I recently returned from a great trip to Big Cypress and the Everglades with my friend Debbie  We canoed down the Turner River twice and it was so beautiful.  Went into some difficult to navigate areas that were magical.  The lilies were in bloom and we saw baby alligators and lots of birds.  The mangrove tunnels were spectacular.  Another kayaker on the river told us he spotted a panther and that it was much larger than he would have expected.  Saw a beautiful sunset from the Marsh Trail in Ten Thousand Islands, communed with the alligators in the pond behind the Fakahatchee Hilton, went on a swamp walk in Big Cypress behind Clyde Butcher's Gallery, and went to Shark Valley for the first time.    Spring is a great time to visit the swamp.  Hardly any mosquitoes compared to the summer and fall.

I will be posting photos from the trip on the blog soon.  Visit my website at lynnebuchanan.com to see more images from the Everglades and other natural areas.