Movin’ on Down

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May 4, 2023

Our winter road trip continues in Key West.

Although we have a great timeshare an hour away in Marathon Key, there’s nothing like several nights in Key West – especially when our next-day, all-day excursion requires a 7 a.m. checkin. Plus, there is the added advantage of walking to the ocean views, restaurants, and (especially the) bars that surround us!

Click on the first photo in each group and scroll to see the square photos at full size.
To start at the beginning of this series, visit Seeking the Sun 2023.

Movin’ on Down?

I know that a better goal in life is to be movin’ on UP, but let me explain. Three years ago on our first journey southeast in January (The Emerald Coast), our first stop was two weeks in Panama City Beach. The beautiful white sand in the picture above looked an awful lot like snow, so donning our winter gear didn’t look all that weird. Freezing cold, but not weird. We drove two days southeast to get warmer, but our first stop was not quite far enough.

This year (after St. Augustine and three nights in Fort Lauderdale), we moved on down to Key West and followed the sun back up through Florida, with a week in PCB near the end of our trip. We will definitely be following that route on future itineraries.

Key West – Twenty Years Later

The only time we’ve been in Key West was when our oldest daughter and her now-husband joined us during a break from college. We stayed in Marathon Key at our timeshare and took two day-trips to Key West. We had a great time, but that was quite a drive – and a long dark drive home at night over really dark water.

This time we ordered up three nights at the Truman Hotel, just one block off Duvall Street so we could enjoy Key West without all of that back and forth. Our hotel room was very spacious, updated and close enough to the action to get in some steps and leave our car parked. We enjoyed free pastries and coffee down by the pool on two of our three mornings, and it was even warm enough to swim!

Getting Out to Explore!

We timed our arrival perfectly to get checked in and unloaded before heading out for dinner. We have an early morning tomorrow, so we couldn’t wander too far from home. After a short four-minute walk our prospects improved and we settled in at Viva Argentinian Steakhouse. The bar seemed more casual, less crowded, and had a great view of the free entertainment out on the street.

As it turns out Viva has a colorful history since it was built in the early 1900s. In the 1990s “Viva Zapata” opened and became a famous and widely loved bar in Key West. In 2018 two new owners from Argentina added the flavors of South America to a full service restaurant. We can vouch for those flavors in our amazing shrimp and steak tacos!

More People-watching and a Nightcap

When we needed a change, we went across the street to the Old Town Tavern & Beer Garden. Their beer garden was beautiful with lots of greenery and twinkly lights. We sat at a table at the edge of the patio facing the street so we could continue our people-watching and have another nightcap. The chickens below attempted to lure us in for a little shopping on our way back to our hotel, but we ignored their cackling.

Fort Jefferson in Dry Tortugas National Park

Today we boarded the Yankee Freedom to cruise the seventy miles of open water between Key West and Fort Jefferson in Dry Tortugas National Park. This “high speed, state-of-the-art, all aluminum catamaran” got us there and back in comfort accompanied by our fun and accommodating staff.

We checked in at the required 7 a.m. and boarded at 7:30. We were offered a light breakfast as we settled in on the upper deck. Some folks sat inside on the lower deck, but even though it was a little chilly at first we zipped up our jackets and sucked it up. Who wants to sit inside on such a sunny day, especially when we’re surrounded by fabulously aqua aqua!

We arrived at Fort Jefferson shortly after 10am and were amazed by the beauty of this place! The water was so calm and so blue, like nothing I’ve ever seen before. The contrast with the earthy colors of the fort made for gorgeous photos without the need to boost the vibrance, that’s for sure – in fact I had to turn it down a few notches on a couple of photos!

This fort was very impressive as we made our way around to the front. The lighthouse had a commanding presence and the pilings out front gave the birds the perfect place to perch

Welcome!

We were offered a very informative 45-minute tour with lunch after – both of which we accepted with glee. Not only were we excited to get the lowdown on this extremely remote location, we had never had a Jersey Mike’s sub! While Jim and I rarely turn down tours, many others took off to swim, snorkel, or just hang out in the calm blue water on what would turn out to be a fabulous day in the mid-80s.

“When you visit The Dry Tortugas and Fort Jefferson, you are treated to one of the most unique National Parks in the world. These seven islands are a rare combination of natural and historic resources. Not only are you surrounded by a vast expanse of sea, sky, sandy beaches, and coral reef, but you step into a park rich in history including a 19th century fort, The Civil War, and its most famous prisoner, Dr. Samuel Mudd, who was imprisoned for his involvement in the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln.

Ponce de Leon discovered the Dry Tortugas in 1513 when he caught over 100 sea turtles there. Subsequently the islands were referred to as the “Tortugas” (turtles). During the 1600s and 1700s the area around these islands was used by pirates as a base for attacking merchant shipping in the Gulf.” ~ READ MORE

Tortugas Harbor Lighthouse and Loggerhead Light

The Tortugas Harbor Lighthouse pictured below was built near the end of 1876 on one of the bastions of Fort Jefferson. This lighthouse replaced the original Garden Key Light that was built near here in 1826. The Garden Key Light had serious design flaws and technical difficulties, even after multiple modifications.

The Loggerhead Light (last photo below), was constructed on Loggerhead Key in 1858 to help with navigation through these dangerous keys, especially given the numerous issues with the Garden Key Light. The Loggerhead is taller, brighter, and equipped with a more modern optical lens to hopefully decrease a ship’s chances of running aground – or worse.

Exterior Details

Fort Jefferson is constructed of 16 million handmade red bricks. After the War of 1812, “Fort Jefferson was built to protect the southern coastline of the U.S. and the lifeline of commerce to and from the Mississippi River.” This fort was planned to be the greatest of all forts built from Maine to Texas to keep this country safe.

Interior Details

Spectacular Views out the Windows

My favorite part was checking out the views from the windows, which were made for cannons and not ogling the blue waters. My only regret was not taking a walk outside the fort to see the views without obstruction. I guess we were so interested in the fort that we ran short of time.

Settling in for the Ride Back!

Since seventy miles is a ways to swim, we made sure we were onboard before 3pm for our trip back. After a long busy day in the sun, my strawberry daiquiri was very refreshing! We opted to sit inside for some of the trip back to get out of the sun and wind and we arrived in Key West shortly after 5pm. It was definitely a fabulous day!

We returned to our hotel for a break and a quick cleanup, then headed out for some dinner. Tonight we were only a three-minute walk to a great little place called Sinz Burritos. Our awesome shrimp tacos paired well with our Channel Marker 102 beers that were brewed in Islamorada.

Walking Duvall Street

After a busy day yesterday, we didn’t get started too quickly this morning, but explore we must! We started our Duvall Day at The Waterfront Brewery for an appetizer and a beverage. We explored the marina area for a while before heading on down the road.

Our intention was to sip and snack our way down to Mallory Square for sunset – but instead we arrived at Hog’s Breath Saloon. We got a great table close to a great band, with a great waitress who served great drinks, and we didn’t leave. We saw a sunset at Mallory Square on our last visit and all sunsets look alike, right? Well, maybe not, but at our age we’ve seen a lot of sunsets and it’s really hard to beat a great band playing our kind of music!

And do we stand by our decision to spend the extra money on a hotel right in Key West? Yes we do! We wouldn’t have had nearly as much fun (or beer) if we were driving an hour back to Marathon – or anywhere for that matter! Our 18-minute walk back to our hotel was long enough, and it was a good thing checkout wasn’t until noon!