River of Grass

There are several reasons why I like using Ft. Lauderdale airport (FLL).

The airport itself is compact: not 5 minutes from airside to the parking garage. Secondly, the highway to the west coast (and home) begins right at the airport entrance. You literally cannot get lost unless you back out of the rental car space and onto the runway – and then you have another problem.

Here’s the real reason why I like using FLL – not twenty minutes distant the local road gives way to I-75 and ahead as far as you can see is Florida’s vast “River of Grass” - the Everglades. It’s really quite a sight – especially on a clear and cool December afternoon.

The Everglades covers some 2,000 square miles on the lower third of the peninsula down to the Gulf of Mexico. It is a natural fresh-water ecosystem where water moves very slowly through the vast marshes.

Crossing “alligator alley” as it is known locally takes about 2 hours. The highway planners have given drivers ample rest areas to stop and view the open water sloughs and vast sawgrass prairie which extends to the horizon. Look carefully and you can see the beady eyes of alligators. In the steamy summer months you don’t have to look carefully – the big reptiles are everywhere along the (fenced) road.

All is not perfect, though. The Everglades have been badly damaged by Big Agriculture, relentless drainage and poor urban planning. The estimated price tag to repair all this, including the restoration of the Kissimmee River to its natural, meandering state (it was mistakenly straightened years ago by the Army Corp of Engineers) is around $10 - $15 billion. Now there’s an error for the record books.

In the meantime, if you are ever down this way, seeing the River of Grass is a good excuse for using FLL.