Throughout the Everglades National Park, vultures hang around visitor areas. Believe it or not, vultures are attracted to the rubber around windshields, sunroofs, and windshield wipers on vehicles. It is unknown why vultures are attracted to these parts of the vehicles.

There have been occasion where vultures have cause damage to visitors’ vehicles. Royal Palm, a wildlife viewing area, has had numerous vulture incidents. The Park encourages visitors to protect their vehicles with tarps and bungee cords that are free in the Royal Palm parking area.

Place the tarp over the car to cover the windshield wipers and rubber around the windows. Secure the tarp with bungee cords. Make sure to return the tarp and cords before you leave the Park.

Now, if you are not in the Royal Palm area, you can either bring your own tarp and cord or follow the following tips to protect your car from vultures if you plan to be away from the car for a long period of time.

Tips to protect your vehicle from vultures include:

• Park in full sun
• Avoid parking near groups of vultures
• Cover exposed rubber with wet sheet or towel
• Make loud noises to spook vultures
• Notify a ranger

Remember, do not harm the vultures as they are a federally-protected species.

Excited to visit the Everglades? Want to explore it in a fun way? There’s so many different ways to explore the Park, including an airboat tour. A ride on an airboat gives you an up-close-and-personal view of the Everglades; it’s a trip you’ll never forget.

To book an airboat trip, call 800-368-0065  or visit our Everglades Airboat Tours page. We are open seven days a week 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. If paying by cash, adults cost $40 (plus tax) and children 12 and under cost $20 (plus tax. If paying by credit card, adults cost $45 (plus tax) and children cost $25 (plus tax).

It’s December, which falls during the dry season in the Everglades. The dry season is best time to head down to the Everglades to view an array of different wildlife species. Not only to many species migrate down for the winter, but there’s less chance of rain and thunderstorms. Plus, the weather is less humid. During this time of year, the good weather and low water levels create the perfect environment for animals and birds to congregate near bodies of water.

Some great spots in the Everglades to view wildlife include: Shark Valley, the Anhinga Trail (Royal Palm), Eco Pond (a mile past the Flamingo Visitor Center), Snake Bight (near Flamingo), and Chokoloskee Bay (Gulf Coast).

In these spots, visitors can see alligators, wading birds, freshwater wildlife, and a few other land creatures. Since the animals are wild, visitors should be respectful to both the animals and the environment in which they call home.

We’ve shared a few rules and tips on viewing the animals in the Park to keep yourself and the animals safe.

• Keep your space from animals and birds. Do not disturb them (do not pick up or chase) in their home or anywhere in the Park. You can get a better view of wildlife with binoculars without bothering or spooking them.
• Walk away from animals if you feel you have disturbed them and leave the area. Animals and birds may feel threatened,  and start to act strangely (excessive flapping, pacing, muscle tension, staring, screaming/making frequent noises) or can be dangerous when they feel threatened.
• Stay away from nesting or den areas. Stick to the trails to avoid running into one of these breeding grounds. You don’t want to scare away the parents, who leave the offspring behind who cannot yet survive on their own.
• If you see a potentially sick/hurt/abandoned animal, leave it be or notify a ranger; it’s family could be nearby.
• Pets are not allowed on trails or the wilderness areas of the Park.
• Do not feed the animals. The Park does not want the animals to become reliant on being fed, unnaturally, by humans. The Everglades is a real-life habitat for animals, not a zoo.
• Follow all safety signs and warning signals in the park.
• Do not harass animals in the Park in any way.

When you visit the Everglades, you are visiting something’s’ home, whether it’s a bird or an alligator. The Park asks that you respect all animals in the Park. Please refrain from feeding, touching, yelling, throwing things, or interacting with wildlife. It’s best to admire them from afar.

If you’re looking for a way to see wildlife in the Everglades, an airboat tour is a great way to view animals and birds without worrying about bothering them or putting yourself in a dangerous situation.  To book an airboat tour with Captain Mitch’s Airboat Tours, , call 800-368-0065  or visit our Everglades Airboat Tours page. Captain Mitch’s Everglades Airboat Tours are open seven days a week 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. If paying by cash, adults cost $40 (plus tax) and children 12 and under cost $20 (plus tax. If paying by credit card, adults cost $45 (plus tax) and children cost $25 (plus tax).

