Airboat Rides in the Everglades

Our Cypress Airboat tour was the ride of awas an approximate 40-mile ride through the
lifetime. We took the whole family on thisRiver of Grass. The River of Grass is a shallow
Everglade adventure, and it was a greatwide span of water, ranging from as shallow as
experience for all of us. The special child pricingsix inches deep to as much as three feet deep.
made it an affordable family outing during ourThe waters of the River of Grass are home to
Florida vacation, and I'm sure the kids willmany different plant and animal species, from
remember their airboat ride in the Everglades foralligators to orchids. Our captain was a
a lifetime. We have wonderful memories andknowledgeable and experienced guide and he
photos of our airboat ride in the Everglades tofreely shared his knowledge of the area. His skills
take home and share with friends.as a guide and as a pilot of the airboat thoroughly
Before our trip, I wasn't even sure what anenhanced our trip and made it fun and educational
airboat was, but I'd heard it was the best way tofor the whole family.
see the Everglades! Many areas of the EvergladesOur airboat ride through the Everglades was a
are only accessible by airboat, so I certainlygreat way to experience this amazing, natural
recommend an airboat tour, if you're interested inenvironment. We traveled through the River of
the ecology and wildlife of the Everglades. I wasGrass on our airboat tour and saw a huge variety
pleasantly surprised to find the airboat ride bothof wetland plants and trees. We saw sawgrass,
smooth enough to be comfortable in the shallowwater lilies, bladderwort, and other marshland
waters of the Everglades and fast enough to beplants, as well as cypress trees, orchids, and
a lot of fun for all of us. For anyone who doesn'tferns. We found the mangrove trees in the
know, airboats are light, small boats powered by aEverglades particularly interesting. Our captain was
rear-mounted airplane propeller. While our groupvery familiar with the many interesting plants on
was small, Cypress Airboats can handle groups ofthe airboat tour.
up to 14 on their larger airboats. We took aWe're all interested in bird watching, and this was
two-hour tour, but both shorter and longer toursdefinitely a highlight of our airboat trip in the
are available. They'll even schedule night tours! WeFlorida Everglades. We were lucky enough to spot
ruled that out because of the kids, but I imagine ita white ibis and a great blue heron, but a number
would be wonderful for adults. While I didn'tof other birds also inhabit the Everglades. We'd
expect the airboat to be fast, it can move quicklyhoped to see a roseate spoonbill or one of the
through the swampy waters of the Everglades.varieties of egrets in the region, but didn't get
The kids in particular liked this part of ourquite that lucky.
Everglades airboat adventure.We did see a number of alligators during our visit
We chose Cypress Airboats over otherto the Everglades, including one big one! That was
companies in the area for several reasons. Firstvery exciting for all of us. It was interesting to
and foremost, they are experienced andlearn more about the role of alligators, not only as
knowledgeable about the area, so we felt thata top predator in the area, but also the
they would provide us with a safe and fun airboatimportance of alligators to the overall ecology of
experience in the Everglades. Our primary reasonthe Everglades. Alligators burrow out gator holes
for choosing Cypress Airboats over theirthat provide homes for many aquatic species
competitors was the depth of the tour. Manyduring the dry season. Manatees and dolphins also
airboat tours go just a few miles into thelive in the open waters of the Everglades, but are
Everglades and do not offer a substantial amountobviously not seen in the shallow waters of the
of information, or a real chance to experience thebackcountry.
beauty of the Everglades. Cypress Airboats doesOur captain told us of a number of other
offer shorter airboat rides, geared toward speedinteresting animal species in the area. We had
and excitement, and we'd love to come back andhoped to spot the endangered Florida panthers,
give an adventurous airboat ride a try!but didn't get to see them this time. However, we
While I was a bit nervous about venturing deepdid catch a glimpse of a white tailed deer, and our
into the backwoods of the Florida Everglades, ourcaptain told us to watch for bobcats, opossums,
professional and knowledgeable captain made meskunks, raccoons, and other small mammals,
completely comfortable for our airboat ride in thewhich are common in the area, as well.
Everglades. The captain was, like all the captainsOur airboat ride in the Everglades was an
for Cypress Airboats, US Coast Guard certified,experience none of us will ever forget. We all
and grew up piloting airboats in the Everglades.can't wait to go back and definitely plan on taking
We had no worries at all about our safety on ouranother ride with Cypress Airboats on our next
airboat tour of the Everglades. The boat wastrip to the area. We're even considering arranging
equipped with floatation devices and first- aida special full day tour to really explore and
supplies, as well, so we felt like we were wellexperience the beauty and wonder of the
prepared if something did occur. Not only did ourEverglades. Fortunately, Cypress Airboats
captain ensure our safety, but also he was also aoperates 365 days a year, assuming the weather
great tour guide and shared many details aboutis safe for airboating, so we're sure to be able to
the ecology, animals, plants, and history of thefind time for another exciting adventure with the
Everglades.great folks at Cypress Airboats.
Our two-hour airboat tour with Cypress Airboat