Baby why don’t we go…

Down to Kokomo, or to the…

Florida Keys. We were going. I could not believe it. It was January, very cold in Maryland, but we were going to the Florida Keys! Ben and I had this on the top of our list when we started planning our trip. I mean, I can’t wait to see the parts of this country that are completely different than other things I have seen, but who doesn’t want to bask in the sun of the Keys? I had called no less than 15 places and researched many more to try to get us a spot in the keys. We landed a spot at the Sunshine Key RV Resort at the Northern most point of the Southern Keys for 10 glorious days. It lies just south of Marathon and just North of Big Pine Key.

42 bridges connect 43 islands in the Florida keys and we rode over all of them during our trip. We were in heaven from the moment we crossed the first bridge. As we drove over the waters of the Everglades and into the blue skies of the Key islands, I blasted the every cheesy and appropriate Beach Boys tune we all know and love. Sloan and Jackson giggled and rolled their eyes, but sang along as well. It was such a short drive from Miami, just over 2 hours. As we pulled into our resort on Friday at noon, we all knew we wouldn’t want to leave when our time was up. I used to say that the sun was always shining on Kent Island. Truly, we would drive from the dreary side of the Western Shore in Maryland and over the Bay bridge and somehow, the sun would come out for us. That is how I felt here too. Only better, because we could treat this more like a vacation!

There was a farmer’s market already rolling when we arrived. Perfect for us to grab lunch. Pool, playground, beach, volleyball, horseshoes, basketball…this had nearly everything the last “resort” had, except it immediately delivered. Our pull-thru spot was large and we had plenty of room to spread out. Have I said that I was happy? I was happy! So was the rest of the crew. Ben still had to work…I wish I could find a way for him to stop. The kids still had to do school. I still had to plan for them and for our trip. But, we were in the Florida Keys! Sorry, I am not trying to sound braggish, I’m just trying to emphasize my happiness.

Ben checked in with work, I took the kids to the farmer’s market to grab lunch. Then we were off to the beach. The Florida Keys are not known for clean white sands (there is a lot of seaweed that washes up), but the water is clear. Snorkeling is easy and you can see numerous fish and huge conch shells. The water was still chilly, which didn’t keep the kiddos out. It was great to smell the salty air and we all had fun navigating the coral and grasses in the water. Sloan started complaining about being itchy – really it was just a beg for the pool, so we headed that way. Jumping in was necessary from all parties, and it felt great! I love a heated pool! We watched the sunset on the pier and then headed back to our site. Weplayed games and grilled out spending most of the evening outside. A great start to our new place.

As Ben and I sat outside sipping wine after the kids were in bed, a very strange smell wafted our way. It quickly went from strange to, “whose black tank is leaking”? I felt bile come up in my throat, I was truly nauseous. The rotting sewage smell quickly sent us inside and forced us to close all of the windows. A few soy candles, exhaust fans, and hours later, it smelled okay and I could actually sleep. I woke up thinking about it and waves of nausea came back. We thought it was a leak somewhere and found out later that day that rotting seaweed was the culprit.

There’s always a downside right? The downside to this resort = stinky seaweed. I just had to deal with it so no open windows at night. The sunshine and blue waters were worth it! Our week was glorious! We headed down to Key West the day after we arrived, stinky smell successfully removed from my nostrils. Roxy was in tow so we were limited with our adventure, but we adored the pink and blue houses reminiscent of Hemingway. We made it about 50 feet from the Southern most point in the continental U.S. Why fifty feet and not all the way? Because – Covid – and there was a line wrapping around the block. Tip, just stand in the street and get the buoy in the background..do you really want to touch it during Covid? Or, take a picture with the “Southernmost Point Bar” buoy in the background, maybe no one will notice.

We opted not to eat at one of the crowded beach restaurants that must not have heard of the little virus going around and instead had lunch at a great spot called “The Banana Cafe.” We did however walk back towards the beach to grab daiquiris from a little stand outside of a historical house. We strolled the streets and made a list of places we wanted to visit again. We were shocked to see all of the hens and roosters just roaming free in the city and when we asked about them we were told that they were descendants of the cock fighters during Hemingways’ time. Glad that’s over, cool to see them strolling.

The best part of the day was when we got back to our RV resort. Sloan was now manatee obsessed and was determined to see one closer than we did in the Everglades. She asked everyone where we might see them. Answer: 4 o’clock in the marina. So, promptly at 4 o’clock she headed to the marina. And just as promised, a manatee! Jackson headed to the docks soon after and then came running back to get us screaming, “Manatee, manatee!!!” Ben and I walked over and were awestruck. The manatee even put its head out of water for us to see more closely. How amazingly lucky were we! Never again. We went back on subsequent days, but never again was it there. Lucky us, we listened to our daughter.

Our 10 days in paradise was spent in the sun, sand and pool. Jackson got to go fishing at the pier, we saw captivating sunrises and sunsets. We walked the rocky shorelines, snorkeled around our key, played volleyball and horse shoes. On cooler days the kids sat outside and built an entire lego world (yes, the Lego bricks came with us). We had a day of adventure, but mostly we enjoyed where we were. The kids and I did take a field trip to one of the largest Sea Turtle Hospitals on the East Coast and I couldn’t help but think what a great field trip it would be for my old students.

One other place to mention for sure (thanks Mike Lagoey) is Bahia Honda State Park. It was just one key over from us and it had the best actual beach we saw. We spent our last Saturday (which happened to be Ben’s birthday) lazing on the beach there. It was quite pretty and has its own unique history. Of course, this is where I read about how important that smelly seaweed is for nesting and feeding birds. I guess if you are going to visit paradise, you have to deal with the decay!