This sweetheart was probably a foot or two longer than my 10.5' kayak, lying on a narrow part of the Myakka River during this very dry 'dry season'. A recent article in the Sarasota Herald Tribune says that:

"Because so much of it is protected land, the swamps and sloughs of the 550-square-mile Myakka River basin are said to contain more gators greater than 10 feet in length than anyplace in Florida -- which is to say, likely anyplace in the world."

You can read the article by clicking Here