Our first stop was Key Largo where we ate lunch with these guests.
While on Key Largo we also visited Pennekamp State Park. The weather was perfect. So perfect that we were able to take a snorkel boat tour to Dry Rocks reef where we were able to snorkel over the Christ the Abyss statue.
After Key Largo we headed to Marathon for a night. Along the way we stopped at Robbie's in Islamorada.
At Robbie's you purchase a $3 bucket of baitfish and hand feed the tarpon. These aren't your average tarpon - they are humongous.
Often a tarpon will actually rise up from the water in a powerful flash of silver and meet the fish as it leaves your hand. Mason was dangling a fish over the side when this tarpon jumped and startled him. I can't believe I was able to snap a photo of it.
After a night in Marathon we made it to Key West and hit the major tourist attractions such as the Southernmost Point, Truman's Little White House, Duval Street and the sunset celebration.
A favorite among all of us was Hemingway's house.
Who wouldn't fall in love with all of Hemingway's six-toed cats?
Speaking of Hemingway, by pure accident, our trip coincided with the 35th Annual Papa Look-A-Like Contest at Sloppy Joe's.
After a sipping on fresh coconut milk it was time to head home. We did make one last stop on Bahia Honda Key. We had planned to take the snorkeling tour to Looe Key but we literally missed the boat. Luckily, we had our own equipment so we snorkeled at Sandspur Beach. Truthfully, we saw just as much if not more sea life at Bahia Honda State Park than we did at Pennekamp State Park.
Darin and I didn't have high expectations for this trip because we had been to Key West before. However, we were surprised by how much we enjoyed each of the Keys. I dare say - we will probably be back.
