Anywhere you go, whether at home or traveling, some days are better than others.  Our last day in the Florida Keys, for me, was one of my favorites.

As planned, we went back to Marathon to spend more time at Crane’s Point.  This time we were not rushed and walked  through small trails seeing trees and plants unseen anywhere else in Florida.  We saw several varieties of butterflies and spent as much time as we wanted at the point.  In fact, with the clear water, we even saw a nurse shark and some parrot fish. Palm Trail at Crane’s Point
The Point at Crane’s Point where we saw the nurse shark

Then we went to the Seven Mile Bridge and rode our bikes the 2.2 miles to the down ramp onto Pigeon Key.  We didn’t go down because you would have to pay another admission fee.  You can’t tell this unless you are actually on the bridge, but when they converted the bridge from train travel to auto travel, they used the train rails to create the upright and guard rails on the sides of the bridge.  View of old and new bridge, take note of guard rails (old train tracks)

If you ever drove down to Key West prior to the 1984 opening of the current bridge, this narrow bridge was what you were driving on.  People driving down back then always talked about how scary the ride on the bridge was.

Next we went back to our camp site and pulled out two lounge chairs.  We put them in the shade at the water’s edge and read and rested before getting ready for a special dinner at a special restaurant.

Since Jim’s birthday was so close to our trip to the Keys, we decided to pick a really nice restaurant here in Key West for his birthday dinner and we found a great one.  Just off of Key West is another small island called Sunset Key.  On this island, the Weston Hotel has a high-end resort with cottages and a fabulous restaurant called Latitudes on the beach facing the sunset.  You must have a reservation because you have to take their ferry to get to the island.  It’s also probably the only place in Key West that actually has a dress code.

We had a table outside facing the water which reminded us of our favorite restaurant in St Kitts, The Beach House.  We had an excellent dinner including a Caesar salad (me) with white anchovies, Lettuce wedges (Jim) with fresh citrus, homemade  lobster and crab meat ravioli (Jim) and Grilled Yellowtail Snapper in lemon butter sauce.  Of course, we ended with coffee and Key Lime Pie and Peanut Butter Bread Pudding.  Then just as we were finishing our dessert, the clouds moved enough to allow us and all the other patrons to see a spectacular sunset.  The only word I could think of to describe our dining experience was magical! View of sunset from our table at Lattitudes Restaurant

We leave in the morning for a one night stop in Fort Myers and the home on Thursday.  We really have no plans to speak of until the Fall and will be enjoying our home all summer.

We decided to head in the other direction today and take in the sights and sounds of Marathon.  It’s only about 37 miles away, but with just a two lane road to travel, it takes about an hour to get there from here.

Of course the first thing we did was eat.  We found a place called the Cracked Conch Cafe that had been there for 33 years and looked like locals ate there.  We had conch chowder ( I had Manhattan style and Jim had New England style) and then a grilled dolphin melt on rye with Swiss cheese and all the other goodies that make it tasty.  It was good!  Trivia information:  All the conch served in the Keys comes from the Bahamas.  It is unlawful to harvest conch in the Keys.

From lunch we went to Crane Point Museum and Nature Center.  We had low expectations especially after seeing the entrance, but we were pleasantly surprised once we got inside.  This reserve consists of 63 acres NEVER developed and kept in its natural state ever since  Mr. and Mrs. Crane bought it in 1952 from the original owner, George Adderley.  Adderley came to the Keys from the Bahamas with his family.  He built their home using a technique used in the Bahamas call tabby (made of burnt seashells) in the early 1900s.  The home is still standing in its original spot and preserved.The Original Adderley home

When Flagler was bringing the railroad down to Key West, Adderley gave him the right of way through his land in exchange for a train stop on this Key.  The Cranes came to the Keys on vacation from Massachusetts and like so many others, decided to stay.  They bought the property from Adderley and quickly understood just what they had acquired.  All around the property, the key was being developed and most trees and vegetation was being destroyed.  They began the process of building a home on the bay side of the point off the water without destroying its virgin state.   The view from the point is unbelievable!

When we started back on the trail, I notice something big on the pathway but we were about 30 yards away.  I first thought it was a snake of some kind but as we got closer, I realized it was a HUGE lizard of some kind.  When I asked at the gift shop, they told us it was probably an Iguana.  They have a lot because people buy them for their kids and they bring them here when they get too big for them to handle.

