Day 22: Exploration of Everglades City

The Gordons needed a lay day after their wild ride up from Key West so we decided to stay for another day and bike around the city. The Everglades are huge. We are at the western most edge. I'd guess hundreds of square miles.



There are a lot of air boats tours in the area. Kathy and I took one last time we visited the area.



The photo below is the Smallwoods Store which dates back to 1900. It's the only building in the area to survive every hurricane since 1900.



Following our tour of the area we received a pleasant surprise. Ed and Lois Dixon, friends of ours and the Gordons called to tell us they were going to drive down, from their place on Marco Island, to have dinner with us. Ed and Lois do a lot of racing on their Cosair Trimaran and were leaving the next day for a regatta in Punta Gorda. There primary residence is Johnston, Iowa were they are active members of the Saylorville Yacht Club.

Day 21: Everglades City

I just can't understand it. People keep leaving us. The Reiffs were here for a week and left, now the Sults who were here for a week are leaving too! Is it us or are they just lonesome for the winter weather and Des Moines?

We headed for Everglades City around 10am this morning. Our plan is to meet up with Keith & Betty once again on their way back from Key West. We have never visited Everglades City before. It has a population of only 300 but it's really pretty unique. It's on the Barron river and within the Everglades. There are loads of tours, guides, old Florida style motels and restaurants. The "Rod & Gun Club" where we are staying is 140 years old and has hosted many famous people. We were lucky to have them allow us to park our MH next to Keith and Betty's boat.



The lobby is pretty much the same as it was in the early 1900's. Kathy found a little friend to pet as she was taking to our daughter.

Day 20: Pennekamp Reef

The temperature is only suppose to reach 70 today and the water temperature is 77 so we decided to take the glass bottom boat tour at Pennekamp reef. The reef is the second largest reef in the world behind the Great Barrier Reef.

The 2 1/2 hour tour takes you out to the reef which is about 7 miles off the coast. The viewing windows as you can see in the picture allow you to see the bottom of the Ocean. At the reef it varies in depth from 10-25 ft. It looks much closer because the glass and water magnify the bottom.




I took several photo's of the sea life including, stingrays, parrot fish and barracuda's but they didn't turn out too well. We all really enjoyed the cruise and would recommend it to anyone who travels this area.

The harbor where the boat is docked is in a state park and is very well maintained. They have dockage available for private boats. The channel is 7 feet or more allowing for sailboats to make their way back the 1 mile channel.




This evening we headed to Ft. Lauderdale so we could drop off Denny and Paula at the airport tomorrow morning. For dinner we found a great Mexican Restaurant, Mi Casa Su Casa at 2750 Griffin Road. For anyone traveling to Ft. Lauderdale you must try it if you like Mexican food.

Day 19: Bahia Honda and Key Largo

It didn't take very long for us to load up the motorhome and head north. I did learn an important lesson. Shut off the scooter after running it up the loading ramp. If not it's too easy to hit the throttle and have the front go off the carrier. Fortunately we caught it.

Our first stop was Bahia Honda State Park. It's simply too gorgeous to describe. We originally tried to make reservations there but it's booked a year in advance.


The old bridge was really interesting. We walked across a portion that's been restored.


The view is simply incredible. You can see out over the keys for 360 degrees.


We are camped at Kings Kamp in Key Largo. It has a beautiful view of the Gulf, but it's a fairly small campground with few amenities. This evening we had dinner at the "Fish House and then listened to some "blues" at the Pilot House.

Day 18: Moving Day

This morning we moved Denny and Paula from their apartment at the Pilot House to the MH. Our original game plan was for Denny and Paula to move in with us and take a couple of days exploring the middle and upper keys. However with a cold front moving in and high winds we decided to stay another day in Key West.

This afternoon the four of us explored Stock Island in the Jeep. We discovered a fish market/restaurant where the "fleet" comes in. It's called called "The Shrimp Shack". It was hidden back in an industrial area, but the seafood was great!



This evening we invited Keith and Betty to join the four of us for a farewell dinner at the MH. Kathy, Paula, Betty and Denny played a couple of hands of 313. Betty won both hands.