 Throughout the year there are many programs, walks, and events held in the Everglades National Park. Throughout the winter or “dry” season, there are even more programs offered, since more people tend to visit the Park at this time. For this article, we wanted to share with you two activities you should check out in the Park (before or after catching a ride on Captain Mitch’s airboats, of course!)

• Anhinga Amble (Royal Palm) – Every day in December 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. This is a stroll on the renowned Anhinga Trail where alligators, wading birds and other wildlife are spotted! Meet at Royal Palm benches.It is wheelchair accessible. Free with Park entrance fee.
• Glades Glimpse (Royal Palm) – Every day in December. 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. This is a sit-down talk about the Everglades. Topics vary. Meet at the Royal Palm benches. It is wheelchair accessible. Free with Park entrance fee.

And, of course, Captain Mitch’s Airboat Tours will be running daily from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Everglades. All online reservation requests for an airboat tour should be done 24 hours in advance. If you are planning same day service (less than 24 hours), please call our office to ensure we can get you in right away.

Ticket costs:

Adults: CASH PRICE: $40.00 per person, plus tax. CREDIT CARD PRICE: $45.00 per person, plus tax (1 hr ride)

Child: CASH PRICE: $20.00 per person, plus tax. CREDIT CARD PRICE: $25.00 per person, plus tax (1 hr ride)

There is a boat minimum of 2 adults.

Click our airboat reservation page to book your trip or call 800-368-0065 or 239-695-3377.

Visit www.captainmitchs.com for this month’s coupon code for a discount on a tour!

Captain Mitch’s Airboat tours is located at 3099 Tamiami Trail E Everglades, Fl 34139.
We look forward to seeing you. Get ready to have some fun in the Everglades this December!

Ready to visit the beautiful Everglades National Park? There’s so much to see and do here! We highly recommend exploring this National Park and, of course, going on a private airboat tour with us at Captain Mitch’s Airboat Tours.

For this article, we wanted to share with you some basics about the Park:

• The Park was established on December 6, 1947
• It is 1,542,526 acres
• About 1 million people visit the Park each year.
• The Park has three visitor centers: Ernest F. Coe, Flamingo, Shark Valley, Gulf Coast
• It costs $25 for you to enter with a vehicle and $8 per person to enter
• It is the third largest national park in the lower states
• The main purpose of the Park is to preserve wilderness
• It is the nation’s slowest, widest river that is 60 miles wide
• The water moves at about 2.5 miles per day
• The Seminole people called the area “River of Grass”
• You can explore the entire Everglades’ coast by water vessels
• You can enter the Park by land through Flamingo, Shark Valley or Gulf Coast.
• The dry season, which is between December and March is when most guided tours, programs and park concessions are available. This is also the best time to see wading birds.

Want explore a national treasure? Jump on an Everglades airboat tour for a chance to see wildlife and other beautiful sights. An airboat ride is the best way to get around the Everglades/

For a private, guided tour through Everglades, book an airboat tour with Captain Mitch’s Airboat Tours.

To book an airboat ride, call  800-368-0065  or visit our Private Everglades Airboat Tours page. We are open seven days a week 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. If paying by cash, adults cost $40 (plus tax) and children 12 and under cost $20 (plus tax. If paying by credit card, adults cost $45 (plus tax) and children cost $25 (plus tax).

Twenty to 40 years ago, there were plenty of ducks and other waterfowl swimming around the Everglades, and hunters would go hunting. But these days, not as many ducks show up as they once used to in the past.

Migratory ducks have been coming to the Everglades in lower number in recent years. It is believe that weather trends and the Everglades’ current ecosystem is why their numbers have dropped. Many of these ducks don’t migrate as far as they used to. There is also less habitat for these ducks to settle in due to farming and housing developments.

Lake Okeechobee used to be a big spot for ducks, but the low water levels and the algae blooms have kept the ducks away. The algae blooms kill aquatic vegetation that the ducks eat, which reduces ducks’ food sources. Phosphorous has also ended up in the Everglades from fertilizer from yard and farms which help feed the algae blooms and red tide, which has killed about 367 tons of marine life in the Gulf.

