Photo: Everglades City Fishing Boats
PART II OF II
EVERGLADES CITY, FL. BY BOAT:
When venturing into Everglades City by boat, it's easy to make a wrong turn in one of the many mangrove side channels. A chart, hand held VHF, compass, and basic safety supplies are encouraged. Dinghy-pooling in
Angel's RIB, we followed the widely spaced markers, backtracking only once after I'd made a wrong turn and Neil, too busy photographing a pink spoonbill, missed my blunder. Nearing Everglades City, we saw a small-plane airport to the right. Farther down the riverfront was the famed Rod and Gun Club, a hotel/restaurant with an old timey car near the entrance. As we continued along, we saw numerous commercial fishing vessels, stacks of traps, and ice houses.
There were a few waterfront cafes and a marina, which was closed for the summer. We tied to the docks of an eatery that sported a large sign announcing "FOOD." Known as City Seafood, service was friendly and the selection was fresh and filling. We dined at old, wooden tables overlooking the river. Small, harmless crabs, heedless of gravity, sidled up support posts and clung under the tables and floors. I dropped a fried shrimp tail and the antigravity crabs swiftly engaged in a feisty tug of war with it. The area's pace was slow and the tranquil surrounds were as close to nature as one could get. We were enchanted.
We didn't know where to dock the dinghy to explore land, but after eating at City Seafood, they allowed us to leave the boat there for a short while. The town, its population ranging from 400 to 500 souls on a 1.2 square mile island, was smaller than I'd pictured. The single main road and a few side streets were arranged in a grid pattern. The local supermarket was a diminutive building with summer hours of 9am-7pm and the selection of perishables was limited.
The fuel station had a convenience store with an impressive selection of bug spray. In the center of town, there's a museum that showcased 2000 years of local history. This building was erected in 1927, originally as a commercial laundry. Another museum worth seeing is Ted Smallwood's old trading post on the nearby Chokoloskee island, which is an ancient, man-made shell mound. A remarkably preserved piece of history, the store and post office was built in 1906 along the water where the Calusa used to arrive in their canoes to trade goods. The site of a grisly murder in 1910, many believe the area is haunted. Sadly, this rare treasure is struggling to survive after an illegal and financially damaging act by a developer.
Visit: www.smallwoodstore.com If link doesn't work, it's easy to find by typing "smallwood store" in browser...