Day 17: A Sail and a Snorkel

The winds on Saturday dropped down to 12-15mph so Keith and Betty suggested we all sail out to "Sand Key". Sand Key is a reef about 7 miles south of Key West. It is one of the many reefs that surround the Keys. In the 1700's and 1800's many ships ran into these reefs and spilled there treasure throughout the ocean floor. The reef now has an unmanned lighthouse and weather station. The reef under the lighthouse is only 1-2ft. deep in the center and tapers out to about 8-9ft., then drops to 90 ft.



The water looked OK for snorkeling so Kathy and Betty grabbed their gear and jumped in for a peek at the reef.



Paula was a little unsure when she heard the water was so cold. Finally she relented.



The current and the wind around the reef was pretty strong so we tossed out a line for the girls to grab onto. Each time they began to swim towards the reef the current pushed them back. It wasn't long before the cold water and the current convinced them to return to the boat. Denny succeeded in reaching the reef, which was about 100 yds. into the wind.

Day 16: A Bike About

This afternoon we met up with Keith and Betty and Denny and Paula to bike around the island. It's close to 13 mi around the island, but fortunately there are no hills except the bridge over the inlet.



Our first stop was the Key West Boat Show. Although it's not a big show there were some interesting booths. Several were selling old nautical gear.



For the fisherman there was tons of used and new gear.



I mentioned earlier that we enjoyed some great jazz and blues last Friday evening at B.O.'s. Well we decided to return this evening for drinks, dinner and music.

Day 15: A Day to Catch Up

We had a pretty late night last evening so we decided to sleep in and spend the day working around the motorhome. While I washed the jeep and polished the MH wheels, Kathy washed windows and cleaned up inside.



The MH wheels are aluminum and tend to oxidize making them rather dull. Here is a shot of the first one I completed.

They really needed polishing. There is a great product, "Blue Magic" I heard about on the MH blog I follow. It's a blue polish that interacts with the oxidation as you apply it. It literally turns the oxidation black before you removed the polish.

By mid-afternoon we were ready for a break and headed to the pool for some sun and relaxation.

Kathy has been wanting to see some of the movies that were up for the Oscar's so we went to see "The Reader". We rode the scooter which turned out to be a mistake because it died half way to the theater. Fortunately there was a scooter rental place across the street so we left it there and took a taxi. The move was very very good. It's easy to see why Kate Winslet won the Oscar for "Best Actress".

Day 14: Beach Day

There is nothing like a day at the beach! So off to the beach we went for the afternoon. The temp was in the mid 70's but the wind at 15-20mph making for a cool time whenever the sun was blocked by a cloud.



We met up with Keith and Betty, and Denny and Paula for a great seafood dinner at Dante's. It's just a stone's throw from Keith's boat. They have a beautiful pool which is open to the public as long as your eating or drinking at their restaurant.


After not being to impressed with the conch fritters I ordered the other night I decided on the fish platter. Denny on the other hand went for the "Cracked Conch". He offered us each a piece and it was very tasty. It was sort of like Calamari.


Following dinner we headed off to Cowboy Bills. Wednesday night is ladies night so their drinks are free. They also have $3 Corona's. In addition to a great Country Western Band from Nashville they were giving away $200 and lots of prizes for the best female rider. Ten gals signed up and the crowd cheered them on through the elimination process. This is the young gal that won. Two hours earlier she got married.

Day 13: Goodbye and Welcome

Boy does time fly when your having fun! The Reiffs departed today after spending 7 action packed days with us. We thoroughly enjoyed their company and we welcome them back anytime they can break away. Prior to their departure we had an excellent lunch at the Hogfish Bar and Grill. Al took one more opportunity to taste the seafood by ordering a lobster appetizer.



Not long after dropping the Reiffs off at the airport we welcomed Denny and Paula Sult. They're here for a week and staying at a nice guest house 1 block off of the main drag. They are going to join us for a couple of days when we head out of here on March 1.

