http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=211651657169317628289.0004a94fd3dcc432a4fbd&msa=0&ll=25.005973,-81.079102&spn=1.737324,3.378296
After spending the afternoon in Florida City getting Steve's wheel alignment done and getting tires balanced and rotated, we hung out at the pool.
Next morning we set off for the Florida Keys on Overseas Hwy, or Hwy 1. John Pennekamp State Park was our first snorkelling activity. Not a lot of fish to see off the beach, but there is a sunken Spanish wreck there. Just a few old cannon and a large anchor.Spent the afternoon and evening in Marathon, about halfway down the Keys.Traffic was terribly slow. Covered seven miles in forty five minutes in one area.Weekend traffic, we think.
Sunday we headed on to Bahia Honda Key, apparently voted best beach in the USA several times.It is also a State Park, and the snorkelling was a bit better.
 |
| Sunset from Key West |
Then on to Key West. The tradition is to watch the sunset from Mallory Square and then the partying starts. So we had dinner at the Tiki Bar at the hotel and then went down to watch the sunset, which because of the clouds was spectacular. Then Richard and Linde checked out some of the bars, while Steve and Sheila went back to the hotel to work on the blog.
 |
| Moat wall along which we snorkelled |
On Monday we took a boat trip out to Dry Tortugas National Park. It is a collection of undeveloped coral and sand islands 70 miles from Key West. (see the map below) On Garden Key, the largest one, is a large 19th century fort. Though construction continued for 30 years, the fort was never finished. It was used for Union deserters during the Civil War, and housed the 4 men convicted of complicity in the Lincoln assassination. These islands are called the Dry Tortugas because they have no fresh water, so the rainwater was collected in huge cisterns under the fort. However the cisterns developed leaks and salt water contaminated the drinking water. It was abandoned in the 1880s and in 1908 the islands bacame a wildlife refuge. Turtles nest on one of the islands, and sooty terns, masked boobys and the giant frigate birds nest on others. The coral reefs around the fort are spectacular and the water is crystal clear. Unfortunatly, while we were there the wind blew in great hoards of jellyfish. We were very busy dodging them in some areas we would have liked to explore further, but didn't feel comfortable. Near the walls of the moat where it was relatively free of jellyfish we were able to snorkel and saw some great stuff like the huge Tarpon, about 4 feet long, and lots of other fish we've seen in other places, only these were much bigger.
 |
| Hexagon shaped fort |
Upon our return from the Dry Tortugas, Richard and Linde stayed downtown to see the sunset again and check out the nightlife. Steve and Sheila found a wonderful Mediterranean restaurant and tried some Turkish food. I'm a fan!! The sunset from the seawall in front of our hotel was even more spectacular than from Mallory Square.
