We started our fun the following day (Friday, February 28th). We made our way from Homestead, FL to Key Largo. We had some time to kill before our first adventure so we decided to take a quick stroll through Dagny Johnson Hammock State Park. This beautiful park gave us a glimpse into the rugged coastal terrain where mangroves meet ocean and corral rock beaches replace smooth sand.
From the park, we headed to the water to do some snorkeling! Key Largo is home to one of the largest coral reefs in the US. We booked a snorkeling tour with Silent World Discoveries. They took us out to two different reef locations to explore. This was mine and Jonas's first snorkeling adventure. It took Jonas a minute to figure out the gear and how to simply breathe through his mouth, but by the second location, we both had it down! The reef was so colorful and the fish were everywhere. We didn't see any sharks (much to Jeff's disappointment), but we did visit the Christ of the Abyss statue. This large statue was placed in the reef years ago and He still beckons people to come to Him.
From there, we moved on down the Keys to Islamorada. We headed straight to the Treasure of the Seas for our next adventure - swimming with dolphins! We arrived with time to be able to watch a couple of animal shows prior to our swim time. Can I just say how incredible dolphins are?! We watched this show where the trainers literally danced with the dolphins, were flipped into the air, and where the dolphins traversed various obstacles. It was impressive! We then caught a little bit of the sea lion show before we met up with our swim guides. This time it was our turn to be in the water with the dolphins. We got to touch, hold, and swim with these incredible animals. At one point, we individually got to choose a trick to do with the dolphins. I chose a dorsal tow. The dolphins swam up behind me, and I grabbed their dorsal fins as they pulled me through the water. Jeff and Jonas chose a foot push swim. They floated on their bellies with their legs out behind them. The dolphins swam up behind them and placed their noses on the boys' feet and pushed them through the water. They went so fast! It was so crazy how well the dolphins knew what to do. This was by far the highlight of the trip for Jonas.
Our first day in the Keys ended with a delicious dinner and, of course, key lime pie! I'm pretty sure we each ate about a pound of key lime pie while we were in the Keys. I think I get just as excited to try the foods of the regions I visit as I do to actually see and experience the region. With full bellies, we pushed on to our hotel in Marathon. As we moved west, we watched the sun slowly set over the horizon. The brilliant blue gave way to warm hues of orange, red, and pink. It was the perfect ending to our first day in the Keys.
We began the next day (Saturday, March 1st) at Curry Hammock State Park. This time, we grabbed a couple of kayaks and headed out into the open ocean. We paddled a couple miles around the beach and into a mangrove tunnel. We even came across a couple of manatee. We saw one surface briefly, but mostly saw evidence of them swimming away from us. The mangrove tunnel was so fun! It was a little tricky to maneuver through it, but so much fun! There was even a point that we had to almost duck to get under a bridge. After our paddling adventure, we enjoyed the small beach for awhile before moving on. Jonas absolutely loves the water. I'm sure he would have stayed and played longer if we let him, but there was so much more to see.
Next, we stopped at the Turtle Hospital for a tour. This old motel was transformed into a turtle sanctuary for these gentle creatures who have been rescued. Some have been hit by boats. Others get sick from pollutants in the water. Most of them are treated and then released, but some are permanent residents and would not survive if released back into open water. It is pretty incredible to see what these veterinarians can do for these animals. Jonas did a study about leatherback turtles earlier in the year. While there were no leatherback turtles at the hospital, he seemed to enjoy learning about the other species.
After our tour, we fueled up on more key lime desserts then kept moving west. We stopped at the famous 7-mile bridge to grab a couple of pictures and admire the crystal blue-green waters before driving over it.
