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| Key West Mallory Square... |
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| ...Moments later |
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| Key West Mallory Square |
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| Key West Marllory Square |
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| Key West Mallory Square |
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| Key West Conch Harbour Marina |
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| Naples Pier |
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| Fort Myers City Dock |
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| Safe and sound in Stuart |
Sunday, April 8, 2012
Floridian Sunsets
They'll speak for themselves! Enjoy.
Till next time!
The Gulf Coast
After a fun week in Key West we had an "ideal" weather window. I use the quotes because I don't mind a little swaggle and Sue would like it glass smooth - so I generally try for something in the middle. With a forecast of 1-2 feet slow rolling waves and a light breeze aft - it was an ideal day for a very long run. Our longest in fact - we were out to sea for over 13 hours and covered some 120 miles of open ocean about 10 - 40 miles off shore.
We started the day at 5:45 AM in the dark and navigated our way through the barrier reef out to the gulf and had a wonderful view of the sun rise at 7:30AM.
We arrived in Naples on a calm sunny evening to see a lot of lovely homes as we wound our way into the city dock for the night.
Our two main highlights in Naples were the Pier and an Arts and Craft Bazaar. The Pier has been in place since 1888, although rebuilt from time to time. Originally in service as a fishing and shipping structure, like all things, over time it was too small and larger cities and ports centralized the commerce. In response, it was turned into a local attraction for residents and visitors with beach access, a lunch counter and fishing. The Naples Pier is one of the best places in Florida to catch a sunset as well - more on this next time!
The Bazaar was one of those fortunate surprises. 5th street is the most prestigious street in Naples with high end art and home shops along with restaurants of all kinds. On this sunny Sunday, they closed the street and artisans from all over Florida and America congregated to show their wares. Now for most of us in Canada we might think a nice selection of artisans might include a few painters, photographers, potters and crafts. Let's say a few dozen might be considered a nice little showing. If you were to see a couple of city blocks you might think yourself quite fortunate for the variety.
In Naples on this day they had 9 city blocks and I would estimate over 500 displays of all kinds. More than the sheer volume, the quality was incredible - there were no $10 nic-nacks. Everything was high quality, original work selling for hundreds or thousands of dollars. Custom jewellery, clocks, hand blown glass, bronze sculptures, statues, paintings, prints, photos, potters - it just went on and on and on.
From Naples off to Sanibel Island - a lovely little community surrounded by beaches linked by walking and biking trails. You can see the whole island by bike, if you like, and spend time on beaches facing the coast line of Florida or the Gulf of Mexico. We met Jim and Shannon, a lovely couple from Charleston, SC, and shared a dinner out at The Timbers Seafood restaurant one evening. Jim was trying to pull in a better WiFi signal on his boat and I ended up spending half a day helping to configure the marina's system to broadcast to the docks more effectively.
From Sanibel we went inland to cross Florida on a Intercostal Waterway that goes up the Caloosahatchee River, on to Lake Okeechobee, then the Lucie Canal en route to Stuart on the East Coast of Florida. You only have to go a few miles inland of Stuart or Fort Myers on the Okeechobee Waterway to truly experience a "deliverance" moment. Soon enough, you are surrounded by orange grooves, weeds, dead or decaying trees, umpteen varieties of birds and the elusive alligator. We were more in danger of grounding in the shallow 5 foot Okeechobee Lake, than anything else.
This whole trip is what is called the "Little Loop" as it covers the lower 1/3 of Florida. Sue calls it the "Florida Sampler" as you get to see both coasts, the Keys and a variety of big cities, ghost towns with open ocean to explore. With over 1,000 km covered without incident or issue, we had a wonderful time and enjoyed the best of what Florida could offer.
Who knows were we'll go next - only time and Revi will tell.
Life is an adventure - live it large!!
Cheers!!
Scott & Sue
We started the day at 5:45 AM in the dark and navigated our way through the barrier reef out to the gulf and had a wonderful view of the sun rise at 7:30AM.
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| Sunrise on the Gulf of Mexico |
We arrived in Naples on a calm sunny evening to see a lot of lovely homes as we wound our way into the city dock for the night.
