07/07/2012 - Alligator Hunting in Alligator Alley

Launch: Meaher Park Beach
Launch Cost: $1 access fee to Park.
Destination: Alligator Alley also known as D'Olive Creek
Distance: 7 miles (round trip).
Trip Rating: Easy trip but go prepared for problems associated with open water.
Time Paddling: 2.5 hours
Weather: Sunny and warm - 75-85 degrees. Winds calm and then out of the south 5-10 mph. Rising tide. Current almost negligible. Waves to 6 inches.
GPS Track: To view or download the GPS track of this trip, Click Here.

Header Image is a photo of an alligator taken today. The media is making a big deal over the senseless killing of two Alligators in D'Olive Creek. What they should realize is, those alligators were already dead. Despite the signs in the area warning people NOT to feed alligators, it is a common practice to feed alligators there and a fed alligator is a dead alligator. It doesn't make any difference to the alligator whether it is killed by idiots with bow and arrows, hunters who gave money to the State so they could kill a gator, or conservation officers snuffing out the life of a fed alligator that no longer fears people. They are all senseless killings.

Today's trip started at Meaher State Park which is an excellent place to launch a kayak.

I kayaked all the way up D'Olive Creek to the Lake Forest Spillway and back.

I was hunting alligators today looking for any that might have an arrow sticking in their body. Some idiots recently killed several alligators in D'Olive Creek using bow and arrow. It is bad enough that the alligators have to live with the nearby sewage treatment plant and swim with all the trash floating in the creek, but now the poor alligators are the target of sickos with bow and arrows. Thankfully the only thing I saw sticking on the body of the alligators seen today was snails.

Only a single small flower of Water Stargrass (Heteranthera dubia) is visible over a wide expanse of Ducker Bay.

Strikingly big and beautiful American Lotus flowers. 

Always awesome to see Nelumbo lutea in bloom.

A juvenile heron looked like it had just woke up or had been hit by lightning.

A beautiful looking female Anhinga was resting in a tree.

Mosquito Fern turned the surface of the water in one area to a red color providing stark contrast next to the yellow kayak.

A lone cypress tree grows out of the water next to the Interstate. The tree is well used by birds.

A home along the causeway sits in a state of decay.

While conservation and marine authorities want you to think they care about alligators, when they allow urban waterways like D'Olive Creek to become garbage dumps, the reality is Alligators better be careful what they ingest because the authorities don't care. Intestinal blockages lead to many premature alligator deaths. Click Here.

07/03/2010 - D'Olive Creek and Bay

Launch: Scott's Landing (North side of causeway just west of Spanish Fort on Hwy 90).
Launch Cost: $4
Destination: D'Olive Creek and D'Olive Bay (Pronounced Doe'Leave) I always used to pronounce it Dee'Olive until I heard a historian talk about the name.
Distance: 7-8 miles (round trip)
Paddle time: 2-3 hours
Weather: Sunny, 80s to 90s, winds calm.
GPS Track: To view or download the GPS track of this trip, Click Here.

Header Image

1) A lotus flower pad (they are about 2 feet in diameter) with some small yellow flowers in the background. The floating pads repel water.

2) An American Lotus flower is a big showy flower (Nelumbo lutea). The name Nelumbo comes from the Sinhalese name for this flower which means Holy Lotus. Sinhalese refers to the people of Sri Lanka which is a large island off the southern tip of India.

3) Waters were smooth in D'Olive Bay and remarkably clear. Hampton Inn is visible in the background. During low tide, it may be difficult to kayak through D'Olive Bay.

4) Today was the first time I've kayaked D'Olive creek and D'Olive Bay and today's trip was stunningly beautiful.

5) On the edge of Blakeley River, an alligator of very respectable size starting coming at the kayak instead of going under water like most do when near a kayak. It had no fear and made for a nice photo.

6) On D'Olive creek, the walk bridge is usually filled with spectators feeding the alligators and the sign on the bridge (visible in this photo) says, "Do not feed the alligators." If you look in the water, there are four white marshmallows floating and there is an alligator near one. Yes, alligators eat marshmallows. Unfortunately, feeding alligators makes them bold and in Florida, a bold alligator is a dead one.

7) I love the wicked hairdo on the Kingfisher birds. It reminds me of my nephew Matt.

8) Interstate 65 across Mobile Bay. With the sun going down, it is time to head back to the launch site.

9) The grandeur of a sunset in the Shellbank River Bay of Holy Lotus flowers. Breath in...Breath out... Relax...

10) Sunset across Blakeley River. None of this area paddled today was protected by oil booms, no oil was seen, and the only scent in the air was from the Nautilus restaurant which was wafting enticing aroma to my nose.