By Hitty Gale, a Gale Lyons Hitty
For the first leg of our journey to Key West, we traveled south on Interstate 75 and then East on Alligator Alley.
Collier County and Broward County are connected by Alligator Alley across what was once thought to be the vast, impenetrable wilderness of The Florida Everglades. The Everglades is a complex, interdependent wetlands ecosystem that covers a good portion of Southern Florida stretching to the Florida Bay.
When the highway was first proposed, the AAA (American Automobile Association) jokingly called it “a useless road” and an “alley for alligators” However, the State Highway Board liked the name and officially declared the name of the new road to be “Alligator Alley”
The current toll is $2.50. At mile marker 37.5, we stopped at the Everglades Welcome Center.
I had my picture taken in front of the Wood Stork display. The Wood Stork is an Indicator Species which means that it is closely watched and studied by biologists and environmentalists. Changes to its existence could indicate changes to the ecosystem of its natural habitat.
After our short break, we were “on the road again”. Florida Keys—here we come.