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| Naples Home |
Our two main highlights in Naples were the Pier and an Arts and Craft Bazaar. The Pier has been in place since 1888, although rebuilt from time to time. Originally in service as a fishing and shipping structure, like all things, over time it was too small and larger cities and ports centralized the commerce. In response, it was turned into a local attraction for residents and visitors with beach access, a lunch counter and fishing. The Naples Pier is one of the best places in Florida to catch a sunset as well - more on this next time!
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| Naples Pier |
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| Naples Beach |
The Bazaar was one of those fortunate surprises. 5th street is the most prestigious street in Naples with high end art and home shops along with restaurants of all kinds. On this sunny Sunday, they closed the street and artisans from all over Florida and America congregated to show their wares. Now for most of us in Canada we might think a nice selection of artisans might include a few painters, photographers, potters and crafts. Let's say a few dozen might be considered a nice little showing. If you were to see a couple of city blocks you might think yourself quite fortunate for the variety.
In Naples on this day they had 9 city blocks and I would estimate over 500 displays of all kinds. More than the sheer volume, the quality was incredible - there were no $10 nic-nacks. Everything was high quality, original work selling for hundreds or thousands of dollars. Custom jewellery, clocks, hand blown glass, bronze sculptures, statues, paintings, prints, photos, potters - it just went on and on and on.
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| Naples Bazaar |
From Naples off to Sanibel Island - a lovely little community surrounded by beaches linked by walking and biking trails. You can see the whole island by bike, if you like, and spend time on beaches facing the coast line of Florida or the Gulf of Mexico. We met Jim and Shannon, a lovely couple from Charleston, SC, and shared a dinner out at The Timbers Seafood restaurant one evening. Jim was trying to pull in a better WiFi signal on his boat and I ended up spending half a day helping to configure the marina's system to broadcast to the docks more effectively.
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| Sanibel Island Light House |
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| Sanibel Sunset Over Canal |
From Sanibel we went inland to cross Florida on a Intercostal Waterway that goes up the Caloosahatchee River, on to Lake Okeechobee, then the Lucie Canal en route to Stuart on the East Coast of Florida. You only have to go a few miles inland of Stuart or Fort Myers on the Okeechobee Waterway to truly experience a "deliverance" moment. Soon enough, you are surrounded by orange grooves, weeds, dead or decaying trees, umpteen varieties of birds and the elusive alligator. We were more in danger of grounding in the shallow 5 foot Okeechobee Lake, than anything else.
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| Fort Myers Beach Fishing Fleet |
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| WP Franklin Lock on Okeechobee Waterway - 2 foot rise! |
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| Sunrise at Moore Haven - just about to enter the MH Lock |
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| Lake Okeechobee dead ahead??? |
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| Lake Okeechobee I presume?! |
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| All manner of vessels on Lucie Canal |
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| Hanging out at the dolphin pilling waiting for Lucie Lock |
This whole trip is what is called the "Little Loop" as it covers the lower 1/3 of Florida. Sue calls it the "Florida Sampler" as you get to see both coasts, the Keys and a variety of big cities, ghost towns with open ocean to explore. With over 1,000 km covered without incident or issue, we had a wonderful time and enjoyed the best of what Florida could offer.
Who knows were we'll go next - only time and Revi will tell.
Life is an adventure - live it large!!
Cheers!!
Scott & Sue
Monday, March 26, 2012
Key West - Part 2
As Scott wrote, for such a small area, there is a lot more to do in Key West than you would think (well, at least what we thought anyway). Truly, there is something for everyone. Scott will complain of the daily “death marches” that I led him on, but our tired feet managed to find some pretty amazing things along the way – some intentionally, and some not. Those are always the best finds.
One of the first things I wanted to do, in true tourist fashion, was to walk down to the “southernmost point” of the USA – a landmark which is stated to be 90 miles away from Cuba. Locals boast that Key West is closer to Cuba than it is to Miami on the Florida mainland. The queue to get pictures taken by this landmark was mindboggling. But there we where, choosing to take the prettier vantage point, from the back of the landmark, thereby avoiding the line-up (we’re practical tourists).
