Florida 2015, part three

Written by ceddammit

Eight and a half years ago – that is to say, last week – I left Miami Beach, headed towards Key West, Though Google Maps says this is only a 4.25 hour drive, I scheduled two full days for the trip, as I intended to make a lot of stops along the way. But first, there were a few items of interest to be seen (or waited out):

Trying to leave Miami Beach
Ya don’t see many of these signs in the midwest.
The last exit on the mainland, heading for the Keys.
Y’know…when you look at a crab close up…it looks like it should be in some anime show.
Some businesses have a guard dog. Other businesses employ…other animals.

OK, we’ve made it to the keys. Now what? Roadside reading material? All right then, roadside reading material it is!

Some reading material
“Dedicated to the memory of the civilians and war veterans whose lives were lost in the hurricane of September second 1935”
Detail of the memorial in previous photo
Natives with cannon? NATIVES WITH CANNON!
The sign reads as follows:
“In April 2013 this homemade craft arrived from Cuba after 4 days at sea carrying 17 people, including 5 children”
And you thought sitting next to kids on a 4-hour flight was bad.

If you’ve spent any time roaming around Florida, you’ve probably seen a few of the many signs for the Great Florida Birding Trail. I saw such a sign, and I stopped. It seems mid-January isn’t the best time for bird-watching, even this far south. But here are some un-bird pics for your enjoyment:

I encountered this grove at the roadside bird-watching park.
Fishies and pretzel sticks in a tidal pool
Mangroves!

The next place I found that seemed worthy of a stop was Anne’s Beach Park. Unlike the Birding Trail, Anne’s Beach actually had birds! It was also pretty scenic. See here:

Anne’s Beach Park
Anne’s Beach Park
Seagull wishing he were different species
White ibis
White ibis
Anne’s Beach Park, Islamorada, Florida (photographed January 2015)

All righty, now we get to the meat of this trip! Half the reason I wanted to visit Key West was that I wanted to drive US Highway 1 through the Keys and across the water; not only for the drive itself, but to see the old bridges. Y’see, in the very early 20th Century, Henry Flagler financed a railroad from the mainland all the way out to Key West (you may recall that I visited Henry Flagler’s mansion earlier in this trip). But a few decades later, a hurricane caused extensive damage to the railroad line, and it was abandoned. The abandoned railroad bridges presented the opportunity to build a highway to Key West. So the bridges were modified for automobile traffic, thus creating the Overseas Highway. BUT a few decades later, these modifications were crumbling. So, a whole new series of modern highway bridges was built. Check this all out:

Old and new bridges in distance; power lines that probably have to be replaced after every storm that comes thru.
One of many bridges built for the railroad, then modified for cars
Must have been an adventure driving over the old bridges.
Most of the modern highway bridges in the Keys stand right next to the old bridges they replaced.

We interrupt these bridges to show you some more of the natural beauty of the Florida keys:

This gull was kind enough to pose for me.
White ibis
White ibis and mangrove

And now, back to our show:

After being replaced, many old bridges were modified again. Now they are pedestrian-only fishing piers.
To be wide enough for 2-way traffic, steel beams were attached to sides of railroad bridge, and concrete was placed on top.
Prime example of the aforementioned crumbling bridge modifications
Old vs. New
This peckerlin was kind enough to pose for me.
The trusses of this old railroad bridge are too narrow to permit two-way traffic. So when they converted it to an automobile bridge, they built a road over the top of the trusses.

After two days of checking out decrepit bridges, it was time to check out a decrepit fort. Believe it or not, there is something west of Key West. Nearly seventy miles west of Key West, even! Way out in the middle of nothing but mile after mile of saltwater, there lies a cluster of tiny islands, guarded by an improbably huge fortress. The fort and the islands are collectively known as Dry Tortugas National Park. If you ever find yourself planning to visit Key West, I highly recommend setting a day aside for a trip to Dry Tortugas. I also recommend buying your tickets (or chartering a boat or seaplane) in advance. If the photos below don’t convince you to go (because it ain’t cheap), then know this: Dry Tortugas is also a spectacular place for snorkeling!

Dry Tortugas National Park is only accessible by boat or seaplane.
Dry Tortugas National Park is dominated by Fort Jefferson, which is…
…a fort with a lighthouse…
…and a real, live moat.
The moat goes all the way around – even protecting the ocean-facing sides.
Fishies in the moat
This is the interior of Fort Jefferson. As you can see, this place is huge.
The lighthouse seen from inside the fort
The fort’s lighthouse, as seen from across the fort
The moat and the Gulf of Mexico
Didi I mention decrepit? I got your decrepitude right here!
The Dry Tortugas are surrounded by clear, shallow water with great snorkeling!
Not as ornate as the Spanish artillery at Castillo de San Marcos, but impressive
Saying goodbye to Fort Jefferson and Dry Tortugas National Park
Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida, USA (photographed January 22, 2015)

If you are in Key West and decide you can’t afford (or don’t have time for) the Dry Tortugas trip, but still want to experience a 19th-century coastal defense fort, you’re in luck! Fort Zachary Taylor is right there on the island of Key West – easy to reach, easy to afford. I visited this fort on the last day of this trip. But before I get to the pictures of the fort itself, here’s a little taste of what nature has placed on the grounds of Fort Zachary Taylor State Park:

Mangrove on dry land
Mangrove on dry land
Perky little lizard

And now, Fort Zachary Taylor itself:

Fort Zachary Taylor State Park
This fort is not as big as Fort Jefferson, but it’s no slouch.
An odd-looking 20th-Century addition to the original fort
An odd-looking 20th-Century addition to the original fort
Cannon’s eye view
This piece of artillery seems to have had serious acne.
Again, not ornate, but probably effective.
The boom boom room
Cannon’s got back!
This cannon has an ottoman to rest his behind.
Many more cannon were here.
Fort Zachary Taylor State Park, Key West, Florida (photographed January 23, 2015)

That wraps it up for my 2015 trip to Florida. Come on back next Thursday! We’ll go a few months further back in time and see small parts of Pennsylvania and West Virginia. TTFN

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