A Naples, Florida, vacation can include a morning of soaking the sun while lounging lazily on the beach followed by an afternoon in an airboat zipping through sawgrass searching for alligators. Or, head to Everglades City, the western gateway to the Everglades for a boat tour through some of the Ten Thousand Islands and enjoy lunch in Everglades City for mighty fine seafood. The City is recognized as the Stone Crab Capital of the World because nearly half a million pounds of stone crab claws are processed each season between October and May for use in local restaurants, shipment to other areas, and for the annual Everglades City Seafood festival, a true treat held annually the first weekend of February.

Or, delve deeper into the Everglades for a little road trip along U.S. 41, also known as Tamiami Trail, to hunt for a smelly skunk ape, join a Muck-About, or mail a postcard from the Smallest Post Office in the United States.

Don’t know what a skunk ape is? Just stop into the Skunk Ape Research Headquarters on U.S. 41 four miles east of Highway 29 at the Trail Lakes Campground to learn more about this stinky beast believed to be Bigfoot’s relative.

How about getting a little mucky? Head to Clyde Butcher’s Big Cypress Gallery over Labor Day Weekend to tromp through nearby waterways in waist-deep water during the annual Muck-About. It’s also an ideal time to take some photographs of the Big Cypress area. Artist Clyde Butcher is a landscape photographer who captures stunning, black and white images. Reservations are required for the Muck-About (239/695-2428). If getting muddy isn’t your thing, visiting the studio is well worth the trip from Naples. Along with Butcher’s dynamic images are those of wife Niki, who has a different creative style than Mr. Butcher.

Yes, people still send paper postcards and not just those electronic things while on vacation. When vacationing in Naples, make a special trip out to Ochopee to the Smallest Post Office in the U.S. At 7 feet wide by 8 feet deep, it may be the smallest post office but it’s a mighty one capable of fulfilling all postal needs. It’s located on U.S. 41 three miles east of Highway 29.

A Naples vacation is ideal for those who appreciate the sophistication of elegant shopping, fine dining and lounging on silky beaches and the wilds of the Everglades. So who’s in for a little airboat ride?