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Given this was our first time in The Keys and the fact that we were able to parallel the entire US 1 route by boat, we felt it fitting to celebrate this milestone by taking a picture of the captain by the Mile 0 sign – the origin of US 1 which links The Keys to the mainland.
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But you never know what you’ll find along the way. Once considered the official bird of KW, chickens roam freely, as do roosters. Traffic stops regularly for a hen with her clutch of chicks as they attempt to cross the road, pecking for food all the while.
.jpg)
Another amazing find along our “death marches” were the variety and sheer size of the trees. The Kapok tree was perhaps the most impressive, having never seen this variety in our travels.
When you come to Key West, it is said that there are three things you need to do: go to the southernmost point, see the USCGC Ingham and visit the Ernest Hemingway Museum. We diligently completed the first two on the list, but we were sceptical about this last item on the list. But, this museum was perhaps the most pleasantly surprising visit. Initially built by a famous Key West master wrecker and entrepreneur, Asa Tift, this house and its property were impressive. The house was built with 1 foot thick blocks of coral, assuring the building could withstand the extreme weather of the islands (hurricanes primarily).
Originally on his way further north from Paris, Hemingway was delayed in his travels in Key West. He was awestruck by the beauty and serenity of the islands; he decided to make it his home with his second to fourth wives. He went through them pretty quickly. Hemingway went on to write many of the books and short stories that made him famous, right in this home: A Farewell to Arms, To Have and To Have Not, and For Whom the Bell Tolls. Apparently, he wrote in the mornings, fished in the afternoons and caroused in the evenings into the mornings. Might explain the wives!
There are many impressive features of the property, including a separate building which was attached by a gangway from his bedroom to this writing studio surrounded by massive bamboo and giant palm trees. His second wife insisted on replacing each ceiling fan with chandeliers in each room (including the bathrooms), and building a $20 000 swimming pool (at the height of the depression, mind you). The actual property cost $8000! Today, the property shelters 44 cats of the six toed variety, all genetically linked to the original 6 toed cat that was the resident pet. They are everywhere, inside and out. They had several dedicated staff on site and a vet who looked after the cats. The cats had separate cages to sleep in. They also had a cat cemetery. There you go. So we agreed with the tourism brochure as we sat under a canopy of trees on one of the many benches on the property.
Naturally, no day is complete without the daily pilgrimage to the westernmost part of any town or city we land in, for the evening homage to the sunset. Key West didn’t disappoint. In fact, Mallory Square holds a celebration of the sunset every night, with all kinds of street performers and vendors coming out to add to the wall of bodies on the pier. That’s my kind of town! Here’s a small sample, but we have to leave something for the next time!
Till next time!
One of the first things I wanted to do, in true tourist fashion, was to walk down to the “southernmost point” of the USA – a landmark which is stated to be 90 miles away from Cuba. Locals boast that Key West is closer to Cuba than it is to Miami on the Florida mainland. The queue to get pictures taken by this landmark was mindboggling. But there we where, choosing to take the prettier vantage point, from the back of the landmark, thereby avoiding the line-up (we’re practical tourists).
.jpg)
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| Line-up to take pic with southernmost landmark! |
Given this was our first time in The Keys and the fact that we were able to parallel the entire US 1 route by boat, we felt it fitting to celebrate this milestone by taking a picture of the captain by the Mile 0 sign – the origin of US 1 which links The Keys to the mainland.
.jpg)
But you never know what you’ll find along the way. Once considered the official bird of KW, chickens roam freely, as do roosters. Traffic stops regularly for a hen with her clutch of chicks as they attempt to cross the road, pecking for food all the while.
.jpg)
Another amazing find along our “death marches” were the variety and sheer size of the trees. The Kapok tree was perhaps the most impressive, having never seen this variety in our travels.
 |
| The crown canopy was equally impressive |
When you come to Key West, it is said that there are three things you need to do: go to the southernmost point, see the USCGC Ingham and visit the Ernest Hemingway Museum. We diligently completed the first two on the list, but we were sceptical about this last item on the list. But, this museum was perhaps the most pleasantly surprising visit. Initially built by a famous Key West master wrecker and entrepreneur, Asa Tift, this house and its property were impressive. The house was built with 1 foot thick blocks of coral, assuring the building could withstand the extreme weather of the islands (hurricanes primarily).
