Now that our seasons are shifting and we are getting a break from the tropical heat, it is time to do some exploring. Brevard County has some great parks & trails to enjoy and we are going to be checking them out this season. This weekend, we wanted to explore the Viera Wetlands. I see a lot of people posting photos and videos from here that showcase a huge variety of birds along with some pretty amazing shots of the hundreds of alligators that live in the marshy waters of the Ritch Grissom Memorial Wetlands. The park is dedicated to a long time Brevard County employee that worked at the water treatment facility located just east of the park. The park is located at 3658 Charlie Corbeil Way Melbourne, FL 32940 CLICK HERE for directions
This was our first visit to the Viera Wetlands, so we weren’t 100% certain what to expect other than we should see quite a few birds and there is a good chance we will see a gator or two. Getting there is really easy. Simply take Wickham Rd as far west as you can, past I-95, the traffic circle, and all the new construction. We learned on arrival that there are times of the year you can drive through the wetlands, today, it was foot and bike traffic only; which I kind of prefer. It keeps it quiet and allows us to focus on the nature around us without having to also dodge traffic too. We decided to explore the perimeter brim our first visit to see the lay of the land so to speak. Garmin showed this to be a 2.3 mile walk around the outside.
The park is pet-friendly, as long as the dogs are leashed. We passed quite a few pups with their owners enjoying some outdoor time. We also passed (or were passed) by several runners and people on their bicycles. I am presuming the directional signs are mostly for any cars when allowed since the brim roadway is only one lane. It seemed that the walkers, runners, and bikers also followed this too (there was one set of rebel walkers going the opposite direction).
I was pretty happy with the amount of wildlife we saw during our outing and how close we were able to get to most of them. A couple of the birds did fly away when we approached, but most of them just kept an eye on us as we walked by. The first gator we saw was just hanging out near the water. After a few pictures, he must have gotten annoyed we didn’t move on quick enough because he disappeared into the reeds along the water.
Judging by the comments I received on Facebook, Instagram and at the office, we only saw a fraction of the wildlife that is out there. The migratory birds are just starting to show up, so the remaining weeks of fall and throughout winter, we should have some great opportunities to see other birds on future outings.
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