Ft. Myers Beach Trip

 I have been to Ft. Myers beach over the years, many times since moving to Florida over eight years ago. However, where we went was somewhere that I didn't know existed, had no clue how to even get to, and no idea what to expect. The professor had been many times over the years, he even lived on the beach for part of the year. We took a bus to the beach and turned onto a couple back roads and pulled into a small parking lot. We were at Matanzas Pass Preserve. The building was covered with wood inside and out and had displays of the history of Ft. Myers Beach. Cookies, lemonade, and crackers with jam awaited us when we came into the main room filled with chairs. The cookies were delicious and the lemonade refreshing. We all took seats and a sweet, little elderly lady came around the corner out of the kitchen holding a bunch of papers in her hand. Her name was Jo and seemed to fill the room with warmth. Her family had been growing seagrape jelly for generations and was looking forward to a bountiful harvest in the fall and how the jam she had put out wasn't actual seagrape jam. Jo moved to Ft. Myers in 1936 when she was just five years old. She talked about the downfall of the local net fishing industry and how past hurricanes have changed the geography of Ft. Myers Beach. She even went to talk about how a local cult lost its leader's tomb to the hurricane, which has never been found. It was easy to tell she was passionate at the place that she lived in and had many more stories than the ones she had described to us. We all grab another cookie, some more lemonade and took a bathroom break before we went outside. The breeze was cool on our faces as we huddled around a site with benches. The professor talked about what was happening to the local environment from all of the pollutants in the river. The trail was on a boardwalk and the ground, with growth everywhere. We saw examples of all three types of mangroves, black, white, and red. I thought the red mangroves were the most appealing because of how they grew and reproduced, with roots growing up from the earth a few feet above the ground level to the rest of the plant. The trail split into two parts and we headed left onto the mangrove path. We pasted a decaying raccoon, and the musky smell of skunk lingered in the air. It was a local plant that surprisingly didn't smell worse the closer you got. We saw a plant called Cat's Claw, which had sharp thorns on it as well. We rested for a bit in a local pavilion and discussed how Rick Scott's legislature has changed Florida's environment laws and has taken a step back in environmentalism. We saw passerbys in boats, pelicans swooping in and out of the water and even a Bald Eagle. It was the first time I have ever seen one and was surprised to see one in Florida, even though I found out that Florida is prime habitat for Bald Eagles, as described by the professor. We started to walk back to the entrance, and I had so many more thoughts in my head about this place. It was like walking through a different part of Florida, a place I had never known existed. The forest was so incredibly pristine, with plants everywhere. Heading on to the bus I promised myself to go on the other trail sometime, to make sure that I can back to the little slice of nature nestled next to the glamor and partying of Ft. Myers Beach.