Originally on his way further north from Paris, Hemingway was delayed in his travels in Key West. He was awestruck by the beauty and serenity of the islands; he decided to make it his home with his second to fourth wives. He went through them pretty quickly. Hemingway went on to write many of the books and short stories that made him famous, right in this home: A Farewell to Arms, To Have and To Have Not, and For Whom the Bell Tolls. Apparently, he wrote in the mornings, fished in the afternoons and caroused in the evenings into the mornings. Might explain the wives!
There are many impressive features of the property, including a separate building which was attached by a gangway from his bedroom to this writing studio surrounded by massive bamboo and giant palm trees. His second wife insisted on replacing each ceiling fan with chandeliers in each room (including the bathrooms), and building a $20 000 swimming pool (at the height of the depression, mind you). The actual property cost $8000! Today, the property shelters 44 cats of the six toed variety, all genetically linked to the original 6 toed cat that was the resident pet. They are everywhere, inside and out. They had several dedicated staff on site and a vet who looked after the cats. The cats had separate cages to sleep in. They also had a cat cemetery. There you go. So we agreed with the tourism brochure as we sat under a canopy of trees on one of the many benches on the property.
.jpg) |
| You find these 6 toed felines EVERYWHERE! |
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| The Hemingway typewriter - took it to WWII |
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| One of the many nooks and crannies on the property |
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| Urinal in disguise - payback for 2nd wife and the 20K for the pool |
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| Gorgeous property available for weddings too |
Naturally, no day is complete without the daily pilgrimage to the westernmost part of any town or city we land in, for the evening homage to the sunset. Key West didn’t disappoint. In fact, Mallory Square holds a celebration of the sunset every night, with all kinds of street performers and vendors coming out to add to the wall of bodies on the pier. That’s my kind of town! Here’s a small sample, but we have to leave something for the next time!
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| Apparently cruise ships leave all the time from KW |
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| Juggling fire on a unicycle |
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Now imagine this with "Dance Fever" blasting - seriously! |
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Key West - Part 1
Seven days in Key West went by in a flash - there is alot to do every day. First and foremost - Key West is a hot spot of activity. We arrived on a Saturday and the place was jumping - the marina pool and bar were overflowing with young and old having a good time. The town was full of St. Patty's Day revelers who were decked out in green shirts and hats roaming the street from bar to bar on various "crawls". We chaulked it all up to the mood of the day and expected that Sunday would return to a more "normal" state. We were wrong - it just kept rolling - day after day of crowds and people out to have a good time.
Being somewhat more subdued, we went on the museum tours - a suprising number of them. Starting with the "Little Whitehouse" where President Truman spent over 150 days on vacation during and after his tenure as president. You could tell that Key West is proud of its association with the 6th most beloved US President. Interestingly, when Truman left office, he enjoyed the lowest approval rating of any president before or since - 22%. His assertion was that he was elected to lead and he would - his judgement would be rendered some 25+ years later. Prophetic words indeed.
The "Little Whitehouse" was an unoccupied Fleet Admiral's Home in Key West that was made available to Truman to help him recover from an illness after the WWII postwar discussions. This was at a time when if you had the condition of "overwork" doctors would prescribe rest in a soft warm climate - now those were the days! Truman enjoyed it so much he would spend all his vacation time in Key West where he would work with his trusted advisors.
Then off to the Ingham - the US Coast Guard's more decorated vessel. It served convoy duty during WWII and over her 75 years of service she and her crews were decorated twice with Presidential Citations. For my part it was an interesting study in the design of utility on the open ocean. Everything was purposeful and designed with function in mind. The only place where some stylistic design crept in was in the officer's and the Captain's quarters and mess which were lavish by comparision to the general crew and included their own custom china and silver place-ettings. In all I would say that fully 85% of the interior volume of the ship was dedicated to mechanical and food preparation.
