I was super excited to visit Myakka River State Park for many reasons. I heard it was so beautiful, lots of wildlife, & a really neat canopy walk in the trees. I started my adventure in the little museum at the entrance & then followed the road over to the water. I actually could not believe my eyes, there were gators EVERYWHERE! I was born in Florida & I have been to many lakes, but I have to say, I have never seen so many alligators in one place, so close before. I was excited & scared. So I wouldn’t cause a traffic jam, I moved my car to the lot & walked back over to the bridge. I stood watching for a long time, peering along both sides of the bridge in pure amazement.
Next, I drove to the trail that had the Observation Tower and the Canopy Trail and discovered they were closed for maintenance. Bummer! I was sad but I was not going to let that ruin my day. I still managed to have a great time exploring parts of the park that were accessible, like the Birds of Prey boardwalk. I then found a quiet place to sit & take in Mother Nature by the river. I felt like I was being stared at & looked down to see a gator, just a few feet away, looking at me with it’s beady eyes. Needless to say, I did not stay on that bench for much longer.
I spent many hours in that park & barley scratched the surface. I knew more adventures would be had there in the future.
Before you visit, make sure you check out the parks website for all of the up-to-date park information: https://www.floridastateparks.org/parks-and-trails/myakka-river-state-park
