
Alligator mississippiensis
Shark Valley Bike Trail
The Shark Valley Bike Trail is a ~fifteen mile loop in the Florida Everglades. Pahayokee is the Seminole word for the region, which means “grassy waters.” (Marjory Stoneman Douglas had a similar thought.)
Ardea herodias
Among others, alligators, park rangers, Athenian expats, great blue herons, Germans, fish, French Canadians, pig frogs, turtles, and Midwesterners mingle in the summer heat.
Shark Valley Bike Trail
Cyclists meander to the midpoint of the trail, a forty-five foot observation tower providing panoramic views from the highest elevation in the Everglades.
Shark Valley Bike Trail
Before ascending the concrete loop, massive cocoplum bushes offer up trailside nibbles.
Shark Valley Bike Trail
Shark Valley Bike Trail
Shark Valley Observation Tower
Shark Valley Bike Trail
Macro vistas stun.
Ipomoea sagittata
So do the micro ones.
Canal in Naples, Florida
The shopping cart in an algae-choked Naples canal brings to mind Rob Hopkins’ 2019 book, From What Is to What If. With a teacher’s luxury of extra time to wonder (and wander) during summer months, both the inspiring and disgusting trigger daily “what if” questions. The first four are chapter titles from Hopkins’ book…
1. What if we followed nature’s lead?
2. What if we started asking better questions?
3. What if we took play seriously?
4. What if school nurtured young imaginations?
5. What if we replaced lawns with native plants?
Sea Change, by Patrick Dougherty
Sea Change, by Patrick Dougherty
Sea Change, by Patrick Dougherty
Sea Change, by Patrick Dougherty
Sea Change, by Patrick Dougherty
According to the Naples Botanical Garden’s website, “North Carolina-based sculptor and environmental artist Patrick Dougherty, his son, Sam, and handpicked local volunteers have transformed approximately 30,000 pounds of willow saplings into an immersive structure on the Kapnick Caribbean Garden lawn.”
Danaus plexippus on Rudbeckia hirta
A sharp-eyed third grader discovers this black and yellow curiosity tucked under the leaf of a black-eyed Susan while planting the butterfly garden at school.
Danaus plexippus on Rudbeckia hirta
The caterpillar morphs into this chrysalis in under an hour’s time. We’re awestruck.