SOUTH BEACH, MIAMI

Our last day in Miami and we had an entire day to ourselves. We planned to drive around South Beach and then head over to Wynwood that encases colorful murals and showcases some of the worlds best street graffiti artists.

Parking at South Pointe Park was an easy access to South Miami Beach and the South Point Pier. It had a nice park area for small children with sprinklers and restrooms and easy access for an evening stroll along the marina. It is also a great place to watch cruise ships entering the port. South Pointe Pier is also a great place to take pictures of Miami Beach.

The lifeguard stands were unique and colorful.

There was a convenient beach walk all the way down to Miami Beach from South Pointe. We loved this and was so convenient walking around Ocean Dr. for a quick lunch/ snack. There is a Free Beach Trolley which is convenient and quick in case you are short on time. This is a great place to just relax and wind down a hectic day.

Parking in this area could get problematic on weekends and holidays. There is metered parking here and parking garages available close by. Street parking was difficult and spots are taken quickly. Ocean Dr was crowded particularly in the evenings. It had a variety of restaurants, icecream shops and a pretty relaxed vibrant energy after sundown.

7th street and Collins Avenue Garage
210 7th street

13th street and Collins Avenue Garage
1301 Collins Avenue

16th Street and Collins
Indian Beach Park and 4601 Collins

The Welcome Sign board for Miami Beach is at the end of the Julia Tuttle causeway 195 towards Miami beach on the left  before you turn right to join 907/Alton Road.

EVERGLADES NATIONAL PARK, FLORIDA

"There are no other Everglades in the world"- Marjory Stoneman Douglas.

Everglades is one of the largest tropical wilderness found in the USA. This is one of the parks where you can get up close views of manatees, alligators, crocodiles and various species of birds that visit during the warm winters. 

 Things to remember :

1.) Dry season: This lasts between November - March.
Better chance of seeing a variety of birds and predators, wildlife
2.) Wet season: April to November.
Buggy and chance of storms are inevitable.
Many ranger programs are closed. Check the NPS Everglades website here for latest information.
3.) Get a pair of binoculars. Your kids will thank you!
4.) Check for closures on the NPS website as they are regularly updated with latest information.
5.) Carry sunscreen

How did we cover Everglades?

We had 1 1/2 day here. The first half we spent at Coopertown. We went on an airboat excursion to see the reptiles and natural surroundings.

There are 3 areas to cover at Everglades.
- North Entrance covering Shark Valley and Gulf Coast covering Everglades City
-South Entrance covers Royal Palms at Homestead covering the Anhinga trail and Gumbo Limbo trail.
It also covers Flamingo which is 38 miles into the south park which ends at the Florida Bay.
- The 3rd entrance is via the Florida Bay to explore the gulf coast.

We visited Everglades in November and if I distinctly remember the Shark Valley tram tours were not operational. This would probably have been a great experience. If you do get a chance go when the tours are operational. Here is the link.  Reservations are needed specially from November to April and it is about a 2 1/2 hour tour. 

What will you see:
Estuaries, freshwater marshlands, mangroves,sloughs, tropical hammocks, cypress trees and coastal mainlands along with reptiles and animals like alligators, manatees, egrets, are some of what you can expect to see.

Ernest F. Coe visitor Centre is a good place to start. Pick up a map here. The rangers guided us as to the best spots for seeing wildlife and advised us of some areas that were closed. This is the southern area in Everglades NP.

1. Anhinga Trail:

Anhinga Trail

- About 4 miles from the visitor centre is Anhinga Trail. It is a short 0.8 mi trail. If you have time do the ranger hike. We managed to catch up with one that had just started. Going with a ranger is the best education you will ever get. They were so knowledgeable and answered questions that the kids and little ones had. It had a small loop and a boardwalk over the Taylor Slough. We heard alligators nearby growling The seemed to be very near to us but due to the thick dense habitat we had to settle with just hearing them. There were cormorants, Tricolored heron and great egrets on the trail and a vast area of lily pads in the water.
The trail was stroller friendly. It was scorching that day. Thank goodness for the hats.

- Gumbo Limbo trail was closed due to flooding when we visited.

2. Mahogany Hammock:

We wanted to make sure we did not miss out on anything. So we made a quick stop here. It was a short boardwalk which had a lot of mahogany trees just like how the name of the stop was. The place was humid as there wasn't a lot of air circulation due to the thick vegetation. The loop was short however there was a lot to learn on the trail.