However, current restoration efforts to bring the waterflow back to its original state has seen positive results for bringing ducks back to the Everglades. For example: the Kissimmee River restoration project has allowed the natural river channel to be restored so water overflows the banks. Pre-restoration there was about one bird per four square kilometers and now there is about 40 birds per square kilometer.
The Central Everglades Project, which will restore habitat of 10,000 acres of degraded wetlands south of Lake Okeechobee, is said to help bring ducks back. Part of this project included the Everglades Agricultural Area Reservoir, which is a 240,000-acre-foot holding tank similar to other stormwater treatment areas in the Park. These treatment areas are known to be good places to hunt ducks because they are filled with aquatic vegetation.

With more and more spots restoring to natural flows, the response has been positive for ducks and other waterfowl to return.

If you’re a fan of ducks or other birds, you can catch a glimpse of them on an airboat tour. Jump on an Everglades airboat tour for a chance to see ducks and other beautiful wildlife. An airboat ride is the best way to get around the Everglades.

For a private, guided tour through Everglades, book an airboat tour with Captain Mitch’s Airboat Tours.

To book an airboat ride, call  800-368-0065  or visit our Private Everglades Airboat Tours page. We are open seven days a week 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. If paying by cash, adults cost $40 (plus tax) and children 12 and under cost $20 (plus tax. If paying by credit card, adults cost $45 (plus tax) and children cost $25 (plus tax).

As the Earth warms, sea levels have risen, which has pushed the freshwater-saltwater barrier inland in the Everglades, as well as destroyed marshes and killed off mangroves – both of which are habitats to many creatures and threatened species. This large subtropical wilderness also is a protective barrier against hurricanes but between climate change, development, and draining, the Everglades isn’t functioning properly.

As sea levels rise, the mangroves keep retreating and many drown. According to research done by Florida International University, mangroves will likely all be submerged by water in 30 years as there is nowhere else for them to go. A geologist at FIU believe mangroves will be replaced by open water and the outlook isn’t good.

Mangroves are not just important to the Park, they are important for humans and life itself. They buffer storms and saltwater. They give many marine creatures a home.

The FIU research showed mangroves are migrating west over marshland at about 100 feet a year but they have been halted by a levee (flood barrier) in Miami-Dade county.

With mangroves moving inward, south Florida will become more vulnerable to storms.

The rising sea levels are also causing land loss to occur.

The ecosystem of the Everglades continues to shrink. Although there are restoration efforts in place, sea level rising is still a critical problem as its occurring at a rapid rate. In the south Florida coastline, the sea level is rising three times faster than the world average. Now, saltwater is entering the Everglades.

The Everglades is currently unhealthy, despite restoration efforts. It’s up against a lot of threats. It’s’ essential to do everything we ca to restore the Everglades so it can put up a fight against sea level rising and mangrove collapse.

Want to support the Everglades? Click Everglades National Park support.

At Captain Mitch’s Airboat Tours, we love this Park, and we are lucky to show people its beauty and importance on a daily basis.

Come on down to the Everglades and ride with us on an Everglades airboat tour to truly experience this wetland. An airboat ride is the best way to get around the Everglades.

For a private, guided tour through Everglades, book an airboat tour with Captain Mitch’s Airboat Tours.

To book an airboat ride, call  800-368-0065  or visit our Private Everglades Airboat Tours page. We are open seven days a week 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. If paying by cash, adults cost $40 (plus tax) and children 12 and under cost $20 (plus tax. If paying by credit card, adults cost $45 (plus tax) and children cost $25 (plus tax).

Marjory Stoneman Douglas and the Everglades are forever intertwined. In fact, the National Park Service refers to her as the “Defender of the Everglades.”

She nicknamed the Everglades the River of Grass in 1947 to reflect the area’s slow movement of shallow sheet flow through the marshes.

In 1947, she wrote the book, The Everglades: River of Grass, which is the same year the Everglades National Park was established. She fought hard to protect the Everglades. After several reprints, there was a revised edition was published in 1987, to draw attention to the continuing unresolved threats to the Everglades.

She was one of the first people to bring attention to the Everglades and the south Florida ecosystem being in trouble due to construction programs in the 1950s by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. She felt this organization was destroying the wetland, eliminating the sheet flow of water, and disturbing/changing the natural cycles of the ecosystem.