We finally made it to Key West with some time to explore the city. We started near Mallory Square at the Shipwreck Museum. This area has obviously seen its fair share of wrecks. There were so many artifacts from sunken ships, including a real silver bar! Jonas and I wandered through the museum (as Jeff wandered the streets looking for a good place to park). We even made our way up to the tower to get a birds eye view of old town Key West. After the museum, we wandered through the shops at Mallory Square and grabbed a fruity drink before making our way to the southern most point of the continental US. Key West is by far the liveliest city in the Keys...even the roosters were out and about! Once we grabbed a picture at the southern buoy we enjoyed dinner then walked back to the car via Duval Street. Talk about lively! Duval Street is an experience in and of itself. We didn't take the time to wander through any of the stores at that time, but simply people watching was pretty entertaining. We were able to make it back to Mallory Square (where we parked) to catch the last glimpses of the sunset. It was another perfect ending to an incredible day.
Sunday (March 2nd) was probably my favorite day. We woke up early and headed to the airport where we boarded a seaplane and headed to the most inaccessible National Park - Dry Tortugas. This little key is home to Fort Jefferson. Fort Jefferson was built in the mid to late 1800's...and never fully finished or fully armed. It's original purpose was to protect the shipping lanes into and out of the Gulf. Although ships could easily avoid the fort, they couldn't avoid the warships that used its harbor. The fort is made up of over 16 million bricks! It was also used briefly as a prison, and, during the Civil War, housed Dr. Samuel Mudd who treated John Wilkes Booth's broken leg after he assassinated President Lincoln. There are only two ways to reach this National Park - ferry or float plane. We opted for the float plane. It was a short half hour flight 70 miles to the west. Jonas got to be co-pilot both there and back. The trip out and back was just as fun as the time we spent there. We flew so low that we could see the remnants of wrecked ships and ample sea life. We saw turtles, sharks, and even a pod of dolphins! The aerial view of the fort was also pretty spectacular. When we reached the island, we explored the fort first then threw on our snorkel gear and swam around it. There was so much coral on the old coaling stations and the fort walls themselves. The water was so refreshing and clear! Again, we probably could have spent another couple of hours exploring this incredible place, but it we only had so much time.
Once we made it back to Key West, we grabbed some lunch and yes, more key lime pie! I think Kermits was probably my favorite pie. Before leaving, we decided to stroll along Duval Street in the daytime. It was definitely a different vibe! This time, we wandered in and out of several shops. We even wandered through Mel Fisher's Treasures - a store with authentic silver and gold coins from the 1644 Atocha shipwreck. Jeff loved seeing and handling some of the coins. It's incredible how Mr. Fisher discovered them and how they are recovered and restored.
We finally left Key West and drove our way out of the Keys. We stopped for one last dinner on the beach near Key Largo before making our way back to Homestead for the night.
Monday (March 3rd) was our last day in Florida. We woke up and headed to the Everglades National Park. Jeff was so excited to hopefully see an alligator while Jonas and I were just as excited to not see one. Well...Jeff won! Within 10 steps down our first trail there were two large alligators sunbathing. It took all of Jeff's willpower to not try to touch them. Thankfully, they seemed more than used to humans gawking at them because they didn't move an inch. We saw several more throughout our time at the park. We also saw plenty of birds, several turtles, and even a few manatees. We admired the animals (from afar) and the scenery. The Everglades is a unique ecosystem. I think Jonas's favorite part was the little detour to the Nike Missile Site. This site was constructed during the Cold War Era to defend ourselves from what was happening in Cuba. There were several Nike Missile onsite but never fired. We were able to go into one of the bunkers and see a restored (and obviously disarmed) missile. Jonas even got to flip the switch that would have fired the missile.
We spent the morning and early afternoon exploring the park before moving on. We still had a few hours to kill before calling it a day so we decided to head to Little Havana in Miami. We explored the colorful sights, sounds, and tastes of Calle Ocho. I'm not sure what was more vibrant - Calle Ocho or Duval Street. Regardless, they were both a fun cultural experience. After we had dinner there, we made our way back to the hotel to get some sleep before our early flight home the next morning.
The Florida Keys were perfectly sunny, warm, and inviting. It was the perfect trip to break up the dreariness of a Utah winter!
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