Travel Guide: The Florida Keys and Dry Tortugas National Park
Over the 4th of July weekend, Fred and I spontaneously decided to take a road trip down to the Florida Keys. It’s about a 4 hour drive, depending on traffic, from where we live to Key West. We love this particular road trip because the drive down is very scenic.
You can click here to watch my vlog on Youtube from this trip.
I also have a newer vlog from our time in Key Largo/Islamorada/Marathon that you can watch here.
We were recommended to stop by Robbies of Islamorada along the way, which was great because Islamorada is almost exactly a halfway point to our final destination. I had the “trailer trash” Bloody Mary to start, but being that Fred was driving, he opted not to have an alcoholic beverage. For an appetizer we tried the conch ceviche and the smoked fish dip, which our waitress suggested to us. They were both very flavorful! Personally, I enjoyed the fish dip the best, however, Fred really liked the conch ceviche because it was spicy (too spicy for me). For entrees, I ordered the blackened mahi tacos, which came with a side of rice & beans, and Fred had the blackened shrimp quesadilla, which was served with guacamole and salsa. Both main courses were delicious and filling so much so we opted out of dessert, although I was definitely eyeing their key lime pie!
Once we made it down to Key West, we checked into our hotel and rested for a few hours before our dinner reservation at Cafe Sole. I chose this restaurant because not only did it have great reviews online, but they were practicing social-distancing which made us feel more safe. Cafe Sole offers French-Caribbean cuisine with an extensive wine list, both of which were very impressive. Our waitress suggested we try the conch carpaccio, which we did, and it was exquisite. We didn’t have much of an appetite following all the food we ate at Robbie’s, so we opted to share a main course for dinner. Although we were dining at a French restaurant, we chose to order a bottle of Grenache because we had never tried this particular type of wine. Once again, our waitress came through with an outstanding suggestion and we took her up on it. We shared a full portion of the Hogfish Snapper that was pan seared then laid over a roasted red pepper sauce and accompanied by traditional French sides - mashed potatoes, carrots, white beans, rice and vegetables.
Our second day was the most exciting of our trip because we booked a sea plane to the Dry Tortugas National Park - North America’s most inaccessible National Park. The park lies in the Gulf of Mexico, 70 miles due west of Key West. There are a few options to get to Dry Tortugas - ferry, sea plane, or your own private boat. The ferry takes approximately 3 hours one way and the sea plane roughly 35 minutes, so we opted for the plane for the sake of time and also because neither of us had ever experienced a flight on a sea plane.
Key West Seaplane Adventures required masks for the plane ride and also checked our temperatures before granting access aboard the plane. We were also pleasantly surprised that they provided us a personal ice chest filled with 4 bottles of water, which was very necessary given the temperature outside on this day.
During our flight to the park, our pilot informed us of two shipwrecks that were visible from our window seat. In the photo above, you can see the World War II Destroyer Escort - the ‘Patricia’. She was intentionally sunk by the U.S. Navy to be used for bombing practice.
During the Civil War the Fort was a military prison for captured deserters. It also held the four men convicted of complicity in President Abraham Lincoln’s assassination in 1865. The Army abandoned Fort Jefferson in 1874 but it was not until 1992 that Dry Tortugas reached its current status as a National Park.
Since we opted for the 4 hour trip, it allowed for 2 1/2 hours at the Park. We spent the first hour exploring the Fort, taking photos and enjoying the incredible views it had to offer.
After walking around the Fort, we couldn’t wait to get into the ocean for a quick dip to cool down. Part of the experience included the option to snorkel, and our gear was also provided for by Key West Seaplane Adventures (fins, mask and snorkel).
On our return flight from the Dry Tortugas National Park to Key West International Airport, we saw another shipwreck - the ‘Arbutus’ - a 70ft work vessel used by Mel Fisher’s divers that sank without loss of life due to hull deterioration. With its mast still above water, it made for an excellent photograph!
We truly enjoyed this seaplane experience and highly recommend you add it your list of things to do when visiting Key West.
Although I pride myself in being a great resource for places to travel, dine, and shop at, sometimes I also have to give bad reviews in order to keep things honest. During our last night in Key West, we ate at The Stoned Crab and it was very underwhelming to say the least. We both ordered what they call “steamers” which was an pot filled with the seafood of your choice, boiled potatoes, and corn on the cob. The steamer I ordered consisted of snow crab, stone crab, and Key West pink shrimp, while Fred’s steamer had lobster, snow crab, and Key West pink shrimp. Surprisingly, neither of us got any corn on the cob in our pots and when we inquired with our waitress, she was not aware, but was later informed by the kitchen staff that they were out of corn. She proceeded to offer us a substitution side that we later received. Also, the entirety of our seafood was extremely overcooked and dry that it was near impossible to get the shell to separate. We are both lovers of seafood and have eaten many of seafood boils during our lifetime, however, both of us left this restaurant very dissatisfied. For the amount of money we spent on this dinner, we expected much better quality than we received, and can assure you that we will NOT be returning to this restaurant, nor recommending it to others who may visit Key West.
We wanted to end our trip with a bang so we chose Sundowners because they had an array of local cuisine featured on their menu. Unfortunately because of the pandemic and our timing (the end of a busy holiday weekend), they were out of two appetizers we were looking forward to ordering - conch fritters and oysters on the half shell. Instead, we opted for their sticky citrus chicken wings, which were the perfect balance of sweet and savory. For entrees, Fred and I both ordered the “choice of catch”. I chose the blackened Mahi with a key lime caper sauce and sides of broccoli and chili lime tator tots and Fred chose the blackened Yellowtail with the pineapple rum glaze and sides of broccoli and sweet potato fries. Our ‘bang” was their famous key lime pie slice. It was certainly the perfect ending to our weekend getaway in the Florida Keys. If you have plans for a roadtrip down to Key West I suggest stopping here along the way for some great food and even better views - hello golden hour!
Leave a comment down below and tell me where you would like to visit next once normal travel resumes.
