When I opened my eyes this morning, the sun was out! It wasn’t windy at all. It was a beautiful beginning to the day!
I walked loops in the campground and the time passed quickly as I talked to Mom, Dana, and Vicki.
It felt so nice to be outside that I hopped on my bike and did more loops.
This afternoon, we went to Duck Key to the Open Market. We picked up some empanadas and papaya.
We drove to Old Seven Mile Bridge and biked two miles to the end and then back and then along the shore. I will never get tired of this ride!
We saw a 4-foot shark and a very large sea turtle.
We went to Sunset Grill for a late lunch. We had Aloha Tuna Poke bowls with raw and tender tuna, papaya, mango, avocado, and sticky rice. The food was delicious.
We rested a short while and then it was time to watch the sunset. What a joy to have such gorgeous weather! We are so very grateful!
It rained on and off all night and then again, all day today. I took clothes to the laundry room with the intention of walking while the washer ran but the rain came down in torrents.
I was able to get stuff into dryers and headed to the Resistance Band Class. It was pouring and I got wet! No one else showed up so it was just the activities director and myself. In the end, I was glad I went.
I went back to get clothes and got wet yet again. I borrowed a trash bag and hauled the dry things to the Jeep and back home.
Tim went out to walk and it began to rain when he was on his way back. He declined a rescue. I never got a walk in but I did take a long nap.
We had hoped to go see live music at Florida Keys Brewing Company this evening but it was canceled because of weather.
We decided to take dinner to Annie’s Beach. We knew we could eat in a pavilion. It was nice to get out for a while.
The weather is supposed to improve tomorrow. It is forecasted to be cloudy but without wind warnings and rain…we shall see what the new day brings!
There were sustained winds of about 15-18mph with lots of clouds and intermittent rain all weekend. I walked out to the bridge in the morning.
I saw this little boy catch two fish, one on each of his two hooks. He and his dad were so excited. It was fun to watch.
All afternoon, we walked and biked loops in the campground between raindrops.
On Saturday, it was not nice enough to go anywhere. It was a good day to start online Christmas shopping. We talked about taking dinner out to the beach but it was just too windy!
On Sunday, we got our exercise done and cleaned and watched football and did a few errands. We made reservations for Castaways and enjoyed another good seafood dinner.
Happy happy birthday to our brilliant and beautiful Dre!
I got a late start this morning and had to cut my walk short in order to get to the Dumbbell Workout. I am enjoying these exercise classes. It is fun to try new things! The workout was not hard but this evening as I write the blog, I know that I have used my muscles in new ways!
This afternoon, we packed the Jeep with dinner and our beach things and drove to Bahia Honda.
It was windy and cooler today but it still felt great to be in the water.
We took a nice walk along the shore.
We drove to Veteran’s Beach and cooked our chicken feta burgers and ate again by the sea.
Our morning routine complete, we got in the Jeep and drove out of the Keys all the way to Florida City. Yesterday, while in the pool, my Apple Watch started making a shrill beeping noise. It was trying to make an SOS Emergency Medical Call. I got out of the pool and was finally able to stop it but things deteriorated further from there. By late afternoon, the watch had the black screen of death and every fix that I could find yielded NO results. I have been faithfully using the watch to track my exercise and I was bummed! The closest place to go and replace the watch was back in Florida City at the Best Buy. And so, we found ourselves making the drive.
The watch was successfully replaced.
We decided to get BBQ carryout and take it to Biscayne National Park.
We enjoyed a nice walk after lunch.
We shopped at Walmart, getting things that are harder to find down in the Keys. The store felt loud and crowded and chaotic after so many weeks in the lower, slower part of Florida. The lines were crazy long but we made it!
It was a foregone conclusion that we would go to Robert’s for papaya and mangoes and avocadoes. Tim got a mango milkshake for us to share.
It was dinner hour by the time we were on our way back. We stopped at Square Grouper and got some stone crab claws, which I liked and Tim did not!
The rest of the evening was dedicated to getting the watch working so that I can get credit for my hard work tomorrow!
I walked about two miles and decided to stop and have breakfast. This iguana was on the pier as I was walking. It dove into the water as it felt threatened by my presence.
I was feeling good and strong and so I went back out and did the bridge which added another 3 miles.
There was not a breath of a breeze and I was hot when I finished. I put on my swimsuit and hopped into the pool. I sat out for a while, enjoying the shade of a palm tree.
This afternoon, we packed our cookstove and all the fixings for omelets and headed to Veteran’s Beach.
We waded out into the water.
I saw these jellyfish that invert themselves and lay on the sandy bottom.
I also saw these pink jellyfish.
This fish was using the jellyfish as protection from predators.
Little lizard.
Such utter joy!
Just watching.
I cooked our eggs with spinach and cheese and ham and we had our dinner by the sea.
After eating, Tim noticed rats running around in the roots of the trees. We moved back to the beach and had some wine while the sun went down.
