We love Islamorada: We really love the weather in Islamorada in February! Temperatures are averaging high 70s, low 80s, and we’ve only had a few scattered periods of high winds (not good for kayaking, dinghying, or viewing sea life in the bay).
Without even leaving the boat, we have seen a variety of wildlife – lots of pelicans and tarpon, 2 resident nurse sharks, manatees, schools of fish, and, recently, we saw our first dolphin in the basin.
See some of the wildlife in the video below.
Why are the sharks burrowing in the bottom? Nurse sharks are bottom feeders, so they may be digging up lobsters, crabs, or shrimp. They are powerful suction feeders and can pull conchs from their shells. Since I notice a lot of holes in the sandy bottom on clear days, I’m guessing they are pulling crabs from their holes.
Interesting fact: Most encounters with nurse sharks are without incident. Since nurse sharks are relatively slow and somewhat tolerant of humans, recreational divers who are thrill seekers may grab them by the tail or dorsal fin, which usually ends with a shark bite. And nurse sharks are reluctant to let go.
Ref: https://www.britannica.com/animal/nurse-shark-family
Our friends on mv Semper FI drove up from Key West for a visit.
Below is “Big Betsy” (the lobster behind my friend and me).
Modes of Transporation: Islamorada is a “Village of Islands” and runs from about Mile Marker (MM) 90 to MM 72 (north to south) in the Florida Keys.
Islamorada encompasses 4 islands:
· Plantation Key
· Windley Key
· Upper Matecumbe Key
· Lower Matecumbe Key
So far, getting around Upper Matecumbe has not been a problem for us.
By Kayak: We kayak mostly for fun and exercise. This is our best way to explore the mangroves (which are shallow) …
… and sometimes requires “kayak limbo”.
Sometimes we make a restaurant stop. We've kayaked to Lorelei & Morada Bay (so far 😊).
By Dinghy: We dinghy mostly for fun – exploring outside of our Little Basin. Many of the areas around Islamorada are shallow, averaging 4-8 feet, so running the dinghy requires planning to avoid low tides and grass beds. Our dinghy is powered by an electric motor, which does limit our range and speed somewhat, but in return, we have no gas to worry about on board, no finicky outboard motor, and the sun recharges our dinghy batteries for us! We can run for about 3-4 hours at 4 knots -- or about 15-20 miles, albeit slowly. If we speed up to 6 knots, it’s only 1 hour before the batteries run out.
Ray loves his dinghy!
By Scooter: The scooter is our primary mode of transportation on land when we want to arrive at our destination without getting sweaty – or when we have a large load to carry. We scooter to do laundry a mile away, or to get groceries from Publix 2 miles.
We also restocked five gallons of oil from West Marine, about a mile away, with the help of our modified scooter trailer. We already owned the folding bike trailer below (for the electric bikes that we used before switching to scooters). Ray crafted a trailer holder for the scooter using a clamp-on scooter seat post.
The scooters fold to about 1 by 4 feet.
While we are in port for several days, we stow them in the salon (in front of our helm), in a 2-scooter stand that Ray designed and built.
(I helped him by suggesting a diagonal design for a smaller footprint. 😊)
Here is a writeup of our scooter transportation decision – Land Transportation Update
NOTE: This is one of the projects documented in the “Projects” section of SCOUT’s webpage at:
By Walking: While most of our walking is done for exercise, we can reach some of the closer destinations on foot. There are nice sidewalks on both sides of the highway – even separate from the traffic and bike lanes.
Pedestrian Challenge: Crossing highway A1A in Islamorada can be a challenge. There are no stoplights or crosswalks on Upper Matecumbe. We generally cross to the middle turn lane, and then finish crossing at a traffic gap. Many times, a driver will flash his lights, signaling to let us cross. We have noticed increased traffic (we are in the high season now) and heavier traffic on weekends.
Pedestrian Alternative: Islamorada currently offers free transportation across the 4 Islamorada keys. Read about Freebee below.
By Freebee: Freebee provides free electric transportation in some areas throughout South Florida. Just download the Freebee app to request a ride.
Ref: https://ridefreebee.com/#modal-7 to find out which areas offer Freebee.
Here is 1 of 3 Freebee vehicles outside of Islamorada Brewery and Distillery.
Sightseeing: There are quite a few sights to explore in Islamorada.
World Wide Sportsman (Bass Pro): World Wide Sportsman, right here at the Bayside Marina, has Hemingway’s ‘Pilar’ sistership – inside the store. This ‘Pilar’, a Wheeler Playmate Cabin Cruiser, was built in 1933. Hemingway built his ‘Pilar” soon after that –after having fished from the first ‘Pilar’. Both ‘Pilar’s were berthed at the Port of Key West during the 1930’s, and both boats were used in World War II. By then, Hemingway’s ‘Pilar” was berthed in Havana, Cuba, and was used to chase German subs in the waters off Cuba. Hemingway’s ‘Pilar’ is now on display at Hemingway’s old homestead in Havana.
Bass Pro’s ‘Pilar’ appeared in the 1948 movie “Key Largo,” bearing the name ‘Santana’ on her stern. And in the 1950’s she appeared as ‘Blue Heron’ in the movie ‘The Blue Heron’. Johnny Morris, of Bass Pro Shops, purchased this ‘Pilar’ in 1994, as a centerpiece for his saltwater emporium.
There is also an aquarium in the store, featuring simulated mangroves and mangrove fishes. If you have children (or you are a fish stalker yourself), don’t miss it!
