Tamiami Trail

[urbpan]

After some lunch we went looking for more hiking trails. We were traveling on the Tamiami Trail between Ochopee and Naples, but damned if I can find this boardwalk on google maps. There was a small Native American gift shop, "closed due to death in the family," by the trailhead. We encountered several birders on our way.



A strangler fig puts a killing embrace on its host.


This peaceful spot is at the end of the boardwalk. We saw several large birds here, one of which is in the picture. Can you see it? Can you name the species?


Until you walk in it, the water is really amazingly clear.


Finally got a shot of an orchard orbweaver. Disappointingly small, but very colorful.

That evening we settled in Naples, trying to find what we considered a town. We didn't really succeed, but we did eat out at the Village Pub. This "pub" is in a very high end shopping mall in a wealthy neighborhood on the waterfront, a maze of canals that allow people to walk from their condos down to their boats. The canal behind the mall is illuminated, and big untidy schools of catfish swarm at the lights when people toss food in:


Apparently sometimes you can see sharks and dolphins there, but this was impressive enough for us.