Last weekend I got the chance to meet Clyde Butcher. There were a lot of people there and he was quite busy so I didn’t get much time to talk to him. I’m afraid I came across as a blithering idiot. My mind went numb. So much for making a good impression, I’m afraid.
It might have been the fact that Clif and I had just finished traveling the Loop, a long and rather treacherous length of road that had turned out to be much longer that we had planned. The plan was that we would set out down the Tamiami trail, find a place to take some sunrise pictures, travel the Loop, and arrive at Clyde Butcher’s when the gallery and festivities opened at 9:00. As it was, we arrived around noon, sweaty and dirty I’m sure and quite exhausted. I did get some great pictures though.
To me, there are two sides of the Everglades. The eastern side with the National Park down by Homestead and the western side by Everglades City. This was my first extended visit to the western side and it has quite a different feel. The eastern side in the park is quiet and serene with a real feel for being out in the wilderness. The western side seems much more encroached upon by civilization even though there were places we went that seemed very far removed from it.
I read many glowing stories of the Loop before we set off for our trip but I missed this one:
http://www.sptimes.com/2006/02/12/Floridian/Back_on_the_Loop.shtml
That’s more like it. The wild, wild, west is alive and well on the Loop. There are houses on the Loop, some look brand new, some look like they’ve been lived in forever. A lot are painted, to avoid insulting the residents, rather bright colors. They are all exactly alike, almost as if the house plans were handed down through generations. As the article says, it’s not a place you want to lock your keys in the car. And if you were to lock your keys in the car, you might be more inclined to walk out the 26 miles than to knock on one of those doors to ask for help. These are people with a fierce need for privacy and I’d rather not find out why.
There is also nature on the Loop, beautiful nature. It’s worth the trip but gas up and don’t lock your keys in the car. Actually, don’t take the car, take the truck, at least in September. It’s bumpy and wet back there.
It might have been the fact that Clif and I had just finished traveling the Loop, a long and rather treacherous length of road that had turned out to be much longer that we had planned. The plan was that we would set out down the Tamiami trail, find a place to take some sunrise pictures, travel the Loop, and arrive at Clyde Butcher’s when the gallery and festivities opened at 9:00. As it was, we arrived around noon, sweaty and dirty I’m sure and quite exhausted. I did get some great pictures though.
To me, there are two sides of the Everglades. The eastern side with the National Park down by Homestead and the western side by Everglades City. This was my first extended visit to the western side and it has quite a different feel. The eastern side in the park is quiet and serene with a real feel for being out in the wilderness. The western side seems much more encroached upon by civilization even though there were places we went that seemed very far removed from it.
I read many glowing stories of the Loop before we set off for our trip but I missed this one:
http://www.sptimes.com/2006/02/12/Floridian/Back_on_the_Loop.shtml
That’s more like it. The wild, wild, west is alive and well on the Loop. There are houses on the Loop, some look brand new, some look like they’ve been lived in forever. A lot are painted, to avoid insulting the residents, rather bright colors. They are all exactly alike, almost as if the house plans were handed down through generations. As the article says, it’s not a place you want to lock your keys in the car. And if you were to lock your keys in the car, you might be more inclined to walk out the 26 miles than to knock on one of those doors to ask for help. These are people with a fierce need for privacy and I’d rather not find out why.
There is also nature on the Loop, beautiful nature. It’s worth the trip but gas up and don’t lock your keys in the car. Actually, don’t take the car, take the truck, at least in September. It’s bumpy and wet back there.
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