The Great Wander

Once the decision was made that we were going to hang out in Key West instead to wait out Hurricane Beryl, I called Sandy to let her know.  After a week off, I couldn’t extend my trip, so while the crew of Manta Jo would hang out at Key West and Everglades National Park to wait out the hurricane, I would be heading back to One Life.

Coming into Key West, it was the middle of the night.  My shift partner and I watched the lights that marked the channel and adjusted course accordingly. We did this until it was time to wake the captain and have him take over.  Once we were near an anchorage, we left the channel and the captain expertly picked us a spot to drop anchor.  As I described previously, dropping anchor takes a little bit of teamwork, even when you’re very experienced.  It seemed pretty effortless though.

It was probably close to 2 am when we all settled in for the night. I wouldn’t sleep much, since I wasn’t staying in the boat after I got up. I was eager to get back to Sandy and One Life and see what we could do about moving to an anchorage ourselves.

Rain kept us onboard for a good chunk of the morning.  Once the rain lightened up, the crew hopped in the dinghy.  After a couple of minutes Sandy and Matthew were at the city dock to get me.  We exchanged pleasantries and headed off in our directions.  

Key West is a popular destination, both by boat and by car. It’s the most southern point in the Continental US. There’s even a neat monument that designates that point…it has lines like Disney to get your picture taken there.  So, no we did not stop, though I recognize for a travel blog…I probably should have.

As we cruised by the southernmost point, we headed on off of Key West towards Miami.  Heading east on Highway 1 to Miami, we decided to spend another night in the Keys.  We found a decent little hotel and marina on Conch Key that had Jet Ski rentals.  Wet Willy’s Water Sports was a cool find.

We rented for a couple of hours and jetted around Conch Key and Duck Key.  Having never been a big fan of jet skis, I was hesitant, but as I got going, these things really were a blast. We darted back and forth between the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic.  The difference between the two bodies of water was amazing.  On the Gulf side, the the sea state was pretty flat, head under a bridge to the Atlantic side, and all of the sudden you’ve got swells all around!

Driving through the  Keys? Stop by Conch Key and Wet Willy’s.  It’s a great time. 

When we are on the road, we try pretty hard to find some local ice cream shops.  We don’t keep a lot of ice cream on board, so when we can find a new shop, it’s always a good thing!  Conch Custard was one such find.  Locally and recently made, the ice cream was pretty smooth and with a wide variety of flavors, any taste should be satisfied.

The other thing you want to look for, and unfortunately, I can’t remember the name of the restaurant we stopped at for breakfast, but I decided a breakfast desert was warranted.  The restaurant had an in-house made fresh key lime pie.  If you’re in the Keys, stop by a small local restaurant ask if they make their key lime pie.  If they do, stay and have some.  It’s truly some of the best Key Lime Pie you’ll ever have.  Of course if you do…be prepared to never be able to eat Marie Calendar’s Key Lime Pie again!

There’s a lot of really great things to do in the Keys, if you have the time.  Everything from Jet Skiing to deep sea fishing to snorkeling.  Water sports in the Keys abound and you’ll find something that suits your taste.  One other highlight, I’d be remiss to not include is Fred the Tree.

Fred the Tree is an Australian Pine Tree that is growing out of the remnants of the old Seven Mile Bridge.  You can’t stop and see Fred, there’s no place on the new Seven Mile Bridge, but you’ll see it as you drive by.  If you’ve seen the remake of Roadhouse with Jake Gyllenhaal, at the beginning of movie, you’ll see Fred.  It’s reminiscent of the lone pine tree growing out of a rock in between Laramie and Cheyenne.

It was disappointing to not get to cross the Gulf and go to Guatemala.  As I mentioned last week, the experience was well worth it.  I did however have a great time making our way through the Keys back to One Life to get her ready for leaving the dock again.