She knew the Everglades depended on the flow of water from Lake Okeechobee into the Park and upon the Kissimmee River that feeds into the lake.

In 1970, she formed the Friends of the Everglades and was actively involved. She was against the Everglades being drained and developed.

Douglas was an American journalist, author, and women’s suffrage advocate.

In her book, she spent five years researching the Park and south Florida. The book sold out in a month.

The Christian Science Monitor wrote of the book, “Today her book is not only a classic of environmental literature, it also reads like a blueprint for what conservationists are hailing as the most extensive environmental restoration project ever undertaken anywhere in the world.”

Come down and explore this beautiful wetland that Douglas loved and fought to protect.

At Captain Mitch’s Airboat Tours, we love this Park, and we are lucky to show people its beauty and importance daily.

Come on down to the Everglades and ride with us on an Everglades airboat tour to truly experience this wetland. An airboat ride is a great  way to get around the Everglades.

For a private, guided tour through Everglades, book an airboat tour with Captain Mitch’s Airboat Tours.

To book an airboat ride, call  800-368-0065  or visit our Private Everglades Airboat Tours page. We are open seven days a week 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. If paying by cash, adults cost $40 (plus tax) and children 12 and under cost $20 (plus tax. If paying by credit card, adults cost $45 (plus tax) and children cost $25 (plus tax).

Want to safely explore the Everglades? There’s so many different ways to explore it, including an airboat tour. A ride on an airboat gives you an up-close-and-personal view of the Everglades; it’s a trip you’ll never forget.

To book an airboat trip, call 800-368-0065  or visit our Everglades Airboat Tours page. We are open seven days a week 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. If paying by cash, adults cost $40 (plus tax) and children 12 and under cost $20 (plus tax. If paying by credit card, adults cost $45 (plus tax) and children cost $25 (plus tax).

As you’ve seen on the news in recent months and years, our precious parks, forests, waters and other natural habitats are in danger. From fires and deforestation to algae buildup and flooding, there’s a lot of destruction (natural and manmade) occurring.

Unfortunately, the Everglades has its share of problems as well including unprescribed fires, flooding, storm damage, too much/too little water, invasive species, and more. The Everglades is a 1.5 million-mile-acre wetland preserve, it has a fragile ecosystem, and it is filled with thousands of creatures and plant life.

With that said, it is essential as humans and visitors to this Park that we treat this area with respect and follow the Park’s rules and regulations when exploring this beautiful place.

The Everglades provides both shelter to many species, and water to southern Florida, so it is important for visitors to respect this environment. If you’re planning a trip to the Everglades, the follow rules and regulations should be kept in mind.

• It is prohibited to collect or disturb animals, plants, artifacts, seashells or anything else that is naturally occurring in the Park.
• Pets are not allowed on backcountry campsites, beaches or in the wilderness of the Everglades.
• Feeding animals is not allowed.
• All trash must be taken out of the Park with you or placed in Park’s trash cans.
• You must bring your own drinking water; it is not available everywhere in the Park.
• Fires are only allowed at designated beach sites.
• Firearms and fireworks are prohibited.
• If you are aboard a vessel in the Everglades, you must abide by the U.S. Coast Guard’s regulations.
• Personal watercraft, like jet skis, are not allowed in the Park’s waters.
• If you need tide information, it is available at the Flamingo and Gulf Coast visitor centers, or online.
• Be extra cautious if your boating by any manatee signs.
• Generators and other portable motors are not allowed in backcountry campsites.
• If you need to use a bathroom and are not near any facilities, it is asked that you dig a hole in the ground at least 6 inches deep; the hole should be covered when you’re done. If you’re near a coastal ground site or at a beach, you can urinate directly into the water.
• Wash dishes and your body away from waterways.

These are just some of the Park’s regulations. To view more of the Park’s regulations, visit www.nps.gov.

Want to safely explore the Everglades? There’s so many different ways to explore it, including an airboat tour. A ride on an airboat gives you an up-close-and-personal view of the Everglades; it’s a trip you’ll never forget.

