Clyde Butcher has dedicated much of his life to photographing landscapes. He’s best known for his black-and-white photographs capturing the raw wilderness of Big Cypress National Preserve and the Everglades. Besides his photography, he’s also a noted advocate for preserving the fragile ecosystem.
Butcher has hosted tours, or “Swamp Walks,” to educate the public about the region's natural beauty and unique habitats. He said around 12,000 people have trekked through the wetlands behind his art gallery on Tamiami Trail in the heart of Big Cypress over the last 30 years.
“The water is crystal clear,” he said. “And everybody usually comes out smiling.”
In November, more than 700 people took part in one of Butcher’s walks. The event was sponsored by Friends of Big Cypress National Preserve, a non-profit Butcher founded in 2024 to “raise awareness, provide financial support for education and conservation programs, and build community partnerships” to ensure the swamp’s long-term protection.
Finding inspiration
Butcher and his family moved to Fort Myers in 1980. Initially, he created manipulated space-themed pictures because he couldn’t find any landscapes to photograph.
Then, in 1984, a friend of Butcher’s took him on his first walk into the swamp's interior. That’s when he found his inspiration.
“It took me four years to be able to step into it, because I thought gators and snakes, all that stuff, and discovered it's not that kind of place,” he said.
But a few years later, tragedy struck when his son was killed by a drunk driver.
“The Everglades saved me by going down there, photographing and being alone,” Butcher said. “I mean, it was basically a salvation thing for many people. Many people, they get frustrated with work, they take a ride and go down to Big Cypress and head off on some of the trails, and it's just a place to renew your soul.“
In 1992, Butcher and his wife, Niki, bought a 14-acre former orchid farm within Big Cypress Preserve. He built a home and one of his galleries there. Soon after, he started taking people on walks through the swamp.
“You can actually see the Milky Way at night,” Butcher said.
That region of the state was recognized as an International Dark Sky Place in 2016. The lack of light pollution there allows visitors to see thousands of stars with the naked eye. It’s the first national preserve to earn the title.
Butcher’s gallery lies about six miles west of the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport.
The airport’s single runway is what’s left of a failed plan to build the world’s largest jetport.
“Everybody was so excited about this airport. People in Miami, all the politicians (said), ‘Wow, this is going to be great… (put) this airport out in the middle of nowhere, so it won't hurt anything,’” Butcher said.
Butcher was not part of the initial battle to stop construction of the jetport, but he is involved now in the fight to close the detention center.
Rows of white tents have been set up on the tarmac. Some are for staff use, but the majority are used to detain immigrants.
Butcher says building on the land was wrong in the 1970s and today.
Another battle begins
“It's frustrating on so many levels,” Butcher said. “(The detention center) was a mistake. Take it down and get rid of it. There's no reason to have it there.”
Gov. Ron DeSantis said at a press conference in June that the Dade-Collier Airport was perfect for the immigration detention center because of the remote location, an already built runway, and amazing security – “natural and otherwise.”
Butcher disagrees. He said the land is a beautiful place and safe enough for him to lead the public on swamp walks to connect with nature.
“Now they're saying this is a terrible place with gators and pythons,” Butcher said. “They're going to keep the people out. The whole thing is stupid. I mean, it's just on so many levels, it just doesn't make sense.”
“There's no other Everglades in the world,” he added. “This is it, folks.”
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This story was produced by WUSF as part of a statewide journalism initiative funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
