Up until yesterday, their search for gators had come up empty. I was feeling deficient as a host due to this absence of alligators, so I called them from work yesterday and told them to be ready around 4:00 pm. I would take them to gators ... guaranteed.
They were ready at the appointed time and after a quick change from work clothes to gator whispering clothes, we were off.
A few minutes of bumpy JEEP riding and we were staring at baby gators sunning and swimming under a beautiful blue sky.
After the baby gators, they were pretty stoked, but I knew we could find some bigger ones at another spot so we headed deeper into the woods.
At the second place, we hiked out to a hidden gator hole that never fails to hold a collection of gators. Sure enough, they had gotten the message and were posing like runway models.
Thunder and Lightnin' were restoked.
This gator was especially cooperative. I love his posture.
After the gator hole, we continued on and encountered a lovely cottonmouth crossing the road. We stopped to photograph it which turned out to be serpentendipitous for the moccasin, as a pickup truck with a bubbaesque couple in the cab and a huge pitbull in the back pulled up behind us.
I was standing in the road to take the photo above, so I pointed to the snake and waved them on. I got "the look", but they pulled over some and continued down the road.
We stayed long enough to admire the snake some more and watch it slip gracefully back into the grass.
Then, with two completely stoked visitors in my JEEP, we slid on down the road thinking, well, that was the icing on the cake ... surely our dance ticket is full now.
But no ...
... none of us could have expected an encounter with an attackadillo.
WARNING: PUT YOUR COFFEE DOWN BEFORE WATCHING THIS MOVIE. I WILL NOT BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR RUINED KEYBOARDS.
16 comments:
Bahahahaha, dammit...... sprayed the monitor......
Good times!!!
the trifecta of florida wildlife! with an action scene!
Ha!! Thanks for the warning! ;0
Wish I'd have headed your warning - coffee is everywhere now LOL
3 cheers for Dave the 'dillo hunter!
Loved the commentary! They are lucky to have you as a wildlife guide.
Good thing I took your advice about the coffee!
I see someone standing behind "the man" just where I'd be. I am so scared of snakes. And I live in the country beside miles of woods. Great shots.
Freste,
I warned you! LOL
Kathy A,
A grand slam!
Dani,
We get silly when we are together.
SCM,
He's pretty brave with vicious dilloraptors.
Deb,
We were leaning out of the JEEP windows and cracking up!!
3C,
I had tears in my eyes last night. We had to watch it about a bazillion times.
Becca,
Welcome to Pure Florida!!
Lightnin' was giving that snake lots of room!
Hilarious! What a great friend you are!
I watched an episode of Monster Quest the other night and thought of you. They were trying to prove the viability of alligators within the NYC sewers. I think they should have interviewed you first (you display more knowledge about gators than any of their experts), but I guess that would have taken the program in a completely different direction (toward reality)!
interesting wildlife. and the critters are fun too.
Do I remember correctly that Thunder and Lightning are looking at or have bought some land down thataway?
Yep, yessiree, that there was a good un. It reminds of driving up to Deland in the '60's with my boyfriend one spring. He had an MGB rag top, sorta mauvish or pinkish, and very very low. We were alone on the two lane, nothing in sight on that straight flat road, when we saw a little gray dot moving back and forth in front of us a coupla hundred yards up. We slowed down to avoid hitting anything. It was an armadillo, just sorta piddling around, in circles mainly. We stopped about 5 feet from him. He keep sniffing around, eventually returning to the shoulder and the palmettos. Never saw us. Yep, they're vicious alright!
The Great White Hunter
Kimberlee,
Glad you liked it! We did have some fun.
That whole reality thing puts a damper on Monster and Ghost Hunter shows, but they just keep making them!
roger,
we put the wild in wilderness.
Pablo,
Yes. They bought some ground just north of our county.
Nancy,
They are pretty oblivious if you are quiet. Good thing you didn't run over that one in the MG ... could have derailed you.
Native Mom,
Well ... he's white ... not sure about the other.
LOL
I hate getting "the look" while taking photos along the road.
But I'll tellya that was one scary dilla.
That video reminds me of a guy I saw slap a squirrel on campus a couple weeks ago...He just walked up to it and slapped it upside the head...I wasn't sure whether to laugh or to feel bad for the squirrel...The squirrels here on campus are evil (they will chase you), so I ended up laughing.
HT,
He's probably never been bitten by an enraged grey squirrel.
I have.
Never again.
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