Why The Everglades Owns My Heart

Writer Annette Thompson has traveled to the Florida Everglades more than a dozen times. Here, mindful of the fragility of one of the South’s last wild places, she describes the things she treasures most.

Robbie Caponetto, Article by Annette Thompson

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Editor's Trip Planner

How to Explore the Real Everglades

Canoe and kayak rentals at Flamingo Marina, near the Flamingo Visitor Center at the southern point of the 38-mile park road, give you an opportunity to paddle around (there’s also a boat ramp for your own craft).

The National Park Service leads free 2.5-hour canoe trips on Nine Mile Pond (pictured). (Make reservations at the Flamingo Visitor Center.) More adventuresome paddlers can set out through mangrove tunnels on the Hells Bay Canoe Trail for an all-day shady tour. And expedition-level paddlers embrace the 99-mile Wilderness Waterway from Everglades City to Flamingo.