Key West – Where the Sun Also Sets

Author’s note: Easin’ Along took a break last week to move my mother into a Senior Living Center. Moving her in was a breeze but, moving her stuff and cleaning out the house was a long, laborious process. So, a word to my friends who have put off downsizing…get it done. Now, let’s enjoy Key West, Florida.

The drive from West Palm Beach, Florida to Key West is a four hour trip under normal driving conditions, but towing a fifth-wheel trailer adds an hour and heavy traffic on a two-lane road can increase the travel time even more. Nevertheless, the scenery along the Overseas Highway (U. S. 1) is stunning and passing through each of the Keys increased the anticipation and excitement for our visit in the days ahead.

Helen and I visited the island about three years ago when we spent a week on Marathon Key.  I remember that we drove down for a one-day visit, but the weather did not cooperate fully.  The wind howled and the temperatures hovered in the low 50’s dropping the “feels-like” temperature into the 40’s. We began this trip with sunny skies and a forecast for temperatures above 70 degrees during our entire stay.

Our destination was the Naval Air Station on Trumbo Point. The original plan was to camp at the military campground at Sigsbee Navy Base, but that proved to be impossible. Reservations for winter camping in Florida can be a very tough ticket to come by and any accommodation in Key West during January is difficult to find and expensive as well. Fortunately, we secured a reservation for one of the townhomes on Trumbo when a cancellation made it available. We would be there for eight days. Military Living readers should note that the reservation policy for the campground has changed recently and campers should have a better opportunity for securing a campsite.

The townhome, while old, was very nice and, since we had an extra room, we invited Sally and Rod, our old Army friends from Kansas, to join us.  They have been coming to Key West every year for many years and keep a sailboat in a marina there. They usually reserve a condo in February, but accepted our invitation and came early to join us and hopefully take us sailing around the Keys.

During the day, Sally and Rod would go to the marina to work on the sailboat leaving Helen and me to explore the city. We decided to take a city tour and obtained discount tickets for the Conch Tour Train through the recreation office on the Navy Base. The tour was a great start to our visit.  Key West is approximately two miles wide by four miles long and filled with beautiful old homes and shops dating back to the earlier periods when merchant ships wrecked on the coral reefs off the island and pirates robbed ships of its treasure.

Duval Street runs through the heart of the city and it is where the fun takes place. Helen and I spent a lot of time walking the street and poking our heads into the shops and the galleries. We ate lunch at the famous Sloppy Joe’s, where Ernest Hemingway came to relax and drink after a long day of writing. A crowd filled the tavern to listen to the piano player belt out a few tunes while we ate a Sloppy Joe sandwich.   We learned on the Conch Tour that the original Sloppy Joe’s was a couple of blocks away and renamed Captain Tony’s.  On another day, we walked to Garbo’s Grill, a food truck we learned about while watching Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives.

Unfortunately, I can’t remember what we ate at the diner, but I do remember that we had fun feeding several of the chickens and roosters that are everywhere in the city.  We also had the birds living around our townhome that started crowing every morning around 5:30 to make sure we knew they were hungry. One huge rooster came to visit us every day, so I bought some scratch feed to throw out for his meals.  The other roosters would come over for food, but this bully would chase them away, and only let his girlfriends, the Rhode Island Reds, join him at the table.

Some friends told us before we left, to be sure and visit Alonzo’s, a bar and restaurant at one of the marinas for Happy Hour…good suggestion.  Appetizers are half-price and beverages discounted substantially. The four of us took advantage and made a big meal out of appetizers.  That might have been the night I got my tattoo, I really can’t remember.

 

I do remember that we visited Mallory Square that night to take in the sunset. The crowd arrived before we did, and forced us to muscle our way in to take pictures. The sunset was worth the effort. I enjoyed seeing the kayaks and water bikes in front of us as well as the beautiful boats in full sail. Stunning is the best way I know how to describe the scene.

We did discover that there is more in this place than nightlife, T-shirts, and rum bars, and certainly more than I can put into one blog post.  We also discovered a love for this place and are certain to return next year. Please come back next week and I’ll take you to the Hemingway Home, the Butterfly Conservatory, and some fun recreational opportunities.

Until then, we’ll leave you Easin’ Along, somewhere along Duval Street in Key West, where (paraphrasing Papa) the sun also sets…I just might buy a T-shirt.