NAPLES, FLORIDA – I’m only a few minutes away from one of the top destinations in Florida on a bright, clear morning. But the only sounds I hear as I wander along a wooden boardwalk at the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary are the shrill warbling of tiny birds in overhead pines and a light wind tickling the fronds of a palm tree.
Below my feet, the water likes flat and shiny blue-back beneath my feet. Spiky bromeliads, neon-green plants that grow from the trunks of trees, shine in the dappled morning sunlight and tiny insects scurry across the dark surface of the pools.
Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary. JIM BYERS PHOTO
Driving across south Florida, it’s easy to think of the inland regions as a dark hole on the map, a void that’s well worth, well, avoiding. And while many of the things we Canadians head to Florida for are stretched out along the coast, it’s also true that there are natural marvels just a few miles from the glitzy hotels and white sand beaches.
Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary is one such place; a wonderful park between Naples and Fort Myers. The area was being drained in the 1940s, but environmentalists who knew how critical Florida’s inland waterways were to the region’s storm water control and overall ecological health managed to stop the damage and get things, at least in some areas, restored to normal. Today, there’s a fine visitor centre and several kilometers of winding boardwalk that takes you past wide-open marshes, sweet-smelling pine forests and acres of dusky swamp (an ugly word for a beautiful habitat).
Signs explain the ecology of the area. A dead tree might not look handsome, for example, but it’s home to woodpeckers, who go after the insects inside with their beaks and produce holes used by other birds or bats. I stop to watch hawks spin lazy circles in the bright blue sky. I also spot snowy white egrets and a wood stork, this area being the most important wood stork nesting area in the U.S.
Paddle Marco offers great kayaking trips south of Naples. JIM BYERS PHOTO
The next day I take in a wonderful kayak trip with Paddle Marco, paddling around mangroves between Naples and Marco Island. Our guide explains we’re in an estuary, a mix of fresh and salt water, where you’ll find a huge variety of wildlife. Ninety per cent of the fish in the Gulf of Mexico come to the red mangroves of south Florida to lay their eggs, my group is told.
At one point we climb out of our kayaks and take a walk on a small island at low tide. One of the other guides in our group reaches into the water and comes up with a bat fish, a curious, gnarly creature that looks like a cross between a bat and a small manta ray and even has little legs. Later we spot bald eagles and osprey in the trees, as well as a raccoon swimming from one mangrove island to the next.
Segway Fort Lauderdale can take you on fun rides through beautiful Hugh Taylor Birch state park. JIM BYERS PHOTO
On the other side of the Florida peninsula, I take a lovely Segway tour of Hugh Taylor Birch state park in Fort Lauderdale with Segway Fort Lauderdale owner Jon Rosen. The park is literally a block from the beach and butts up against million-dollar homes and posh hotels. But it’s a quiet, tranquil oasis filled with gopher tortoises, scaly brown iguanas and towering banyan trees with multiple “trunks” and thick, hanging vines that kids (okay, and some adults) can’t resist taking a swing on.
Rosen explains how the gopher tortoises can burrow 10 meters underground and create warm, dry holes that snakes or even raccoons will use to stay warm and dry. He also takes me on a short, off-road excursion, helping me pilot my Segway past gumbo limbo trees and through thick forests of trees dripping with Spanish moss.
JUST THE FACTS
The Naples Beach Hotel is a wonderful spot on the Gulf Coast of Florida. PHOTO COURTESY NAPLES BEACH HOTEL
SLEEPING
The Naples Beach Hotel and Golf Club has a great beach, a large, attractive swimming pool and lots of green space for the kids. There’s a nice beachfront bar, and some of the rooms feature a living room area with a fridge and a couch. I loved the old-time Florida feel of the place and highly recommend it to anyone visiting the area. It’s a very short drive to charming downtown Naples, as well.
In Fort Lauderdale, The Embassy Suites on 17th St. has plenty of space for families, a lovely pool and garden area and a massive indoor lobby with free breakfasts and free drinks and snacks in the afternoon.
DINING
Blue Moon Fish Co. is a sleek and sexy spot on the Intracoastal Waterway in Fort Lauderdale. I had a perfectly cooked grouper with subtle Asian spices and sweet macadamia nuts, along with sautéed veggies and a crispy rice cake.
Osteria Tulia in Naples serves up home-made Italian dishes (the owner’s Mom likes to pop in to help) in a chic, vibrant space that feels more like Toronto or New York than southwest Florida. The agnolotti pasta with roasted veal, brussels sprout leaves, pancetta, butter and truffle jus was lick-the-bowl good. They also have a gastropub next door with excellent craft cocktails. Two thumbs up for both places.
MORE INFORMATION
Naples and Marco Island Area: http://www.paradisecoast.com/
Fort Lauderdale: https://www.sunny.org/
Got a comment or complaint? Email me: jim@jimbyerstravel.com
