Big Cypress National Preserve — Oasis Visitor Center Boardwalk

The boardwalk behind the Oasis Visitor Center on Tamiami Trail sits over a canal that holds gators nearly every day of the year, no hike required. Dry season, December through April, concentrates the most animals as water drops in the surrounding marsh. Look from the rail and the porch of the visitor center rather than walking down to the canal bank. Do not feed the gators; rangers here see it happen often and it is illegal.