Alligators!

After we left the battleship, we decided to take advantage of the nice day, and drive to Summerdale in Baldwin County to pay a visit to Alligator Alley. This alligator farm is a protected sanctuary for alligators. It offers a boardwalk to view the wildlife safely, but in their natural habitat. The big attraction is the granddaddy resident, Captain Crunch. He's huge!



Here, they take in gators that have been captured elsewhere and need a safe place to live, as well as those needing medical attention. They live here in an appropriate gator environment, and breed in a place free from poaching. The staff does keep the population in check by culling eggs in the Spring. They also have protected areas for the babies to be raised so they don't become fodder for predators.

We even got to hold some two-year-old babies!



On the way out, we happened across a worker giving a rather large snake (boa constrictor? python?) some air, and got to hold it, too!



Although a bit off the beaten path, it was a great place to go, and much more hands-on than I expected. The whole family enjoyed it.