What can you say about the importance of the Everglades? I pretty much took Everglades National Park for granted, which is to say I loved going there and knew of all the conservation initiatives but otherwise never gave it much mind.

Quite frankly, much of the time such news bored me. But recently some events have been sponsored I've found not only interesting but downright cool. ENP, celebrating its 60th anniversary when then-President Harry Truman arrived on Dec. 6, 1946 for the new park's dedication, is amid week-long celebrations. During that dedication, politicians of the time participated in the spirit of celebrating 20 years of effort to create the park, which drew such folks as John Pennekamp, Florida U.S. Senators Claude Pepper and Spessard Holland, Florida Governor Millard Caldwell, Marjory Stoneman Douglas, Daniel Beard and 4,000 cheerful citizens.

Pennekamp became the namesake of a state park in Key Largo. Pepper would go on to serve many years as a U.S. congressman from Miami. Douglas thereafater wrote "River of Grass" and was to soon and forever after be regarded as the matriarch of the Everglades. Beard served as the first park superintendent. 

Present Superintendent Dan Kimball, noting that ENP is the third-largest national park in the lower 48 covering a million and a half acres between Miami, Key Largo and Naples, adds that this unique subtropical wetland serves as a watery connection between central Florida and the marine systems of Florida Bay and the Gulf of Mexico.

Celebratory events have included a photo exhibit America's 58 National Parks (which is on display through February 2, 2008), a bike tour of Shark Valley (you'll see plenty of alligators just off the tram road), Clyde Butcher's phenomenal black-and-white images of the Glades, and coming up this Saturday, Dec. 8, at the Royal Palm Visitor Center in Homestead, a day-full of events that include a chance to meet Superintendent Kimball, Deputy Secretary Lynn Scarlett, U.S. Department of the Interior and the swearing-in of new Junior Rangers.

Ah yes, don't forget a slice of birthday cake too. For details on the events visit http://www.nps.gov/ever/everglades-national-park-60th-anniversary.htm. Park entrance fees will be waived where the celebrations take place.