19/365 - Florida Gator

I went out to check on the status of one of my geocaches and then thought we'd hit some of the other really remote caches out here. Man, we were out in the middle of freakin nowhere! We wound up at Dinner Island Ranch, which is thirty-four square miles of pastures, sloughs, pine flatwoods and oak hammocks that connect the Caloosahatchee River with the Big Cypress Swamp fifty miles to the south. We saw a plethora of wildlife, including deer, wild boar, wood storks, hawks, egrets and several pastures full of cows.

Oh yeah, and we also came across this guy. Scary!

I often ask myself why I go out in the middle of the woods and swamps, battling scary spiders on spiderwebs, ants, bees, mosquitoes and other various agitators. Being such a girly-girl, it's really opposite of all the things that I am. I don't recall being so adventurous when I was younger... maybe I've decided my life needs a bit of excitement - even if that means running into an alligator or two!

Whatever the reason for this new found insanity, all I can say is that I'm just having a blast!

We came across some white-tailed deer... Venison anyone? Look at the size of that doe!



We also saw a couple of nice, fat wild boar... then we went to Rib City for some baby back ribs - what can I say - they made me hungry!

Just so you have some brain food for the day, here are some interesting facts you may not know about alligators:

• In ancient times, the teeth of an alligator were believed to be a magical ward against snakebites, as alligators were thought to be immune to the bite of poisonous snakes.
• It has been said that an alligator can outrun a horse for a distance of 30 feet, due to the fact that they can run up to 20 mph for short distances.
• Alligators have a specialized valve in their throat called a glottis that enables the gator to capture its prey underwater. However, in order to swallow its food and thus keep itself from drowning, an alligator must lift its head out of the water.
• The courtship rituals of the alligator are quite complex, involving touching, rubbing, the blowing of bubbles and some vocalizations.
• The American Alligator (Alligator Mississipiensis) is found only in the southeastern part of the United States, from the Carolinas, down to Florida and over to Texas.
  

I hope everyone had a great day!