UPDATED 02-04-2023
We got up early and drove to Stock Island which is right outside Key West. Here we got in our two person kayak and joined our guide and fellow kayakers on a tour of the mangrove forest. This turned out to be pretty cool. We kayaked through natural trails through the forests that build islands over the centuries, provide habitat to numerous wildlife, and protect the islands from hurricanes. We saw tree crabs,
cassiopeia jellyfish that live upside down on the bottom of the shallows,
sea hares which are shell-less snails about six inches or more in size, starfish, and nurse sharks. I will add some pictures of some of these creatures when I get home and can process my camera pictures.
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Kayaking through the mangroves. |
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Southernmost point. |
After the kayak we drove into Key West proper and tried to find a parking spot. The first parking lot was full but, to our surprise, I managed to find a spot near the southernmost part of the continental United States. We stopped at the Southernmost Point Bar for some lunch before exploring the town. While we ate under the umbrella it poured rain. Fortunately it was nearly over by the time we finished lunch.
First stop here was the Southernmost Point Marker. Not much to see here really except a large painted marker. Still cool though. So far we have been at the most southern, western, and the most central part of the United States on our travels.
Next we walked to the Hemingway house and learned about the writer, his life, and his wives. We saw the famous Hemingway cats - there are now fifty-seven of them - who are famous for having extra toes. One cat we saw had one extra toe on the front paws and two extra toes on the back paws.
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Where Hemingway did a lot of his writing. |
Our next stop, not on our itinerary, was a
lighthouse across the street from the Hemingway house. From the top of the eighty-eight steps you could see all of Key West and it was an interesting vantage point. (I may be sore tomorrow not only from the kayak rowing but also from the stair climbing.)
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Robert the Doll. |
The Tennessee Williams exhibit that was on our itinerary was not open so it got skipped.
We returned to our car and drove to the Fort East Martello museum home of Robert the Creepy Doll. This museum actually was fun. We usually don't like museums but this was an eclectic mix of all sorts of random stuff including Robert who was, in fact, a very creepy doll. The scary music right out of a bad horror movie set the atmosphere perfectly. We also saw junk art and a few iguanas sunning themselves on the fort grounds.
We ended the day with a relaxing sit on out back porch watching the sun go down over Duck Key.
Tomorrow we return to Key West for some beach sitting and, perhaps, a few more stops in town.
Photos can be found in my
2023-01 Key West Roadtrip Google Photos album.
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Sunset over Duck Key. |
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