Gumbo Limbo tree

The gumbo limbo tree is one of the most hurricane resistant tree in the area.

Nurse Log

The nurse logs are trees that continue to support the plants and animals. Mammals and incubating animals live inside the fallen logs. Plants absorb the stored moisture along with the nutrients. Evern after total decomposition, the trees essence live on in the plants that grow from the nutrients left behind. So interesting. Read this on one of the informational details on the trail. 

4. West Lake Trail:

New growth at mangroves

This was a short boardwalk which had a thick mangled mangrove. There was nothing much to see here except for the mangroves which I saw for the first time at a close distance. At the end of boardwalk was the West Lake. There were three types of mangroves white, red and black. The mangroves thrive in salty, soggy, oxygen poor places with tropical weather. The area was filled with a bad stench. So we hurriedly moved to the next destination. 

5. Flamingo Visitor Centre:

This was almost about 35 miles from the Ernest Coe visitor centre. There were manatees flipping and swimming in the river nearby. A few crocodiles were basking in the sun and there were some in the water. There was a marina and a kayak rental. We clicked some pics of the reptiles and the sea animals and moved on to our next destination NASA.

Manatee in the water

Crocodiles

AIRBOAT TOUR, EVERGLADES NATIONAL PARK

To make it easier for planning purposes, I will break up this Everglades tour into two parts.

- Airboat tours
- Everglades National Park ( Ahinga trail, shark valley visitor centre etc. )

The two places are about an hour drive to each other. So you can plan as to how it would suit your itinerary. We did the airboat tours first and then stayed for the night at the Hampton Inn and Suites Miami South in Homestead. Hampton.

While there are crocodile zoos and farms for crocodile viewing, one cannot miss going to Everglades National Park without visiting and seeing Alligators in an Airboat! Driving from Keywest to Coopertown, we were short on time and it took a bit longer than our estimated time to reach our destination due to some construction that was being carried out. However we reached bang on time before the last tour went out at Coopertown Airboat tours for the day. 

There are a few authorized airboat tour operators. They can be found on the  National Park Services website.  These three are Coopertown Airboat tours, Everglades Safari Park and Gator Park.

We wanted to see alligators in their natural habitat so we decided to go with Coopertown Airboat tours. It was a difficult decision to make as to which one would be a good choice as all had reasonable amount of good ratings. We decided we did not want the safari park as we had not much time. So we settled just for the boat tour. Did we have any regrets to not go to a safari park? Well it was mixed if we have more time we may have given it a second thought but since it was a good 3 and a half hours from KeyWest we decided to keep it simple just in case we were delayed.

Keep in mind their last tour timing. After purchasing tickets, we were given a short talk about the importance of the marshlands that help protect the habitat and the abundant wildlife in their habitat.

Recommended to Read before your trip to Coopertown Tours:

- Go in the morning/afternoon. The alligators love the sun.. There is a higher chance of seeing more of them during this time.
- Check online coupons to save some cash.
- Parking is free.
- Last boat ride is at 5.15pm. Contact the tour company for latest information.
- If you have a National Park Pass, there may be an additional discount for the ticket.   
- You will get a chance to hold a young alligator at the end of the tour.
- To families unsure if this would be right for your toddlers.. We travelled with our 2 year old and yes we found it safe. We definitely would recommend using the cotton / headphones for them too.
- The guides do their best to find alligators however there may be a chance that on some occasions they are are no sightings.

We had a professional and educational airboat guide who took us on a 9 mile tour and who went out of his way to find us a few alligators. We had the 24 seater boat to ourselves as we were probably the last visitors for the day. We were given cotton balls plus headphones to block the resounding noise the boat makes as it made its way through the marshland.

The best part of the evening was the sunset as we were I presume about 9 miles out on the marshes and the spectacular rain cloud in the other direction as it poured closeby. If there was one thing we would have changed about this trip, it would be to visit earlier in the day.

The boat waded through tall saw grass. No wonder Everglades is called the river of grass. We travelled through a Hardwood Hammock which was a small island of solid ground into the river of grass. Our guide showed us many alligator holes alas no alligators. I'm sure there would have been birds but we didn't see any closeby except for their chirping in the fading sunlight. He would switch off the large beast and made some kind of a sound to get the attention of the animals. Not sure if they really know them by name but he called a couple of them and it was real funny to see one medium sized alligator swim right up to us. So exciting!

