So thanks to some nice free tickets from a friend we hit the most magical place on Earth again today. It was rainy and gray most of the day but I managed to still get some pictures:
By the way the newly rebuilt entrance and gift shop (the originals were destroyed in a fire) have turned out really nice. Feels a little bit more like a theme park. Still you can't beat the price, the hotdog feeding gator good times, the redneck humor, and of course the monster gators. Had a great time!
They have a really nice brand new exhibit with albino gators that have shiny blue eyes. Exhibit was well done and I have to admit I was pleasantly surprised!
Petting zoo for the kiddies, apparently goats also like the taste of cheap Gatorland rain ponchos...
A little Gatorland humor...
There is also a huge breeding marsh that has a three story observation tower and a really nice boardwalk meandering though it. There are tons of HUGE gators in there and you can get some amazing, and a little scary, very close up shots.
They also have a nice variety of other animals, such as snakes, birds, iguanas, and so on. Caught all three shows too but didn't get pics since my camera died.
This was for sure the best part. They sell packs of hotdogs for you to feed the gators. Their is one part of the boardwalk over the main lake where the giant gators hang out and get gorged on hotdogs from the tourists. Here is what it looks like from 4 feet above:
This is also my new desktop background:
Had a great time, as well as my two boys and their friend, the wife, not so much her cup of tea but whatever. They told us about a program they have where you go with a staff member right down to the waters edge and feed the gators right in your face. They take your picture and of course try to get you to buy it, but the whole thing only costs $10. I'm definitely doing this next trip since we ran out of time this go round. If you've never been or haven't been for a long time I suggest you go check the place out!