Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Tacos & Tequila Bar
(
www.roccostacos.com
; 224 Clematis St; mains $12-23; 11:30am-11pm
Sun-Wed, to midnight Thu-Sat)
, a saucy
nuevo
Mexican restaurant with funky decor,
tableside guacamole and 175 different kinds of tequila - no wonder it's so loud in here!
Admirably servicing its migration of snowbirds is
Palm Beach International Airport
(PBI; 561-471-7420;
www.pbia.org
)
, 2.5 miles west of downtown West Palm Beach. The
downtown
Tri-Rail station
(
800-875-7245;
www.tri-rail.com
;
203 S Tamarind Ave)
also
serves as the
Amtrak station
(
561-832-6169;
www.amtrak.com
;
209 S Tamarind Ave)
.
TOP OF CHAPTER
The Everglades
Contrary to what you may have heard, the Everglades isn't a swamp. Or at least, it's not
only
a swamp. It's most accurately characterized as a wet prairie - grasslands that happen
to be flooded most of the year. Nor is it stagnant. In the wet season, a horizon-wide river
creeps ever-so-slowly beneath the rustling saw grass and around the subtly raised cypress
and hardwood hammocks toward the ocean. The Everglades are indeed filled with allig-
ators - and perhaps a few dead bodies, as
CSI: Miami
would have it. Yet its beauty is not
measured in fear or geological drama, but in the timeless, slow Jurassic flap of a great
blue heron as it glides over its vast and shockingly gentle domain.
Which is one reason that exploring the Everglades by foot, bicycle, canoe and kayak
(or camping) is so much more satisfying than by noisy, vibrating airboat. There is an in-
credible variety of wonderful creatures to see within this unique, subtropical wilderness,
and there are accessible entrances that, at the cost of a few hours, get you easily into the
Everglades' soft heart.
The Everglades has two seasons: the summer wet season and the winter dry season.
Winter - from December to April - is the prime time to visit: the weather is mild and
pleasant, and the wildlife is out in abundance. In summer - May through October - it's
stiflingly hot, humid and buggy, with frequent afternoon thunderstorms. In addition, as
water sources spread out, so the animals disperse.
Everglades National Park
While the Everglades has a history dating back to prehistoric times, the park wasn't foun-
ded until 1947. It's considered the most endangered national park in the USA, but the
Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (
www.evergladesplan.org
)
has been enacted
to undo some of the damage done by draining and development.
