Hidden in the depths of the Everglades-take a Cold War Missile Site tour

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I took the liberty of driving down to the Everglades and taking this tour this past Wednesday. Here is the information that you are going to need in order to get there on time and have a good time while you are there:

Expect a driving time of 60-90 minutes from Fort Lauderdale. This includes time to get into the park and drive to the Dan Beard Research Center. (Directions below) Pack a lunch and bring plenty of water( minimum 32 oz). There are no restaurants nearby. Bring CASH ($10) to pay at the entrance to the park. This will cover the cost of the Nike Missile tour and make it a faster entrance. Paying by credit card takes about 5 minutes per car so make sure you give yourself extra time to get through the park entrance. There are NO BATHROOM facilities at the Dan Bearch Center or at the missile site. Prior to the Main Entrance is a Visitor Center. In there are full facilities. I suggest you stop there first only if you need to. The tour will accomodate everyone who shows up for the event. There is no limit. Understand however that many other tourist will be attending the tour so it is imperative that you get there early if you want to be in the front of the tour. The tour starts to gather at 10:30in front of the Dan Beard Center. The tourguide will give a 30 minute presentation at 11:00am prior to driving to the Missile Site so don't worry if you are a little late. After the pre-presentation in front of the Dan Beard Center, we drive our cars 1.5 miles to the Missile site and for the next hour or so we continue to guided tour. The tour should end at approximately 12:30pm. After the end of the tour we will drive our cars back to the Dan Beard Research Center for some lunch. After lunch we will then go to the Anhinga Trail in the Royal Palm Visitor Center. There are full facilities there as well as vending machines. The Anhinga Trail is a .8 mile loop trail that offers one of the best opportunities to view wildlife, including alligators and birds, up close. After the Anhinga trail if anyone is interested we will stop at ROBERT IS HERE for some world famous Shakes. You should be back on the road home around 3-4. We will plan another event in the future for a bike adventure in the glades

DIRECTIONS TO THE PARK AND DIRECTIONS TO THE DAN BEARD CENTER.

The official address for the Everglades National Park is 40001 State Road 9336 Homestead Florida 33034. GPS doesn't work at the park so when you make your last turn onto SW 376th Street keep going straight. That road leads all the way into the park. You will see the visitor center on the right BEFORE the entrance to the park. Don't stop at the visitor center unless you need to go to the facilities or just want to get information about the park. The written directions are take the Turnpike South or US-1 South (depending on preference) until to you get to East Palm Drive. Drive 1.7 miles and turn left onto SW 192nd Avenue.Drive 2 miles to SW 376th Street and then drive until you enter the Everglades Park. After paying the park entrance, drive to the Dan Beard Research Center. Written directions: From the main entrance travel down the main park road 1.7 miles and take your first left on the Royal Palm Access Road (.9 miles). Take first right onto spur road. Take first right on Research Road (4.0 miles). There is clear signage to the Dan Beard Center. It is on your left hand side and first building on the left. After the Missile Tour we will then take Research Road back and make a right at Royal Palm Road and travel to the Royal Palm Visitor Center. I can't imagine any questions at this point but if you do have questions feel free to post on the discussion area and I will try to answer any questions. Please understand I will not give out any information about the details of the tour as I want everyone to experience it like I did. The tour guide was an actual Nike Missile operator so we will be treated to first hand experience on this tour.

Big Dave