Today, the property preserves one of the world’s last remaining thatch palm hammocks containing rare and endangered species.  I counted no fewer than 5 different types of cacti growing in the natural wooded areas.  There are over 50 of the 150 types of trees growing on this property and many of them are not seen anywhere else. Sunburnt tree – This tree is constantly peeling and looks like someone with a bad sunburn as the red part peels away. 

There is a Wild Bird Center where rehabilitating birds are kept until they can be released back into the wild.  There is a butterfly meadow with plants attracting butterflies and the museum is small but houses many displays worth seeing.  We had to catch a ferry to Pigeon Key so we couldn’t stay as long as we would have liked.  We did get a rain check and we are coming back tomorrow to enjoy the property more leisurely.

Pigeon Key was one of the camps where the workers who built the railroad and bridges lived during construction.  House on right was the home of the Bridge Engineer/foreman after bridge was completed.
It is the key just before the infamous seven mile bridge considered at its time to be a major architectural feat.  Flagler built this entire series of bridges and railroad track with his own money.  Remember all the issues the government had at Fort Jefferson, well in true entrepreneurial fashion, Flagler thought of all that and sent his engineers to Germany to find the best solution for concrete that would withstand the salt water.  When it was completed in 1921, it had expectations of lasting for hundreds of years.  Unfortunately, the depression hit and travel to Key West was scarce.  The railroad and the bridges fell into receivership and the government bought everything for $684,000 which was a bargain since it cost Flagler $80 million.  Just like the Bahia Honda Bridge, the tracks were removed and a roadway for cars was constructed on the top of the railroad foundation.  The toll back then was $1.00 per car plus the driver and .25 for each passenger.  It was a scary roadway back then with no place to stop or turn around, so the government built a ramp down to Pigeon Key and created one of the first rest stops on US 1.One of the houses built on the island to house families of top ranking personnel who maintained the bridge after construction.

Today, there is a new wider bridge that was built in 1984 and the old bridge has been disconnected from US 1.  It’s also possible to actually stay in one of the remaining cottages for a long weekend or week with your family right on Pigeon Key.  It sleeps up to 10 people and has two full baths.  Kinda different and priced comparable to other rooms in the area.  You actually share the island with several interns studying marine biology.

When we come back tomorrow, I think we are bringing our bikes and we will ride the old bridge.

Since we are not “party animals” we decided to explore Key West by day and not do the typical nighttime activities.  One of the items on Jim’s bucket list is to visit all four corners of the United States.  We have already been to Lubec, Maine which is the eastern most point in the U.S. so naturally we needed a picture of the southern most point here in Key West.  We even got a shot of mile marker “0” on US 1.

Next on the list was the Key West Lighthouse which was originally on the spot where the Southern most point is now located.  It had to be moved because of damage sustained in a hurricane.  It has 88 steps to the top, but we decided neither of us had either the energy or knee functionality to do it.

From here we went to the Key West Cemetery.  This cemetery was established in 1847 after the hurricane of October 11, 1846 when the storm washed away the existing cemetery including most of the bodies.  The old graveyard was on the southern edge of the town and it’s rumored that some of the bodies were found in the trees.  The cemetery reflects the spirit of the people with some inscriptions that are light-hearted such as, “At least now I know where he is at night”, or “I told you I was sick”.  There is a mixture of below ground graves and, reminiscent of New Orleans, many are above ground.

One interesting fact about Key West is there are colorful roosters, hens and baby chicks everywhere.  They are protected and  actually have the right of way in the roads.  

Also, everywhere you look you see Royal Poinciana Trees with their spectacular blooms of reddish-orange.

We walked around the shops on Duval and Front Streets for a while but my bucket list stop of the sandal shop was closed.  Maybe, another day.  As we got closer to evening, you could hear the crowds getting noisier and the street vendors were multiplying.  Everything from leather bracelets to body art.  Time to find a restaurant for dinner!

We found a place called Two Friends Patio Restaurant right on the corner with open air dining, which I love, and had some really good food.  I order coconut shrimp with pineapple-orange sauce that was fabulous.  I had to get a small box for half of the shrimp because I wanted to leave room for Key Lime Pie.  According to our waitress the restaurant uses the same recipe since 1967 so that it’s authentic and it was good.  One the way out-of-town we stopped at Mathessen’s where they make 1/2 pound cookies.  Not only do these monster cookies look like something you have to have, when you taste it, your glad you did!  I got a chocolate chip, pecan, macadamia nut cookie.One of the many quaint homes we saw along the streets in Key West

One good thing about all this walking is you can eat more without feeling guilty.