Lightning Hit the Road in the Everglades

This happened on the route to Flamingo in Everglades National Park in March 2026. 

A big storm was all around and lightning came out of nowhere hitting the road before the car. 

Check the following dash camera video. 

Good reminder about Florida being the capital of lightning of the United States. 

Impacting. Scary. A rare close call.

New Visitor Center of Everglades National Park

The new building of the Gulf Coast visitor center at the western side of Everglades National Park - Photo from 2026. 

Short stop in Everglades City to take a look at the newest visitor center of the national park. Modern and a lot better than the old green building we visited many years ago. The canoe/kayak ramp and the rental facilities look also great. Nice stroll in a lazy day of winter. 

Where is the Gulf Coast Visitor Center? - Map my location.

Morning in Chokoloskee Bay

Tiny island in the wild bay of Southwest Florida seen from Everglades City . 

Wonderful expanse of blue with green dots. This is the winter of Chokoloskee Bay, the entrance of the Ten Thousand Islands. This paradise becomes hell in the summer thanks to the mighty mosquitoes of South Florida. Chokoloskee means "old house" or "old home" in Seminole/Creek. 

Where is Chokoloskee Bay? - Map my location. 

Manatees Galore in Big Cypress

One of the biggest manatees in this canal of the big swamp of South Florida.

Down and up. Down and up. A cyclical dance for air followed by casual splashes. There were many manatees in the waters behind the Nathaniel P. Reed Visitor Center at the western entrance of Big Cypress National Preserve. A lonely alligator arrived floating like a submarine. It kept some distance. We spent some time enjoying the show. Manatees were called by old Spaniards "vaca marina" - sea cow. They were the mermaids of the early explorers. 

Where is the Nathaniel P. Reed Visitor Center? - Map my location.

The Fakahatchee Hilton

The cabin seen from the lake - Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park, 2026.  

Two miles from the trailhead of the East Tram Trail is this cabin from 1957 pompously called The Fakahatchee Hilton. No pools in this place, just a lake behind that was full of alligators. One of the big males raised its body in a "water dance" bellowing with an impressive prehistoric display of wildness. The roaring sound told us to "stay away". And of course, we did. 

Where is the Fakahatchee Hilton? - Map my location.    

Exploring the Largest State Park of Florida

Sign at the entrance of the park on James Memorial Scenic Drive. 

This is the biggest state park in Florida and it's kept wild and simple. What does Fakahatchee mean? "Dark water" in the Muskogee language - a proper name for these swampy lands. We met some cyclists on the long and narrow dirt road, the only one through this wilderness. Six miles later, we left the truck at the trailhead of the East Tram Trail and got lost into the forest in search of the Fakahatchee Hilton. 

Where is Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park? - Map my location. 

Magic Sunset over Burns Lake

Dramatic view of the sunset filtered through the smoke of wildfires - Burns Lake in the winter of 2026. 

The view looks magical, but the strange colors come from the drama of a big wildfire running through Big Cypress National Preserve. The flames are getting closer and probably the rangers will close the campground. We'll see. So far, we are enjoying the sunset.

Where is Burns Lake? - Map my location.