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Florida Keys – Overview

16 Mar 2014 By

Florida Keys are the chain of islands located in Sothern Florida. A one of a kind, it’s surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico stretching out as far as the eye can see, paralleling the historic railroad bridges that brought the first travelers to the Keys by land. Before that, the only way to get to the Keys was by boat.

The Florida Keys Scenic Highway travels through some of the nation’s most spectacular scenery. Folks in the Florida Keys describe the stretch of US 1 from Key Largo to Key West as the “Road to Paradise.” The Florida Keys Scenic Highway allows you to drive to the Southernmost Islands in the Continental United States from Mile Marker 110 down through the Florida Keys to Mile Marker 0.

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Florida Keys – Bahia Honda

14 Mar 2014 By

We heard about the beautiful beaches of the Bahia Honda State Park, so we decided to check them out. We didn’t plan any specific activities, but we hoped to spend some time at the beach, do some snorkeling and visit the historic bridge there. In the picture below is a view of Caruso beach from the old Bahia Honda bridge.

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Marathon – The Turtle Hospital

11 Mar 2014 By

In Marathon we visited Honda Bahia Beach and the Turtle Hospital. This post is about the Turtle Hospital, where we took a guided educational tour which includes the hospital facilities and the sea turtle rehabilitation area. This educational experience lasted approximately 90 minutes. At the end of the program we were invited to feed the permanent resident sea turtles. It was easy to find the hospital, since it is located right on Overseas Highway, the main street of the island.

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Key West – Lighthouse

06 Mar 2014 By

The current lighthouse was opened in 1848 with a woman as its Keeper; nearly unheard of during the 19th century. The need for a lighthouse became evident almost immediately after the U.S. Navy established a base in Key West in 1823. The U.S. Coast Guard decommissioned the Key West Lighthouse in 1969, since there was no longer a need for a full-time Keeper due to technological advancements.  Today, this sentinel of the sea stands as a museum dedicated to Key West’s maritime heritage and to the men and women who bravely kept the light burning through the threats of war and weather according to kwahs.org.

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Key West – Mallory Square

03 Mar 2014 By

Mallory Square is a plaza located on the waterfront in Key West’s historic Old Town, adjacent to the cruise ship port. It is just west of the northern end of famous Duval Street, facing the Gulf of Mexico. Mallory Square runs the entire length of Wall Street. Adjacent to the square are the Key West Shipwreck Historeum Museum, Key West Aquarium and the Old Post Office and Customs House. Our first acquaintance with Mallory Square occurred at its Conch Train stop.

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Key West – Shipwreck Museum

25 Feb 2014 By

Being in Key West, we couldn’t miss the Shipwreck Treasures Museum in Mallory Square right across from the Aquarium. The museum itself is a re-creation of a 19th-century warehouse built by wrecker tycoon Asa Tift. He was one of the most successful wreckers in Key West. He built the home that would later become the Ernest Hemingway Home.

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Key West – Aquarium

16 Feb 2014 By

The Key West Aquarium is located behind Mallory Square in Old Town. It dates back to the mid 1930’s, and is Key West’s oldest attraction. The building is small in size, but it makes up for it with warmth and charm. The Key West Aquarium is a place where we could see live sharks up close, touch a sea cucumber, and see all the major fish that live in the waters around Key West.

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Key West – Conch Tour Train

13 Feb 2014 By

Key West is an island at the end of the chain of the Florida Keys. It is connected to the mainland by US Highway 1 which uses a series of bridges to link the islands of the chain. This is a popular vacation destination which gives visitors the feeling of the Caribbean without having to leave the country.

Key West has so many wonderful things to see and do. It offers museums and historic homes and nature attractions with sea life and butterflies. The clear blue sea surrounding it offers snorkeling, diving, sailing, parasailing and fishing.

Dave and I decided to see the Best of Key West on an open-air Conch Tour Train first and then to explore the places most interesting to us. Henry Flagler’s railroad arrived in Key West in September of 1912 and the Island City was changed forever. The Conch Tour Train is the legacy of Flagler’s engineering miracle.

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Key West – Duval Street

12 Feb 2014 By

Being in Key West, it is impossible to miss the famous Duval Street, running north and south from the Gulf of Mexico to the Atlantic Ocean. From shore to shore, the street is just over a mile in length. It is named for William Pope Duval, the first territorial governor of Florida according to wikipedia.

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Stop at Miami Beach

27 Jan 2014 By

For our Wedding Anniversary we flew into Miami, and drove down to the FL Keys from there. Being in Miami, we decided to revisit South Beach and my favorite strip there – Ocean Drive.

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