I must admit when I lived in Miami and fished the Everglades on a regular basis, I waded all the time. As a rule I am not afraid of critters, but there was one occasion where I took pause and re-thought my approach to fishing. A friend and I were fishing a small "pond" that had been created when the water is low in the glades. When the dry season hits, several hundred acres of water drop down to become seven or eight 2- 3 acre"ponds". The fish are crammed into these ponds and always hungry, so 100+ fish days were common. There was a mat of vegetation about 10-12 feet wide all the way around this pond so I waded out until I was in slightly deeper tha my waist. I was catching fish and having a good time when I noticed the vegetation moving a bit about 10 feet to my left. I stopped fishing for a moment to watch what was going on. Slowly I realized that there was a huge 12-13 foot long alligator slowly swimming towards me with just his nose and eyes above the water. I froze and watched as he swam by me less than two feet from me with his back about 2 inches below the water. Only the laundry knows how scared I was. I could have reached out my hand and laid it on his back as he swam by. I think he was just giving me a swim-by warning to get out of his pond. I hollered over to my buddy that we need to leave this pond right now. He asked why and when I told him what happened, he agreed and we left that pond to the original occupant. I don’t think I ever waded in the glades again after that time. As I write this, I’m shaking my head at how really dumb I was to casually wade in the Everglades, sometimes chest deep at night pulling our john boat through the weeds to get to open water. I guess it’s true what they say, "God takes care of children, drunks and fools". I’m not a kid and I don’t drink so I guess I know where I fit into that saying.
Jim Smith
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