I took a shorter than usual walk this morning and then put on my swimsuit and headed to the pool. I took a water aerobics class which I thoroughly enjoyed. I saw a bald eagle fly over the pool toward the open water. I stayed at the pool relaxing in the warm sunshine. After an hour, I needed to move to the shade!
While I was at the pool, Tim walked the bridge.
We went to Crane Point Nature Center this afternoon. This is a nice place to walk though tropical woodlands. This preserve also protects the thatch palm. These trees do not grow anywhere else in the United States. In 1989 this property was almost sold to developers for houses and a shopping center.
We saw a pair of bald eagles soaring with a bunch of buzzards.
We saw a couple of these huge spiders. The first was hanging in a web that stretched across the road above our heads. Each was larger than 2 inches.
We toured the wild bird sanctuary where rescued birds are rehabilitated and if possible, released. Some of the pelicans have been in residence for about thirty years. There is a mating couple. The female was nesting on rocks. Each time she lays eggs, they must be removed because the facility is not equipped to handle the chicks and the mother pelican, because of her injuries, is not able to properly care for babies. The bird carers replace the eggs with rocks and the mother bird happily sits on the nest.
This osprey had been here at the facility for 19 years.
This cormorant is also nesting on a bunch of rocks.
This red shouldered hawk has a broken wing. There were mice in his food dish but he did not appear to be interested.
We walked the trail all the way to Florida Bay.
There is a tidal pool filled with tiny fish. I dipped my feet in and enjoyed a fish pedicure. It was so cool and tickled a lot, especially when the bigger, little fish nibbled! It just made me giggle!
We saw the Adderly House which is the oldest house in Monroe County outside of Key West. It was built by Bahamian colonists in the early 1900’s. It was constructed using burnt seashells.
We walked on the Bahama Trail which was less groomed and made us realize what the hammock looked like a long time ago.
We were hot when we got back to the museum and we got fruit popsicles.
This evening, we walked to the sunset point here at the campground.
We grilled corn and bison burgers for our dinner. A great ending to a great day!
I did my walk and then grabbed breakfast before heading to the Total Body Stretch Class. Tim had already done his yoga and so he walked the bridge while I was busy. He saw these workmen making underwater repairs to the concrete. This is NOT a job that he would have liked!
We drove north toward Key Largo. We parked at Harry Harris Park. We tooled around on our bikes, riding around the lagoon and through the park.
We spotted two more homemade boats. The ranger at the park said that they floated ashore during Hurricane Ian. It is not clear if the people sailing in those vessels made it across the Straits.
We cycled out of the park and through the nearby neighborhoods and then for a short distance on the bike path along Overseas Highway and then we headed back.
We sat in the shade of this huge Florida Strangler Fig Tree.
Speedboats were steadily coming out of Key West today. The World Championship Powerboat Races wrapped up yesterday. We had been seeing these fast moving boats in the bay and in the Straits; rooster tails and all.
We stopped for groceries in Islamorada.
This evening we took our quinoa bowls to Annie’s Beach and enjoyed our meal by the water. I always think that food tastes so much better when we eat it outside!
There was another suspect boat on the shore. That is a total of five. In all our previous visits to the Keys, we have never seen any boats from Cuba. We see the boats and our imaginations run wild wondering about the fates of these people. We feel so lucky and blessed to live here in America and to have had the opportunities we have had; we should all feel blessed.
We spent the day doing our usual stuff. Exercise and walking and biking in the campground.
This evening, we drove to Marathon to meet Sam and Vicki at their hotel, Tranquility Bay. We walked to the tiki bar and had a drink and listened to a guy playing acoustic guitar while watching the sunset.
We drove a short distance to Castaways. This restaurant, founded in 1951, is off the main drag on a canal. This is a rustic and worn-down looking place in an older part of town. It sits not far from the dock where fishing boats come in. We were seated by the water.
Our server was fun and knowledgeable. The menu was very extensive and he helped us to make decisions. This restaurant is renowned for its fish offerings. They employ a dive team that specializes in spearfishing. Lionfish is an invasive species that exists here in the coral reef. Rewards are offered for their capture. These fish have 18 venomous spines that can cause pain and injury but not death. This restaurant carefully prepares these spiny fish. The meat is sweet and delicious. Vicki tried the lionfish sushi.
I had golden tilefish. This fish is also caught at a depth of 1800 feet on the ocean bottom. It was the best fish I have ever had. It was prepared with wine and lemon and butter and garlic and tomatoes and capers.
Tim and Sam both chose the swordfish which was cooked to perfection.
We all finished our meal with key lime pie.
We will return to this place!
After dinner we went back to Tranquility Bay. We found some lounge chairs on the beach and basked in the pleasant evening breeze. We talked and watched the stars come out. There is something soothing about watching palm trees sway in the night sky. Sam noticed that they make a noise not the different than listening to a running stream. It was a beautiful evening.
We said goodbye to our friends. Tomorrow, they move on to Key West. We had such a lovely visit.
