Tuesday, January 29: Florida City, Day One in Key West

On this last Tuesday of January we began our change in latitude and change in attitude (apologies to Jimmy Buffett) to the casual and comfortableness of Key West with Rita and John.

Traveling in temperatures of the high 70s we plotted our course on the Overseas highway, over 42 bridges and passing beautiful waterways.  Along the 126 mile US 1 we were framed east and west by the blue waters of the oceans and bays, tropical mangroves and palms.

We began at the Upper Keys in Key Largo, considered the diving capital of the world, and the nation’s only living coral reef, and where the “African Queen” is permanently berthed.   Next island to the south is Islamorada, known for its sport fishing. There is a wonderful Bass Pro shop here that caters to the fisherman.

We passed through the Middle Keys and Marathon, a small town with water, sunshine and water birds.  At the southwest entrance to Marathon is Pigeon Key, a tiny island that once served as a construction camp for the Flagler railroad workers. 

Entering the Lower Keys we see the tropical wilderness and birds of flight and pass by Flagler railroad bridges.  Before Miami was Miami, Henry Flagler pictured a railroad across the sea that would further a connection with Cuba, Panama Canal and South America. The railroad changed the wilderness of the Florida Keys into a viable destination. The remaining 23 railroad bridges standing have been listed on the National Register of Historic Places. We continue our way south across the Seven Mile Bridge, through the Key Deer Refuge, which is a conservation area for this distant relative of the white-tailed deer, but having adapted to this area are all of two feet tall and are said to resemble large dogs. We looked and looked, but were not lucky to see any.

We arrived in Key West, an island at the southernmost tip of Florida, just in time to lunch at Bo’s Fish Wagon, a little hole in the wall place that served good fish sandwiches and fries. So once again, we charted the remainder of the day until our return to Mallory Square for the sunset horizon show.

We all agreed that we needed to get an overview of the island, so we boarded the Conch Train Tour near Mallory Square, which has been in business on the island since 1958, that guided us for ninety-minutes through neighborhoods including Duval Street, Truman Annex, Fort Zachary Taylor, Solares Hill, and Bahama Village. We passed by beautiful old homes with mixed architectural features, some with brightly painted shutters and lush tropical landscape, which make these neighborhoods very charming and inviting.

We found ourselves back at Mallory Square in time to settle ourselves on the outdoor patio of the Westin to enjoy some chips and salsa and some cold, refreshing Bud Lights as we waited for the sun to meet the horizon.

Crowds gathered and numbered as we counted down to sundown. And we were not disappointed with the display of color and radiance as the sun disappeared below our horizon.

We checked into our hotel, had a round of breakfast at Denny’s and said goodnight.