Billy and the crew set up camp in Everglades City on Friday night for the start of a six day shoot for Square Grouper, our new feature documentary about pot smuggling in South Florida.

On Saturday afternoon Billy called and said they needed a replacement mic and XLR cables. After provisioning up at Dade Corners, the general store at the edge of civilization at Krome Avenue and 8th Street, Dave and I headed to Everglades City across the old Tamiami Trail.

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We arrived at the set, the famed Oyster House in Everglades City, around 6pm, right after a torrential summer downpour. The mosquitos started in immediately.

Eager to not have to drive back across the swamp on the Trail - a two-lane blacktop (deathtrap) with no streetlights - after dark, Dave and I turned back around and made it to The Pit BBQ, my favorite rib joint in Dade County, just as the sun was setting.

Next time you head west across the southern peninsula, skip I-75 and take the "poor man's Aligator Alley." And if you're really feeling adventurous, check out Loop Road.