We’re not really obsessed with alligators. Truly. It’s just that the southern states have a reputation for harboring the dinosaur throwbacks and we wanted the full experience. We’re out to discover! Anyway, obsession is too strong a word but darn curious fits us. We were interested in seeing the creepy-smiling reptiles for ourselves. And all the places we’ve stayed have up signs about not feeding gators and to look out for them around ponds and creeks and don’t leave your small animals outside, etc. I mean, the hype is real but what about the creatures themselves?

We determined that randomly running into an alligator might not be as easy as it sounds. Fortunately, a friend had the perfect solution. She spent many a happy summer eyeballing gators at the Okefenokee Swamp Park in Georgia. The acreage is protected and the gators just roam free eating small animals (including a guest’s dog) and each other. Yes, add “cannibals” to your list of eerie alligator facts.  So one Saturday we screwed up our courage and went gator spotting.

We hadn’t even parked the car before seeing a giant alligator across the parking lot (he was so big that Danny thought it was two or three gators piled on top of each other). Unfortunately, by the time we visited the bathroom, got our tickets and studied the map, he was gone. His presence was the spark we needed, though. The hunt was on.

The first thing on our list was to visit Old Roy, a 90-year old alligator that used to splash in the green, slimy waters of the Okefenokee Swamp. He’s stuffed now and has his own dedicated building. He’s humongous because alligators continue to grow the entire time they’re alive. (Are you writing this stuff down?). Paige crawled right on top of him before either of her parents could react but the rest of us took a moment just to soak in his enormous girth and shudder at the thought of coming across him when he was alive.

We then ventured across a newly installed boardwalk which was mere inches from the swamp’s surface. Correction: at some points, it wasn’t even an inch but actually touched the water. Swamp water got on my shoes and I paid for this experience? We followed signs that suggested only one person at a time should cross certain bridges and we heard less and less noise from humans and more swampy sounds like woodpeckers, mosquitoes, mysterious water splashes and frog song. Finally, we found the observation tower and climbed its 117 stairs to the top so we could look out over the vast swamp and guess how many hungry alligators surrounded us at that very moment. The tower swayed in what this Kansan considered a mild breeze, so we didn’t stay up there long. On my list of “situations to avoid” splashing into an alligator-infested swamp is right up there. Besides, we couldn’t wait to get back on the completely stable and thoroughly dry boardwalk back to civilization.

After our return, we caught an hour-long train ride through the swamp. On this adventure we found ample camera prey at last: babies, hidden by their mother from her hungry husband, a giant beast sunning himself by a pond and a little guy lazily floating in the full ditch by the parking lot. We also took in a couple moonshine shacks and saw how people used to tap trees for turpentine. Yes, turpentine. Again, with the learning stuff.

Something to take into consideration is that gators are super quiet and still so you can just happen upon them and we did. It makes a simple walk to the snack shack a little more interesting. We were flirting with danger and we liked it. We saw a couple alligators in captivity (they’ve been fed by humans and now can’t find their own food safely in the wild). They were so boring. Like yawn-inducing boring whereas not moments before we saw an alligator half their size just crawling along and he gave me goosebumps and a little thrill down my spine. He could chomp me. They couldn’t. I know it’s ridiculous. Wild alligators are devilishly exciting to behold. Contained alligators are a snooze fest.

The people who run the park know that. Signs up everywhere tell visitors that the only stuffed alligator on the premises is Old Roy. They don’t want guests to get complacent. If you see an alligator out and about, it’s real and visitors need to be cautious.

We were on our way out when the boatman waved us over to see a baby alligator hidden down by the bridge. He was absolutely adorable. I know that sounds crazy. I tried using a different word but adorable just fits. When they’re small, they’re super cute and because the boatman let us in on the secret, we got to quietly observe this little sweetie as he floated in the water. I don’t know where his mom was and I’m happy to report she didn’t come along and chew on us. For a few minutes we just gazed at the little gator and he gazed at us. It was something special.

So now we’ve seen them out of aquariums and kiddy pools. We’re spending the next few weeks in Florida and hopes are high we’ll see more but if not, we can go home having checked this memorable creature off our bucket list. Next, Paige really wants to see a panther which apparently runs around in the swamps, too. Not so sure we’ll go out of our way to see one of those…