#76 Mar 2015 Florida Keys - Sunsets and Dolphins

We were booked into a park in Homestead (near Miami) and explored the Everglades and the Keys from there.

A few years ago we took a bus tour from Fort Lauderdale to Key West. It was very informative but an overview due to time limitations and the distance.

Now we wanted to explore on our own. We “thought” that it would be less expensive to book a hotel for one night rather than an RV resort costing at least $100 per night. Fuel would be less expensive for the Suzuki than the RV. Well, the Suzuki certainly took less fuel than the RV would have. However, the cheapest hotel was $335 per night. Fortunately we were able to use points instead of US dollars at a 28% premium.

The Florida Keys are a string of islands connected by 42 bridges ending in Key West. This time the pen is pointing to the highway from Key Largo to Key West, a distance of about 130 miles.

The drive is spectacular with many small communities along the way.

The average depth of Florida Bay between the mainland (Everglades) and the Keys is 6 feet. This creates a fantastic range of water colours. These are true colours – not enhanced.

We stopped at the Dolphin Research Center, which was started in the 1950’s as Santini’s Porpoise Training School. In 1963 Hollywood learned about the Center befriending dolphins and made the movie “Flipper”. Some of his descendants are still at the Center.

In the late 1970’s the research at the Center was influential in persuading the International Whaling Commission to limit or stop hunting whales, a close cousin of dolphins.

The trainers work with the dolphins and learn how to stimulate each dolphin according to his/her personality.

They also play with the dolphins.

And work with sea lions.

The sunset in Key West is a prime attraction. Hundreds of people gather at Mallory Square to watch buskers, enjoy food carts and wait for the magic moment when the sun sets across the vast Pacific Ocean.

Cruise ships sail away just after the sun dips below the horizon.

The passengers on this jet would have a different but equally spectacular view of the sunset.

On the Square most people leave after the sunset and the outdoor tables are available. We had a late supper, savoured the dusk and watched the sunset cruisers drift past.

After supper we wandered past the Original Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville Café.

The next day we returned for nachos for lunch – what a feast! Of course Ralph had Landshark beer and I had a margarita (or 2).

We took a trolley tour of Key West, which is the Southern Most Point in the Continental USA. The line up for a photo op was about an hour. We don’t know these people but they were having fun and we continued our tour.

A small version of the Marilyn Monroe statue was a popular spot.

The first European explorer to discover Key West was Juan Ponce de Leon in 1521. Fishing was the mainstay for many centuries until it was “discovered” by people such as Ernest Hemingway as a winter getaway. There are many beautiful, stately homes.

Some of them very fanciful.

Several churches dominate the skyline.

There is a recurring theme among the cities we have visited. If a building is not completed (painted) then the taxation is less.

On the way back we viewed the original boat from the movie “African Queen”.

This pelican was waiting for just the right fishing dive.

A glorious sunset and drive then back to the RV for our next adventure.