It was a marvelous experience venturing out into the habitat and searching for the wildlife. At the end of our tour we got to hold a baby alligator. On the field talking to our guide was so much learning for my 4th grader who used his 4th Grade National Pass for the Everglades trip.

Our guide was truly passionate about his job and went out of his way to find some for us. There was no doubt that he knew the area extremely well as he maneuvered the airboat like it was his backyard!

VIDEOS:

Boat tour out to the marshlands:


 



There are other businesses where you can get to see alligators, snakes and crocodiles. We did not check these places out however am mentioning them below should you be interested. 

Everglades Alligator Farm
Naples Zoo
St. Augustine Alligator Farm
Myakka River State Park
Shark Valley
Big Cypress National Preserve

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this post are my own and I have not been compensated for writing the same.

BAHIA HONDA STATE PARK, FLORIDA KEYS

Bahia Honda State Park in The lower Keys is one of the most picturesque beach on the way to Key West.. It is located at Mile marker 37. Best known for its views, location and best snorkeling spots. Snorkel boat tours, beach equipment, food and kayaks are available at the store.

Take a short walk on the old bridge which is now closed and enjoy the views. Below are some pictures that were taken. Some pictures were clicked a few months after hurricane Irma destroyed some parts of the islands.

Before and after pictures after Hurricane Irma in 2017.

This was one of last stops on our way back before heading to Everglades National Park. Soaking in views of this beautiful place we were ready to see alligators in their natural habitat. 

Robbie's Marina, Islamorada, Florida

Before our Florida trip we told our son he would be feeding tarpon. He was so excited and could not wait to get there. It was a long drive and after our stop at Turtle Hospital, this was definitely what he was looking out for. Florida weather was perfect for November and it was a great decision to get here.

Robbie's Marina had so many ratings we could not pass by to Key West without stopping by. And we are glad we did. This is a little colorful village which has a few stores to pick up memorabilia . Once we cross that you either head over to the waterfront restaurant or if your just looking to feed the large tarpon then stop by the counter and for a few $s you get a bucket of fish.

Tip: Do not feed the hungry pelicans or the egrets. They wait eagerly to snatch it from the bucket and are not afraid of humans since there are so many people who visit this place. If you need help ask the attendant how to feed the tarpons. She will demonstrate and its worth noting that as much as it seems easy, the tarpon do jump out of the water and try to snatch the fish from your hand. You have to get on your knees and dangle the bait a little over the water if the tarpon are not nearby. This will attract them and they literally pounce out of the water to snatch it. Its a lot of fun specially for kids. However do keep them within arms reach as it is a little pier.

Hand sanitizer is available after you finish feeding the fish.

Time to allocate: about 20-30 mins.
Restrooms available.
Picture spot: Village, Tarpon feeding and the cute little manatee mailbox that is available just on the right when you head out back onto the overseas highway.
Free parking.

Turtle Hospital, Marathon, Florida

While we were driving to Key West, we planned to stop for 90 mins at the Turtle Hospital. Visiting the Turtle Hospital was a great educational experience for the entire family. We called them the previous day and reserved seats for the family. Since this is an active hospital, it was mandatory to be part of a guided educational tour to visit the grounds.

It is a 90 min visit start to finish. After signing the liability form, there is a short 20 min video and a few details on the survival and rehabilitation program . There is a room adjacent to the video room where actual operations on turtles take place. There was a small play area at the back where they can be ket entertained whilst you still are present for the presentation.

Next we headed into an enclosed area which has all the turtles that were injured have been rescued and are permanent residents. You cannot touch or feed the turtles. Video and photography was encouraged without the flash. The permanent residents are unable to return to the waters and hence are given names to identify: Bubblebutt, Bender, Montel, Rebel and April, Coastie, Sekoi, Kent, George, Chance, Bernie, Corrie. You can see them here.

We were introduced to large turtles and baby turtles that have been rescued. Many turtles bounce back after their capture \ injury and can be returned back to the ocean. Turtle Hospital updates release dates on their Facebook page. We missed this by a day :(

If your going and would like to be part of the rescue effort contact The Turtle Hospital. It is a wonderful experience, oodles of learning specially for school going kids and adults alike.

