We found a little time for a short trip! Key Largo is only an hour away from our apartment. We decided to drive down Monday and stay the night. I love being so close to so many new things! We didn't have a lot of time, so this was a quick trip to get a feel for the area.
I drove down, so Marc could get some work done. The drive wasn't too bad. Although, it was tough to focus on the one lane of traffic when there was ocean on both sides to look at!
Once we got to the hotel we went to the state park. The only underwater park, is what it bragged about, which is kind of cool.
Marc is showing the canons from an old Spanish wreck off the coast.
It was evening when we got there, so the park was quieting down a lot. It was really nice to walk out on this without many people around. We took our shoes off and walked in.
It's a weird sensation when you walk in barefoot on this rocky beach and catch movement. I saw something move a few feet out and stopped to look close. I discovered a little crab digging, which was exciting. But then our eyes keened into the movement and suddenly it was everywhere. Right next to our toes, under our toes? It was like an intense Where's Waldo. They blend in so perfectly, only to move and reveal themselves.
Notice the blue legs that are out on the picture on the right.
There goes that shell... it just picked up and walked away!
The mangrove trees were really neat. It's crazy how the roots grow to support themselves.
There were two dry nature trails we decided to walk through, since the day activities of snorkeling and boat tours were shutting down. They were pretty trails.
These little crabs were all over the mangrove trail. Each step we took sent crabs running into their little holes.
It was time for dinner and we decided we needed to find a local place with fresh fish and a somewhat local feel. We drove for awhile, before seeing a sign for "Snapper's". We decided we would follow the sign and see what it got us. It was a success!
There was live music. This guy played music from his little pontoon.
We got to sit here, right next to the ocean. What a beautiful place to eat the daily catch. If we were fishermen, the menu said they will cook your fish if you catch it, clean it, and bring it in.
Marc got shrimp and chicken in a curry sauce with rice. I ate one of his plantains, they are becoming a favorite of mine! I ordered a hogfish (which I found out is the fish that eats shrimp and lobsters) encrusted in sliver almonds and Parmesan cheese with a tasty sauce. It was delicious! We also had an appetizer called dolphin bites, at first I thought they'd taken it a bit far serving dolphin. But it was what dolphins eat... I think. It was Mahi fish blackened with mango dipping sauce. The sauce was a bit spicy for me, but Marc really enjoyed it.
As dusk fell.
The view we had all evening while we ate.
And time for dessert! Key Lime pie of course, because I finally associated that Key Limes get their name from being grown in the Florida Keys. The things I am learning!
They even have Key Lime chocolate. Which was tasty, a long with a few other chocolates we tried.
Here is our hotel, a Holiday Inn. Priceline has been very helpful to get us some good deals. It was a nice place, with fun pools and a marina connected with all the snorkeling and sailing trips.
Our room isn't shown, but was behind the yellow building along the marina. The marina is between the two buildings, starting at the Tiki huts.
Our time was short, so we didn't have time for the four hour snorkeling trips, but we did have time for a two hour glass bottom boat cruise. We had wanted to see what a glass bottom boat was like, so we decided to try it here on the Key Largo Princess.
So we set out into the ocean to find a coral reef.
I'm posting the terrible picture on the left, because I was taking it of this bird that was only a few feet away flying in time with our boat. Apparently it is camera shy though, because he pooped on me before I could get a good picture! When I asked for a napkin at the snack bar because the bird had pooped on me, they informed me it was good luck and I should by a lotto ticket. (I think they say that because it means they were all lucky that it pooped on me and not them!)
Marc took a picture once it was at a safer distance, because he thought it was funny.
Pictures from the bottom of the boat. I took a video, which of course doesn't upload, so here is the link:
You can see a jelly fish float by if you watch closely.
The glass boat was good, especially so Marc wasn't exhausted going into work afterwards, but snorkeling definitely gives a better picture. They said because we are above the water looking down we lose a lot of colors. Especially the reds disappear through the green/blue water. Overall, it was a fun, quick (less than 24 hours) trip!
This last picture is a shout out to my mom. The 100 year old boat that started in the movie African Queen with Humphrey Bogart and Katherine Hepburn. It looks tired, but still in good shape. The sign said they still take it out for rides.
This last picture is a shout out to my mom. The 100 year old boat that started in the movie African Queen with Humphrey Bogart and Katherine Hepburn. It looks tired, but still in good shape. The sign said they still take it out for rides.
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