times with some sophisticated camera gear (sometimes you feel a bit of a lens size envy if you know what I mean).
Halfway through the walking trail you turn down Alligator Alley which is normally the place where you not only see large quantities of gators but also some pretty big ones. We always stop by the Alligator Alley sign and snap a quick photo to commemorate the occasion below.
One of our traditions when we visit the park is for each person to guess how many gators we will see and the person who guesses closest gets to pick our afternoon treat on the way home. Today the guesses went: Sawyer 3, Patrick 15, Emily 22, Hunter 23. Needless to say Patrick won as we saw 13 gators. Below is one of the 13 beauties that we spotted today.
We finished the rest of the walking trails with the Sawyer questioning if we were headed back to the car every 4 minutes. We said goodbye to the Orlando Wetlands Park for 2015 as we wiped our drenched faces and hurried into the comfort of the air conditioned car. If you haven’t taken a trip out to Christmas, FL to visit the Orlando Wetlands Park I would highly recommend the visit. The park is a great getaway from the city and often delivers are some pretty unique alligator sightings.