Thoughts of Florida usually include visions of white beaches and city nightlife; blue water and sunshine; amusement parks and, perhaps, retirement communities.  All that is part of the Florida experience, certainly.  But there is a slower, quieter, wilder, less developed side of Florida, too, as exhibited in several national park units and in an extensive network of state parks.  The largest and best known of the national parks are EVERGLADES NATIONAL PARK and BIG CYPRESS NATIONAL PRESERVE. 

Everglades is the third largest national park unit outside Alaska.  Visited by a million people each year, Everglades is an International Biosphere Reserve, a World Heritage Site, and a Wetland of International Importance—one of only three locations worldwide on all three lists.  Unlike most national parks, Everglades National Park was created to protect an ecosystem rather than to safeguard a unique geographic feature.  The Everglades are actually a slow-moving (about a quarter-mile per day), grass-covered river that originates in Lake Okeechobee to the north and eventually flows into Florida Bay at the southern tip of mainland Florida.  The park protects the largest U. S. wilderness east of the Mississippi.     

Thirty-six threatened or protected species live within the Everglades, including the Florida panther (a sub-species of cougar), the American crocodile, and the West Indian manatee.  The Everglades comprise the most significant breeding ground for tropical wading birds in North America; more than 350 species of birds, 300 species of fresh and saltwater fish, 40 species of mammals, and 50 species of reptiles live within the park.   

Adjoining Everglades National Park to the northwest is Big Cypress National Preserve, protecting 720,000 acres of the 2,400-square mile Big Cypress Swamp.  “Swamp” is a misnomer, as the land consists of sandy islands of slash pine, mixed hardwood hammocks, wet and dry prairies, marshes, and mangrove forests.  Big Cypress is one-third covered with cypress trees, most of the dwarf pond cypress variety; almost all the great bald cypress trees are gone, having succumbed to the logging days. 

Together, Everglades and Big Cypress offer a nature experience that most of us would not otherwise enjoy.  Not spectacularly beautiful like Glacier or Grand Teton, these national park units nevertheless provide intriguing and, in their own right, beautiful photographic opportunities.  Their scenery and their wildlife are well worth a visit.