4th Grader FREE Annual NATIONAL PARKS PASS

I stumbled on this website in 2016. It was one of the best links I saved. When my son started 4th grade, we decided to let him make choices for our vacations or at least be part of where he wanted to go and take all of us on an excursion. On his list was camping, national parks and visiting some federal lands. Indirectly it gave him a chance to be part of the NPS Celebration of 100 years. President Barack Obama started this program in 2015 and it has been extended for the 2017-2018 school year. I am not sure how long this program will be around but I know its there till 2018!

He was so excited, intrigued at a Free pass and that exhilarating feeling that he would be instrumental in taking the entire family to one of his favorite parks for FREE !! So with a click of a button and an easy 3 questions on Every Kid in a Park, he got a print of his Free Pass that we recently utilized. Here are a few things to keep in mind for getting the pass.

1. This pass is ONLY for 4th graders. Home schooler equivalent and 10 years old.
2. You can visit National Parks, Federal Lands, Forests.
3. The paper print needs to be given to the ranger who will then exchange it for a plastic card. This is a great keepsake once the card is expired. 
4. The child needs to be with you in the car when exchanging. His/her signature or name will have to be written on the back of the card.
5. The child needs to be with you every time the card is used.
6. The child and the family is entitled to a FREE PASS for an ENTIRE YEAR!! 
7. It starts on September 1st 2017 and runs till August 31st 2018 of the 4th grade school year.
8. The Printed letter should be carried with you. If you lose it a fresh one will have to be printed. 
9. No electronic copies are allowed.
10. The card has a unique code so you cannot make copies and distribute it for others. 
11. Each child is encouraged to make his/her own.
12. Check the number of possibilites you can make use of with this card. 
13. There may be other exclusions, please check Every Kid in a park for more details.
14. Not all places on the list may accept the pass so you might want to call ahead just to make sure. Link HERE to check locations in your state.

Isn't this a great way to spend time with your kids and loved ones on an adventure? With so much going on in our lives, cell phone addiction, TV addiction and the social media that comes in between, this is a wonderful opportunity to get away for a few days and enjoy, learn about nature, breathe in some crisp fresh air, rejuvenate and come back whole hearted revived after a few days off from these worldly activities.

I believe, we would talk more with each other instead of being so engrossed with our heads lowered into our phones. A small life change in making sometime for ourselves with outdoor trips, make walking a necessity in life to be healthy and fit and to have a great relationship and rapport with people around us. Let us enjoy the natural surroundings that we so often tend to ignore.

If you like this post, please share it with your friends and family. It will surely make a difference in someones life and bring happiness and a Big Smile on your 4th Graders face. Please comment in the form below if you have utilized this Pass and do share your blog / or mention the place you visited with the Pass. I would love to read all about it.

BUT...

What if you don't have a 4th grader? There are fee free days allotted during the year. The only downside is the crowd that usually visit the park on that day/weekend. Free entrance days / week are available HERE.

So Long,

Savsmich

Very Large Array, New Mexico

Very Large Array is one of the worlds largest Astronomical Observatories and it has been featured in movies like Independence Day, Contact and Terminator Salvation. After our half day tour in Albuquerque, we headed towards VLA, a two hour drive into the most deserted part of New Mexico. It is about 50 miles west of Socorro. After the populated town of Socorro the only one lone town that you would pass by would be Magdalena. One important detail which I must mention is the lack of data reception within a couple miles of VLA.

Just before we reached the centre, we passed by the antennae. This is what it looked like. Tiny toy saucers.

The first thing that we did was to watch the 20 min by Jodie Foster that provided an idea of what we were there for in the first place.. Radio Astronomy, Interferometry and VLA. The VLA has 27 dish shaped antennas that are connected together to form a single radio telescope. They use this to study cosmic objects from the sun, planets, solar galaxies in our universe. Each antennae collect radio waves emitted by cosmic objects and send them to a central location where they are combined. By using many antennas the VLA can make detailed pictures of cosmic objects. It is one of the most powerful radio telescopes of the world.

We explored the exhibits before we made our way to the outdoor exhibits. We learned about Cosmic jets spewed by Giant galaxies, Microquasars in our galaxy, the first Einstein ring Gravitational lens and Gamma rays. There were informational texts on Water Ice on Mercury, Mystery centre of our galaxy and our neighboring stars.

VLA has walking tours that would surely provide in depth knowledge. They are usually held on the first Saturdays of each month. First Saturday tours in April and October are free Open house events. If your going these would be the best days to go. You can check more on the VLA Website. 2017 has 2 days November 4th and December 2nd if you wish to go. 

