Lake Apopka Wildlife Refuge, just outside Orlando, Florida, features a free 13 mile wildlife drive — a dirt path for cars to view alligators, fish, birds and turtles in nature.


Thinking this would be a calm and peaceful excursion into nature like the very similar Savannah Wildlife Refuge Drive, which I adore, was a mistake on my part.
This nature drive quickly turned into a 13-mile bumper-to-bumper traffic jam that took more than 2 hours to complete.
While aggravation was the most prevalent emotion, luckily there were some nice sights along the way.




I almost think it would be better if they charged for entry to the drive to limit the number of cars and used the cash profit to make a second lane.