To book an airboat trip, call 800-368-0065  or visit our Everglades Airboat Tours page. We are open seven days a week 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. If paying by cash, adults cost $40 (plus tax) and children 12 and under cost $20 (plus tax. If paying by credit card, adults cost $45 (plus tax) and children cost $25 (plus tax).

There are many ways to explore a park, but in the Everglades, you can explore a park in a way like no other on an airboat. As most people know, airboats are pretty iconic in the Everglades. Airboats are great way to travel in the Park that allow guests access to areas that are not accessible by foot. On an airboat tour, you will learn facts about the Park, while seeing birds, animals, reptiles, sea life, and plant life.

For this article, we wanted to share with you the many reasons of going on an airboat tour in the Everglades.

• Airboats are considered safe for riders, wildlife, and plant life.
• Airboats don’t redirect natural water currents or alter surface hydrology as much as regular boats.
• Airboats, unlike regular boats, don’t cause soil and organic particles in the water to rise up and affect plants, fish, and other wildlife in the water.
• An airboat can go anywhere, whether its shallow or deeper waters.
• Airboats do not have any moving parts under the water, which makes it safer in the water for fish and plants nearby.
• If there is a collision with plants or animals, an airboat will cause far less damage than an average boat because it does not have a propeller.
• Airboats are stable, so you can move without risking the vessel tipping over.
• On an airboat, you get a great view of your surroundings because of the raised seating.
• Airboats can travel at different speeds to handle different situations. They can easily handle dense vegetation, sandbanks, dam walls, floating grass islands, and rocks in the water.
• An airboat is easy to launch. In fact, only one person is needed to get the trip started.
• An airboat doesn’t need a slip or ramp to be launched into the water.

Captain Mitch has been guiding airboat tours through the Everglades since he was a little tike. He followed in his family’s footsteps and began his own airboat touring company more than 30 years ago.

Come explore the Everglades safely in an airboat. It’s a truly unique experience.

It can be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for you. Captain Mitch’s Airboat Tours give you a glimpse of the Everglades like no other. To book an airboat ride, call 800-368-0065  or visit our Everglades Private Airboat Tours page. We are open seven days a week 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Click our airboat ride rates to view our prices.

October is the “spooky” month filled with costumes, tv specials, ghost tours, and more. With Halloween right around the corner, we wanted to share some spooky stories of the  Everglades region.

–The Ghost Ship of the Everglades has been haunting Florida’s south coast since the days of pirating marauders — its phantom crew is cursed to sail the seas for all eternity, after giving chase to a merchant ship and getting lost in the twisting channels of the Everglades’ swamplands. The story has been for hundreds of years.

–The story of Edgar Watson. No one knew where he came from, but he built a cabin in the Everglades over 100 years ago and largely kept to himself, until a fisherman found the gutted body of a woman floating in the Chatham River. Authorities eventually found dozens of human bodies buried on Edgar Watson’s farm, and a former farmhand reported seeing him take lives ritualistically. The property is thought to be haunted to this day.

— The Calusa. It’s not clear what happened to the Calusa, an ancient tribe of Native Americans that resisted incursion by the Spanish and fatally injured explorer Juan Ponce de Leon in 1521. The Calusa practiced human sacrifice and believed their leaders had supernatural powers. The mass remains of their civilization were found hundreds of years later in the form of human skulls.

–Missing planes. Numerous planes have disappeared in the Everglades over the years, never to be seen again. In December 1972, Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 was headed to Miami from New York, but due to an electronic failure and pilot error, it crashed in the Everglades, killing 96 of 163 people onboard. Paranormal events were soon experienced on other Eastern Air Lines planes that used parts cannibalized from the wreckage of Flight 401. The odd occurrences were documented in the 1976 book “The Ghost of Flight 401,” and the airline eventually replaced all the parts salvaged from the doomed flight.In May 1996, a fire broke out on ValuJet Flight 592 shortly after takeoff from Miami. The plane plunged into the alligator-infested water and very little of it was ever found; all 105 passengers were killed. Some think it to be one of the most baffling airplane mysteries in modern aviation history.

No one knows the Everglades like Captain Mitch’s Airboat Tours in Everglades City, Florida. To book an airboat tour, call 800-368-0065  or visit our Everglades Private Airboat Tours page. We are open seven days a week 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Click our airboat ride rates to view our prices.