The fort is still surrounded by an active US Naval base where they train Navy Seals and maintain an active port and security. This same port is used by visiting navys (Canada Pictured Below) and by modern day Cruise Ships. A reminder that our freedom comes at a price - vigilance.
But it offers B&B in spades if you like that too!!!
Being somewhat more subdued, we went on the museum tours - a suprising number of them. Starting with the "Little Whitehouse" where President Truman spent over 150 days on vacation during and after his tenure as president. You could tell that Key West is proud of its association with the 6th most beloved US President. Interestingly, when Truman left office, he enjoyed the lowest approval rating of any president before or since - 22%. His assertion was that he was elected to lead and he would - his judgement would be rendered some 25+ years later. Prophetic words indeed.
The "Little Whitehouse" was an unoccupied Fleet Admiral's Home in Key West that was made available to Truman to help him recover from an illness after the WWII postwar discussions. This was at a time when if you had the condition of "overwork" doctors would prescribe rest in a soft warm climate - now those were the days! Truman enjoyed it so much he would spend all his vacation time in Key West where he would work with his trusted advisors.
Then off to the Ingham - the US Coast Guard's more decorated vessel. It served convoy duty during WWII and over her 75 years of service she and her crews were decorated twice with Presidential Citations. For my part it was an interesting study in the design of utility on the open ocean. Everything was purposeful and designed with function in mind. The only place where some stylistic design crept in was in the officer's and the Captain's quarters and mess which were lavish by comparision to the general crew and included their own custom china and silver place-ettings. In all I would say that fully 85% of the interior volume of the ship was dedicated to mechanical and food preparation.
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| Ingham in Profile |
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| Bridge Deck - Only One Chair for the CO |
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| Officer's Mess |
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| 3 Small Racks for Crew - No I Don't Fit! |
Then off to Fort Zacharey Taylor - an 19th Century fort built in 21 years and put in service in 1845 and named for President Taylor. This post never saw action during the Spanish American War, the Civil War, WWI, WWII, or The Cuban Missile Crisis. However, in each instance it was outfitted and maintained as an active post for the military to control the waters around the US and access to the Gulf of Mexico. It's location in Key West sits right on the dividing line between the Atlantic and the Gulf.
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| Originaly Three Levels and 140 Cannons |
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| Original Cannonade |
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| WWII Fortifications to left and Original Construction to Right |
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| Canadian Ship Docked at the US Naval Yard |
Thar Be Treasure There!
Then on to the Key West Lighthouse Museum. There are 7 major light houses - 6 along the reef line on the ocean side of Hawks Channel and the main lighthouse in Key West itself. These lighthouses were all comissioned in the mid to late 1800's to reduce the number of ship wrecks along the coast. The wrecks were the single largest source of income for Key West at the time as "Wreckers" would race to the site of a sinking to be declared "Wreck Master" to recieve the larger share of the spoils. In fact, Key West was the first location for an official Wreckers Court where a judge would preside over a claim and adjudicate the maritime law around allocations and division of the spoils when a ship floundered on the reef.
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| Key West Lighthouse |
With the addition of the lighthouses, the source of income gradually decreased and was brought to an end in the early 1900's. That said, some of the early wrecks still provide opportunities for treasure hunters and there is an active industry in Key West for treasure seekers. In fact, the last major find was the 3rd on the same vessel - the Isaac Allerton. First wrecked in 1856 it was awarded the single largest settlement valued then at over $85,000 (more than a million in todays dollars). It was rediscovered in 1985 when new technology made it possible to discover many other finds not possible in the 1800's - the wreck was thought to have been thoroughly explored. In 2010 another treasure hunter found another $500 Million in uncut Emeralds - this case is now in front of the courts to decide on the allocations. The Allerton is by far the most valuable of treasure ships ever found - each time!
The story of the Florida Key's lighthouses is entwined with the culture of the community and history.
Key West has more to offer than you might think - a lot more than just beaches and beer.
But it offers B&B in spades if you like that too!!!
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