The route begins near South Bay, close to Lake Okeechobee, in the area of the abandoned Gator Land tourist complex, a remnant of a time when this highway was one of the state’s main transportation and tourism arteries. From there, the route advances between neatly parceled plantations, pumping stations, and artificial canals that replaced the former Everglades marshes, enabling large-scale agricultural development.
Along the way appear former towns that have now disappeared or been reduced to simple cartographic references, such as Fruitcrest and Okeelanta, communities founded in the early twentieth century that briefly prospered thanks to agriculture and the railroad, but were devastated by the floods caused by the 1928 hurricane. Farther south appear other ghost enclaves such as Terrytown and Deem City, extreme examples of ephemeral settlements linked to highway transport and intensive farming, now absorbed by abandonment or by environmental restoration projects.
The final stretch reaches the boundary with Broward County, where extensive agricultural areas have been acquired by the state to be progressively returned to their natural condition. Reservoirs, water treatment areas, and wildlife management zones shape the current landscape, reflecting efforts to correct decades of alteration of the Everglades ecosystem. After reaching Deem City, the route returns along the same alignment to the starting point, closing a journey that combines agricultural history, hydraulic engineering, vanished towns, and the slow recovery of one of the most important natural systems in southern Florida.
The complete route, together with its detailed historical context, is part of Discovering Florida – Volume 3.
