Key West Trolley Tour

Today we set out to do a trolley tour of the town.

St. Paul's Episcopal Church was restored in 1994.

This was the birthplace of Pan American World Airways.

The Banyan is one of the many resorts and guesthouses.

The kapok tree can grow 130 feet.  Read more about this tree below.

Chickens are welcome almost as pets around town.  In the 1860's Cubans, disheartened with the situation in their own country following the Ten Year's War, began moving to Key West.  Their love for cockfighting brought many chickens with them. Today you will see chickens roosting in trees and around town in many areas.

One can't visit Key West without visiting the Hemingway House.

Tours of the home are given daily.

Hemingway did a lot of his writing in the upstairs of a garage in the back of the house.

A luxury for a 1930's home was this pool costing $20,000 dollars in 1930's money to build.

Home to Polydactyl cats (six- toed cat), there are currently 40-50 cats at the Hemingway home. Ernest named his cats after famous people.

On this hot day, a smart cat found a cool spot to hang out.

With the sun going down and the tourists headed for Mallory Square, it was a good time to get pictures at the Southernmost Point.

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To be continued...

Sunset in Key West

We started the day walking around town exploring all the sites. Key West has a lot of historic buildings to see.

The Strand Theater opened in the 1920's and became Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum in 1993. It has since became a Walgreens.

In 1969, the Coast Guard decommissioned this lighthouse and it was later turned into a museum.

The cemetery is 19 acres and it is estimated that 100,000 people are buried there. This is a lot considering the population is only around 30,000. You will notice that, in many case, tombs are stacked on top of each other.

The Southernmost Point Marker is a popular area for photographs and only 90 miles from cuba.

Completed in 1866, Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park played a major role in the Civil War and Spanish-American War. Today, this area offers some of the most popular beaches in Key West.

Want to know how far away you are?

At Sunset in Key West, you will find tourists gathering around Mallory Square to watch the many street perfomers.

Some visitors catching the final sunset.

One of the many street performers.

A party boat coming in from a day out.

Dominique's Circus Cats are always great fun

The Cat Man poses with Doug

Key West is where Highway 1 begin.

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Heading For Key West

There are 42 bridges from Miami to Key West.

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The longest bridge is 7 miles long and was built after the railroad bridge had considerable damage from the Labor Day Hurricane in 1937. The current bridge was built from 1978 to 1982.

Setting up camp at  Geiger Key Marina RV Park near Key West, Florida

View behind our RV

If we had a boat, we could pull it up right behind the RV.

 

 

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Everglades Outpost A Wildlife Rescue

Today we visited the Everglades Outpost Wildlife Rescue Center here in Homestead, Florida.

Founded in 1994, the center provides a place to live for more than 200 animals.

Welcome to my world!

Do you have any lettuce or melons?

Rocky the tiger belonged to an exotic dancer.

This grizzly bear was being kept as a pet in a backyard on Miami Beach.

Fill my food dish...please.

Robert Is Here was established in 1959 when six year old Robert was sitting on a corner selling cucumbers and no one saw him. The next day his dad put two large signs that said Robert Is Here and he sold all of his cucumbers . Robert Is Here was born.

Gotta try one of Robert's mango shakes.

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Flamingo Visitor Center Everglades National Park



America's Everglades is the largest subtropical wilderness in the United States.

The Everglades span over 1.5 million acres.

There are a lot of walkways that let you get up close and personal with nature.

Even if it is a grasshopper.

Alligators everywhere.  I think we will stay on the walkway.

Doug gets his picture with the waiting vultures.

Home of the Nike missile site.  Tours are offered December to April.

It's slow traveling for this Everglades creature.

You never know just what you might see in the Everglades.

Remains of the Flamingo Visitor center after two hurricanes came through the area.

Hurricanes Katrina and Wilma hit The Flamingo Visitor Center in 2005.

The walkways go from wooded areas to

waterways filled with alligators.

Which way do we go?

Let's see?  Did they run into any bugs on the way down here that we can eat?

Big hill coming up!

Overview of the road cutting across the Everglades.

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To be continued...