Things to do in the Florida Keys

A couple of days ago, I published Vacation Guide 2010: The Florida Keys to AssociatedContent, an online writing website where I am a Featured Travel Contributor. Writing the article brought back sweet memories of our trips to the Florida Keys over the years.

Looking at Mallory Square from our anchorage

Scenes of Key West

The incredible Key West sunset

Especially memorable was our cruise from Key Largo to Key West in January 2002. It was a time when diesel fuel was cheap (about $1.30 a gallon), and the entrance to Boot Key Harbor in Marathon was littered with sunken or almost sunken boats (it has since been cleaned up).

Marathon remains to be a cruiser's paradise, with boatyards and marine stores galore and easy access to grocery stores, restaurants and library. You can find boaters from all over the world here as they stop over on their way to Cuba, the Caribbean or Central America. Over 300 boats are docked, anchored or moored in the protected Boot Key Harbor alone. To secure one of the 225 moorings managed by Boot Key Harbor City Marina, you will need to make your reservations months in advance, so plan ahead.

Arriving in Marathon by land, you will find that the city is nothing more than a laid back fishing village. Its beautiful azure waters, and the wonderful fishing are what attracts people to its pristine shores. Take a dinghy ride or kayak around to see an area teeming with an abundance of wildlife which include dolphins, sting rays, manatees, and a variety of birds (the ubiquitous pelicans, cormorants and anhingas, egrets, herons, woodstorks, and many more).

Up close and personal with manatee in Marathon

Key Deer at the National Key Deer Refuge in Big Pine Key

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