March 13th to 16th

One of the first things we did was go down and do some snorkeling, which is something we love to do.  We just wish there were good (warm & clear) locations nearer to us at home.  We have a cheap, digital underwater camera.  It does "OK", but....  I have included a few pics, but you might have to use your imagination.  Many of the creatures really blend into the sea grass on the floor of the ocean.  We have seen several rays, many lobsters, and lots of fish.  Here we are in the Gulf of Mexico SNORKELING.

That night we went to bed ready for a good night's sleep.  A little after midnight we heard some talking outside and looked out to find 6 adults and one little girl sitting at the table next to our window.  They were talking loudly and making a lot of noise.  This continued for an hour.  This campground is pretty nice and quiet, so this was strange.  The next morning I was going to complain to the management, but did not get the chance.  One of the employees stopped by and told the people that they needed to come down to the office and register.  (They had arrived at midnight and just made themselves at home).  They said they did not have any money and the employee mentioned calling the sheriff.  As soon as he left, everyone ran around like mad and hopped in their two cars and rushed off.  In their haste they left their tent and something that belonged to the girl!  How sad!

Tuesday we drove to Bahia Honda State Park and snorkeled in their waters on the Gulf side.  It was nice, but... there were not a lot of fish, there were a lot of people, and a current that really pushed you from right to left.  Here is a picture from the GULF SIDE where we snorkeled.  Here is a picture looking at the BEACH from the bridge that you can see in the first picture. Bahia Honda has one interesting aspect, though.  Since it is a small island you can walk through the parking lot and then swim in the Atlantic Ocean.  The water is warmer on the Atlantic side, but very SHALLOW for a long way out.  That makes it peaceful, though.

Tuesday night the wind picked up right at midnight and our awning was making a lot of noise.  So I "volunteered" to go out and put it down by myself.  I had a flashlight and was walking behind our trailer when I saw some motion.  Gosh!  I really never knew that Florida has scorpions!  One that was about 3" long scurried away and went down a hole about 18" behind our trailer.  They say they sting, but are not venomous.  Of course, I was told that the alligators were not eating at this time of the year, too.  So, that was two nights in a row that we did not get the best sleep.  Did I mention SCORPION?  At MIDNIGHT? Yikes!

Wednesday we drove southwest (it is mostly west) to Key West.  It is 60 miles from our campground.  We went out on a 4 1/2 hour sail to Mule Key with Danger Charters along with 13 other passengers.  This was on a reproduction of a 67 foot long "skipjack".  These were used in Key West for their ability to haul cargoes in very shallow water.  Much of this was done when other ships ran aground.  When the board is up, it only has a draft of 2'-10".  We were on the DANGER and here is a DRAWING of it.  (We did not get good pics of it.)  Mule Key is part of the Key West National Wildlife Refuge and is about 6 miles west of Key West.  It is a tiny "island" completely covered in mangrove trees.  Our boat took us near it, then we all got out and kayaked around it.  Members of the crew went with us to give us ecological information, etc.  As we went around the island we saw 3 small sharks and lots more pelicans.

Then we sailed over to a sponge bed area and went snorkeling.  This is just so much fun!  We were just "out in the ocean"; not in a lagoon or bay or anything.  It was shallow; maybe 4 to 5 feet.  I did not see as many fish as some of the others, but I had a great time.  Jackie would make a great mermaid; she really loves to snorkel.  To top the trip off, we stopped about a mile off of Key West and watched the sun set.  As VISA would like to have us say, "Priceless!"   If anyone gets down here, we would highly recommend "Danger Charters".  The trip and the crew were great!  Here are two pictures of Jackie and me on the Danger.    PIC 1    PIC 2

We wandered around Key West for a short time and ate some pizza, then headed back "home".  Key West is a bit crazy for us, specially after dark during Spring Vacation.  (For those of you who have not traveled at this time of year, it is "spring vacation" somewhere for about 6 weeks.)  Being in Key West it is easy to forget just how close you are to CUBA.  It is 115 miles to the US mainland and only 90 miles to Cuba.  As we headed back to the trailer, we were facing the moon which had been full the day before.  It was reflecting off all of the waterways we crossed and made it a beautiful evening. 

Except for our night of sailing, every evening in Marathon ends with most of the campers congregating at the seawall to watch the sunset.  Here is what the SUN GAZERS look like and here are a few samples of the sunsets.  MONDAY   TUESDAY   THURSDAY.  

Today we "vacationed".  We went to the store and bought a Key Lime pie (a local favorite).  We grilled some sausage dogs for lunch and sat around reading and working at the computer.  Here is your "WEBMASTER" hard at work.  We even got to see someone in a bi-plane doing stunts right over the water just in front of us.  How neat is that?  Then, we went snorkeling in our "private area" about 150 feet from our trailer.  A very relaxing day (except that Jackie is doing some laundry as I write this.)  Friday we leave the Keys and head north.  We will miss the beauty of this area.  It is truly magnificent!  Our pictures do not do it justice.