On the Road Again
I was reminded of people’s fascination with alligators when I was
out for a walk and spotted a large gathering of folks. Adjacent to our RV park here in Gulf Shores AL, there is a very large marsh area with a boardwalk that reaches out into the marsh. My daily walking trek takes me along the shore of the marsh. Last year an alligator came out of the marsh and was resting near the walking trail. Thus, the crowd of photo-taking and “crazy” people, some of whom boldly came within a few
feet of the alligator. I decided to hang back as I recalled a ranger saying that gators can move in short bursts up to 20 mph. Soon the local police arrived and moved the crowd to a safer spot while urging the gator back into the marsh.
The first time that I can remember seeing alligators was at the Riverside Park Zoo. They never moved.
That was not the case in South Carolina, where I first saw alligators on the golf course. I instantly grabbed my camera, forgetting that I was next to hit, and got way too close before the golfer we were playing with advised me to move back. I did get photos. Over the years we’ve seen quite a few gators on the golf courses in Hilton Head, SC. One of the highlights of a recent trip to Hilton Head was when our kids and grandchildren spotted an alligator!
Since that first encounter, we have seen a number of these
fascinating reptiles. Alligators are a large reptile in the Crocodilia order, and they first appeared 37 million years ago. The average adult is 13′ long and weighs 790 pounds. Their adult coloring is black or olive brown, while juveniles have yellow or white stripes for better camouflage in the marshes. Alligators are found in ten states in the Southeast, but predominantly in Florida and Louisiana.
My kayaking days in the creek behind our house in North Carolina came to a halt when a rather large alligator and his two friends were spotted numerous times in the creek.
Alligators don’t regard humans as prey but may attack if provoked or alerted by unusual splashing in the water. My thrashing in the water after a tip-over in the kayak could have been perceived as an annoyance by the alligator. “The End” to kayaking in that creek!
When we visited the Kennedy Space Center several months ago, we noticed the fences which curve over to prevent alligator incursions into the grounds.
The photos were taken in Gulf Shores, Alabama, where we are staying right now and in Florida along Alligator Alley.