The Radio Sundial:

On the way to the 230 ton working antennae on the array.

Why is the VLA out there?

Look how tiny we are here in front of this massive structure:)

Why is the VLA so very Large?

What is inside the VLA?

 What happens inside the building?

Why do we need a supercomputer?

My kiddo checking out the telescope below. 

View on our way out. We headed towards the control building where we climbed up to the observation deck for a birds eye view and to learn about the super computer processing processing that was taking place in the control building.

We hope you enjoyed reading our experiences on this amazing New Mexico journey. Our next trip we headed to Mexico for some sun, fun, blue skies and clear waters of the Caribbean. Till we meet again.

Santa Fe, New Mexico

This charming city is located at 7,000 feet and is the capital city of New Mexico. It has the cleanest air in the country and has a vibrant culture, fascinating historical sites and multitude art galleries along the Historic Plaza/Downtown area.

We had only a day here and we managed to add see most of the must see places walking. The best way to see Santa Fe in and around is by following the guided brochure. Page 18 has a detailed map that helped us plan our walking tour here. Depending on what your preferences are, most people make the following a part of their iterinary.

• LORETTO CHAPEL: 

We started our walking tour with a visit to Loretto Chapel. I had heard so much of it and seen videos of this "miraculous staircase". Read and see more pictures about it HERE.

• HISTORIC PLAZA:

The Plaza was originally a fort and was the epicentre of Santa Fe life, Government and Commerce. It surrounded the houses, the Governors residencce and the prison. Today it has one of the most vibrant shops, restaurants, art galleries, museums, hidden courts, Cathedrals and colorful alleys with Spanish architecture. It is a grassy square surrounded by vendors and exquisite shops and restaurants.

• ICONIC LORETTO INN SANTA FE

This one cannot be missed! Close to the Loretto Chapel, it makes for a good picture stop. In November /December, almost all the houses and lit up with luminaires. They are so pretty to see at night. The below picture has luminaires on each floor. 

• OLDEST HOUSE:

This house is situated just beside the San Miguel Mission on the side road. It is a little hard to find so look out for the side left road just before the mission entrance to the left.

Oldest House

• SAN MIGUEL MISSION:

It is the oldest church structure built in the USA. The original adobe walls and altar were built by the Tlaxcalan Indians from Mexico under the direction of the Fransiscan Padres. ca.1610.

San Miguel Mission

• BARRIO DE ANALCO:

Orginally settled in the early 1600's by the Tlaxcalan Indian servants of the Spanish settlers from Mexico. The area is one of the oldest settlements in the US. 330 Old Santa Fe Trail. It includes San Miguel Mission and the Oldest house plus five other historic structures and buildings in between.

• PALACE OF THE GOVERNORS:

This is the oldest continuously occupied Government building in the country. It houses exhibitions, collections and artifacts. You will see local native American artisans selling handmade jewellery. 

• CATHEDRAL BASILICA OF ST FRANCIS OF ASSISI

This Cathedral combines adobe, French Romansque and modern architechural styles in a gorgeous beautiful package inside and out. It is centrally located. You will find musicians playing outside the Basilica. Every 15 mins you can hear the bells chime. There are 14 life sized statues in the Prayer Garden adjacent the Basilica representing the 14 events leading upto Jesus's crucifixion.

• CANYON ROAD

This contains the world's finest art galleries of Taos and Santa Fe artists of the late 1800's and the 1900's.

• STATE CAPITOL

If you happen to visit around Thanksgiving, attend the official kickkoff to the holiday season. Las Posadas starts and ends at the Palace of the Governors.

Picture Opportunities at Santa Fe:

- Picture of East Palace Santa Fe ( old section of the city )
This place is best seen when on the narrow pathway which has secret courtyards. They are beautifully adorned with green and red chillies. The best way to find it is to find the stairs to the entrance of the Cathedrale, turn left and come to the street. Cross the street and walk along the path of east palae to the left.

East Palace 

Chillies everywhere!

Add caption

A store near downtown

Wall hangings

Jewellery on display

Local artisans sell earrings at downtown

I have pinned a couple of places to be seen on MY PINTEREST.  Do check it out. 

See the rest of our roadtrip to other destinations in New Mexico!

Carlsbad Caverns
Roswell
Socorro
White Sands
Very Large Array
Albuquerque
Unique places in New Mexico

If you have visited New Mexico, do share your experiences with us.