Audio By Carbonatix
What does it take to turn heads in downtown Miami and South Beach? Beautiful people, wayward celebrities, and crazy politics are all part of the fabric of local civilization that compete for attention. It would have to be something unusual. Something big. Something amphibious?
That might not sound impressive, but if you were one of the blasé denizens who recently jaywalked in front of a large party boat, pirate astern, motoring down Washington Avenue, you’d have noticed the new neighbors too.
Duck Tours Miami is the latest attraction on Watson Island and at Bayside. Its tour “bus” is actually a Hydra-Terra amphibious vehicle that can travel an impressive 70 mph on land and 9 knots on the waves. The Hydra-Terra is also called the “vesicle.” (Before smuttier minds get to work, a “vesicle” is defined as merely a cavity or sac, so the reference is justified since a boat is technically a bladder full of air.)
The vesicle is the latest incarnation of a ship developed for World War II, known as the DUKW (D=1942, U=amphibian, K=front wheel drive, and W=rear wheel drive). Despite the absurd military acronym, they are commonly referred to as DUCKs.
The idea was to land troops where ports did not exist, such as Normandy Beach on D-Day. The wheeled boat would float to the shore and roll up onto the sand to deliver the soldiers. Later, DUCKs were used by the Coast Guard and civilian operations that include tours of several U.S. cities.
In glammy Miami, guides in pirate costumes, well versed in local history and lore, lead 90-minute jaunts that wind around well-known downtown and South Beach locations such as the Freedom Tower and Art Deco district. For the grand finale, the vesicle (quit laughing!) drives straight into Biscayne Bay for a tour of the islands before heading back to Watson Island or Bayside. Soon Biscayne Bay will be a regular interstate highway jammed with all sorts of floating tourist contraptions.
