Written by Janet K. Keeler, Accessible Travel In Florida
There’s nothing in the world like the Florida Everglades. The vast and mysterious 1.5-million-acre ecosystem is the state’s natural gem.
Unknowing tourists that traverse southern Florida on U.S. 41, also called the Tamiami Trail, might think there’s not much to see. The terrain simply looks like a flat no-man’s land to the untrained eye.
Oh, but get higher up and the water that snakes under the grasses becomes obvious. This is the “River of Grass” so named by writer and Florida nature activist Marjory Stoneman Douglas in the 1940s.
The Everglades is classified as a World Heritage Site, an International Biosphere Reserve and a Wetlands of International Importance, among other titles. It is home to alligators, crocodiles, manatees, the Florida panther and hundreds of species of birds, and attracts adventurers and sightseers who want an only-in-Florida experience.
There are several entrances to the vast Everglades National Park and Shark Valley on U.S. 41 is the most convenient for an introduction to the ‘Glades. It is just 25 miles west of Miami and about 70 miles east of Naples, and adjacent to the Miccosukee Indian reservation. Shark Valley also has accessibility features that make it welcoming to visitors with mobility, hearing and vision challenges.
Other Everglades visitors centers include Flamingo, Ernest F. Coe and Gulf Coast, the information gateway to the Ten Thousands Islands. The Flamingo entrance, on the southwestern edge of the Everglades, is the jumping off point to canoeing, kayaking and camping. There are accessible campsites available in several locations including in Royal Palm State Park, which is within the national park, and Flamingo. The park’s Homestead entrance leads to these visitors centers, which also have nearby accessible trails.
