Of the Florida Keys;

Another post of one of my trips of the past. This is from my trip to the Florida Keys in March 2010 with my Dad. We stayed with my Grandpa in Marathon as we explored the surrounding keys and the ocean.




View Florida Keys in a larger map. Zoom in to be able to select to photos better.

On the way to the keys from Miami we went to an alligator/crock farm out of Homestead.  From Florida Keys

After getting down to the Keys we spent a lot of time out on the boat. We cruised all around the canals. We stopped at a small rocky island just off from the entrance to our canal where we collected various beach treasures. We found sponges all over, broken pieces of coral, old conch shells, and dried out fishes.

We went out to Sombrero Key lighthouse. It is sitting on a reef about 5 miles out into the ocean. It was put in service in 1858 and is one of the tallest lighthouses in the keys.

Getting the Scuba gear ready. We went out to the reef by the light house to dived. It was my first time Scuba diving and I loved it. It was awesome getting to see all the sealife around the reef. Colorful fish all over, lobsters in the rocks, and conch shells along the bottom.

We took a day to drive down to Key West and check out the city. We made several small stops on the way down to check out some of the natural areas of the keys. This is an area on No Name Key where we found some old overgrown building foundations.

We toured the historic Fort Zachary Taylor. The fort was held and fortified by the North during the Civil War. Cannons were all over the place. There were even cannons built into the mortar of the walls as reinforcement which have been partially excavated. I'm also wearing my "I lifted a goldbar" sticker from the Mel Fisher treasure museum.

The Fort was originally build out in the ocean about a quarter mile off the main island. Over the years the land has been built up around it creating what is now a large park. Today it is part of the main island of Key West, but there is still a moat around the fort.

I was about 10 seconds late in trying to see the famous Key West sunset. I got to the viewing area just as everyone was clapping.

No trip to Florida can be complete with out having some raw oysters.