I round a corner and to my surprise. 
There is a gator lying in the trail. Not a little gator. 
This is a very big gator. Usually I see them in the water like this. 
It turns out there is water within about a hundred yards of where I came across this beast. Not knowing that at the time though, I was totally surprised by this find. I have to say that finding an alligator on the same trail I’m walking, is significantly more intimidating than seeing one in the water from the safety of a boardwalk. I decided to walk a different trail that day.