Go West, Young Man!

Today we spent the day in Key West thanks to our friends. Yesterday they went on the Conch Train, a tour of the city, and their tickets were for 2 days. They were unable to take the tour for two days so passed the tickets on to us. So we popped Timmy into his crate and drove down to Key West. We know we can leave Timmy for about 4 to 5 hours, so time was of the essence. We took about an hour to get down to Key West, parking in the Westin Hotel parking lot near Mallory Square. We jumped onto the first Conch Train that was stopped at the depot. It was already pretty cloudy and we thought rain was threatening, but the only seats that were available were the ones directly behind the driver.
The tour is very good with a hop on, hop off option. We stayed on until we got to the Southernmost Point of the USA. Would have loved to tour the Hemingway house, but as we had to be back within about 4 hours, we gave it a miss until the next time we are down here. Key West is a fascinating place with a lot of history and character.
We had some very wet weather on the tour and were given yellow plastic ponchos to wear, but only after we were thoroughly soaked. How can the weather change so much from the day before?

Mile 0

Any buyers for this RV with a unique paint job.

The plaque says it all

The Hemingway house

90 miles from Cuba

I just like this front porch

A famous guys front porch

Rococo movie Theater

Shrimp Poboy for lunch

Mango marguerita. Yummy!

Shrimp Club Sandwich.

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We found the Keys!

South African friends of ours from Ontario let us know that they were going to be in Florida for a week, and wondered if we could meet up somewhere. They were staying at a time share in Fort Lauderdale and we were in Pine Island. We were due to leave Pine Island on the 14th and head down to Sunshine Key RV Resort on Big Pine Key. So a little bit of juggling and we left Pine Island on the 13th, forfeiting a day there and brought our Keys dates forward by one day. We did not mind forfeiting the one day as our stay in Sunshine Key is costing us nothing. This is a Thousand Trails Max Pass booking. So 8 days in the keys is going to be great.
We loved the trip down, through the Everglades and then down to the Keys, travelling on the Oversea Highway, crossing the wonderful blue green waters of the Gulf of Mexico on the right and the Atlantic on the left.

The Oversea Highway with the defunct Flagler Railroad highway on the right.

Our friends Dave and Belinda and their 2 1/2 year old grandson Aiden got to the resort before us.We got permission for them to stay with us at no cost. What a deal!

Enjoying a chat in the wonderful warm weather. Dave, Belinda, Aiden, Timmy and Dee.

Breakfast at camp. Dave, Belinda and Michael.

Can you believe this is February?

Dave and Belinda went down to Key West for the day while we finished settling into our site. We are on site #370 which is quite close to the highway, but we do have a view of the water. We met them down in Key West for the Sunset Entertainment in Mallory Square. Unfortunately the clouds rolled in and we did not actually see the sunset. A dinner of conch fritters, clam strips, calamari and coconut shrimp on the waterfront and then Dave and Belinda drove back to Fort Lauderdale and we drove home. How lovely to see friends from home.

Mallory Square is a area of stores and eateries. It is also where the various city tours start.

Belinda and Dee inside a Megalodon skeleton.

Sharing 2 seafood dinners between the 4 of us at the water's edge.

There are these roosters running around all over the town. Apparently they are protected.

sculptures near Mallory Square.

Majesty of the Seas in dock.

A sail boat passes by.

A tall ship catching the breeze.

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To see or not to see, that is the question!

Today we took a boat ride with Manatee World, up the Caloosahatchie And Orange Rivers to see manatees. I am told we did see manatees, but I cannot be sure. the reason we chose this tour was because we were allowed to take Timmy with us.

Herons

We get to see an alligator at last

Metal sculpture in memory of some guy who owned land in the area.

There are some big birds in the rookery

Our captain

Timmy enjoying the ride

Michael watching the river ahead. That island ahead was full of birds.

That brown smudge under the mangrove foliage is a manatee. So they say.

I am told that brownish smudge near the center of the picture is a manatee.

Our Tour Boat

 

 

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Sanibel Island

Yesterday we took the campground bus to Sanibel Island. For $5 each it is totally worth it, seeing that the toll to get onto the island is about $6 per car and then parking is $2 per half hour. The only problem with the bus is that it is there from 10 am to 1:30 pm and we like to stay longer and would like to take Timmy with us. But it was a very pleasant trip. The beach is gorgeous, white sand, covered in shells and the water is wonderful. We watched dolphins swimming up and down the beach all morning. Caught up with some fishermen on the pier who were pulling Sheep Head fish out by the dozen.

At the campground there is a lady, Judy, and her daughter, Lia, who will come and take your dog out for a walk during your absence. We hired them to take Timmy out at 12 for a potty break, so that was taken care of.

For dinner we had the big shrimp that I bought from Andy's Fish Market. Sautéed in Garlic butter, served on Jasmine rice with peas. It was delicious. So delicious that I did not take a photo before it went down the hatch! :-)

View from the pier

Dolphins swimming and playing near the beach

The fishing pier

The lighthouse

A beautiful hot sunny day. Perfect for just strolling along the shore

Fishing pier

A fisherman checking his haul

The caught fish are threaded onto a rope and kept n the water to keep them fresh

I was a little disappointed with the sameness of the shells. Not as varied and as colourful as those we used to find in South Africa.

The lighthouse.

Michael, catching some rays.

Aaaah! This is the life!

 

 

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