Day 12: Kayaking in the Mangroves

During our visit to Key West two years ago we went kayaking through the mangroves. We had such a good time that Betty and Kathy suggested that Barb join them on another 4 hour adventure. A friend of Keith's and Betty's filled out the party as Gary, Al and Keith pursued other activities.

Barb and Rex made a good team. There is a rumor that they ran aground a couple of times. Here's a good shot of some of the wider openings that exists but most of the time the openings are no wider than the kayak.

There is a lot of sea life to be seen as you wind through the mangroves. Below is a crab that Barb captured in several pictures. There were also thousands of jelly fish swarming on the bottom.

Following a much needed rest, the group met up at the "Schooner Wharf" for a recap of the days events.

The night was still young for the Reiffs who still had some energy remaining. They danced the night away as they tried to burn off some the calories consumed over the last week. I think it also had a lot to do with this being their last night in paradise.

Day 11: Wreckers Cup Race

Today we participated in the Annual Wreckers Cup Sailboat Race aboard Keith & Betty Gordon's boat "Bar Hopper"



Fortunately the high winds of the past week dropped down to 10-12 knots, however the wind direction also changed to the north. This meant that we would be sailing the entire race downwind.



There were a variety of fleets, but unfortunately no handicap ratings were assigned to the different boats. There were also only three rules. 1. There are no rules! 2. Refer to rule #2! 3. Refer to rule #2!



As I mentioned there were a number of different classes. Below is one of three schooners that entered the race. The schooners allowed paying passengers on the boat for the race. The overall winner of the regatta a J-24 which flew 2 large spinakers, one was from a Farr 40. As I said there were no rules. By the way, Keith's Catalina 36 was the first Catalina 36 to finish.

Day 10: Art Show & The Beach

We heard the "Key West Art Show" was going on today so we decided to check it out. It was really good, not quite as large as the Des Moines Art Show but the quality was just as good. Just across from the show was the Banyan House which has a Banyan Tree that pretty much surrounds the entire house.



The temperature was great, mid 70's with a 10-15 mph Northeast wind. We needed to catch up on the rays so we hit the beach for a couple of hours.



The visit wouldn't be complete without a walk down Duval Street. It's loaded with shops, restaurants, and loads of bars with entertainment. We stopped at a little bar with a one man band and Barb and I felt compelled to put on a dance exhibition for the patrons.

Day 9: Key West Tour

This afternoon we toured the city on the Key West Trolley. It's really a pretty good way to see all the Key West highlights and hear a lot of interesting facts.



A tour of the city wouldn't be complete without a cheeseburger in paradise at Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville. Barb and Al were overwhelmed by the size of the cheeseburgers. We should have ordered one for each couple.



The southern most point of the U.S. is also a favorite place for tourist to visit.



This evening we headed to the Green Paroit to meet up with Keith and Betty and catch some "Blues". Unfortunately the music didn't start until 10pm. That's too late for these oldies to get started so we stopped by B.O.'s where Betty heard their was music. The impromptu group was great. They played a wide variety of music, blues, jazz, country, and some great old standards.

Day 8: Arrival in Key West

Following breakfast this morning we discovered a little friend at the Jolly Roger Campground, an 18 inch Iguana. He didn't like all the attention and quickly scurried under the motorhome.



We arrived at Boyd's Campground in Key West around noon for the start of our 2 week stay. Our friends Keith and Betty Gordon winter in Florida each year and recently sailed their boat to Key West to meet up with us. Prior to departing on our trip we made a stop at the Drug Town in Ankeny to pickup a beer order for Keith. To those of you who don't know him, he is passionate about his love for Hamm's beer. We built a Hamm's tower to celebrate our meeting.



We learned during our last visit to Key West that drinks and food are rather expensive so we like to hit the restaurants before 7pm for the 1/2 price drinks.
This evening we headed to Schooner Wharf for dinner, cocktails and music. Kathy and Betty feasted on a Fish Tacos, Al the crab Cakes and the rest of us Fish n' Chips.



Following dinner Barb and I decided to burn off a couple of the calories we had taken in. It turns out our entertainer was from Lake Okoboji, Iowa. What a small world
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