Netflix Series Film Locations: The Netflix series Bloodline was filmed in the Keys – mostly in Islamorada. We have enjoyed “scavenger spotting” places (and things) featured in the show. Our dockmaster owns the classic picnic boat, a Hinkley (named Paradise), that was featured as the Rayburn Inn’s passenger ferry.
The “Rayburn Inn” is our “neighbor”, Pierre’s Restaurant, which is pricey, but it shares a gorgeous beach with Morada Bay Beach Café (less pricey), where we stopped to share a great burger after kayaking.
Windley Key Fossil Reef Geological State Park: We took a Freebee to Windley Key for lunch at Island Grill before hiking the park. We recommend eating outside, overlooking Snake Creek, and Ray recommends the crispy shrimp tacos! Don’t miss the beautiful wide high-top table built around a tree (somewhat visible in the photo below).
After lunch, we walked 0.7 miles to Windley Key Fossil Reef Geological State Park, the land where Florida East Coast Railroad operated a quarry to supply Key Largo limestone (fossilized coral) to build Flagler’s Overseas Railroad (early 1900s).
When the railroad was completed, the quarry began selling polished “key stone” for decorative building. We saw one example of polished key stone at the Hurricane Monument (see the next section).
It looks like the Islamorada Post Office is built with non-polished key stone.
The Education Center was closed due to Covid-19, but we picked up a self-guided Walking Tour brochure outside the office and walked through some of the 5 short trails through tropical hammock and hardwoods.
We learned about several varieties of trees.
Surprisingly, the most interesting tree was the last of 17 points of interest on the trail.
On the back of the brochure, we learned that all parts of the Poisonwood Tree are poisonous (similar to poison ivy) and even standing under the tree in the rain can affect sensitive people.
What!!!???
How poisonous must a tree be for top billing on the Walking Tour guide?
For the remainder of the trail, we realized how many Poisonwoods were in the dense hammock and hardwood.
On the wall of quarry, you could see the vertical drill cavities that were used to break off boulders of key stone.
Up close, you could distinguish specific types of coral fossilization (if you are familiar with them 😊). In the center of the photo (below) is brain coral.
What is fossilized coral? I did not see information at the park that explained how the reef was fossilized (maybe it was in the closed Education Center).
I found a good source of information: http://www.keyshistory.org/keysgeology.html
To the south of the mainland of Florida is the skeleton of an ancient and a not-so-ancient coral reef. Generally, only the parts above the water are thought of as the Florida Keys, but the entire platform evolved while under water. There are about 882 charted islands beginning with Miami Beach created by marine sea life.
The Florida Keys can be categorized based on their geology. […] From Soldier Key southward are the non- sedimentary Keys classified as High Coral Keys, Low Coral Keys and the Oolite Keys. There is not a clear dividing line but the Upper and Middle Keys are of Key Largo Limestone which are the peaks of once live coral forests. These were once live, thriving and dense forests of many corals and other marine organisms - flora and fauna. […] As the glaciers reformed taking water from the ocean, sea level dropped, the coral forests died and collapsed into islands we now live on.
It all started with ancient reefs (500 million years ago). Then, …
[…] During the Pleistocene Epoch (2-3 million years ago) shifting sands formed massive shoals over the ancient geologic ocean bottom.
The tops of these sand shoals were shallow enough for photosynthesis from sunlight to allow corals to grow. […] This was the beginning of the not-so-ancient […] coral reef; albeit, under water.
The "corals" are carnivorous animals with hard skeletons that eat other small organisms. Actually, the coral animal is called the "polyp" and its outer skeleton is "coral.
As coral dies, the calcium carbonate skeletons accumulate; they do not decay (like trees, for example). Large piles of skeletons form islands.
Nature's climate pendulum is constantly swinging between warm and cold spells (glacial and inter-glacial periods.)
About 100,000 to 125,000 years ago, the earth warmed during an interglacial period known as the Sangamon period. As the ice in the polar caps increased, ocean levels dropped. As reefs died and became exposed, the Keys appeared.
I’m glad I took a moment to relax on the bench on the way out.
This was when I found out Ray’s plan for the “adventure” (I think that’s what he called it) was to walk the 3.6 miles back to the marina!
Hurricane Monument: This is the monument that, as mentioned above, carved of polished key stone, is a crypt where bodies were cremated and buried after the 1935 hurricane.
Almost 600 veterans of World War I were building in the Matecumbe area when the storm hit with 200+ mph winds and 18-foot tidal waves. Earlier that day, a train was ordered (finally) to take these veterans and other civilians to the mainland. After a series of negative events, the train arrived at the Islamorada station just 15 minutes before the hurricane hit. Only parts of a few buildings remained, and over 500 people died. Today, this memorial area looks eerily peaceful.
Pioneer Cemetery: At Cheeca Lodge, we got a visitor wristband to walk to the Pioneer Cemetery (on the beach). This is where several members of the first three families of Islamorada are buried.
The simple graves among the prestigious resort seemed out of place.
The angel marks the grave of Etta Dolores Pinder. During the great hurricane, the statue was torn from the ground and landed on the highway intact, breaking only an arm and a wing!
Florida Keys History & Discovery Center: The museum is in the Islander Resort. Check out this vintage resort sign.
At the History & Discovery Center, we viewed a variety of historical artifacts, including an entire section about fishing. Islamorada is known as the "Sportfishing Capital of the World”.
We watched an interesting documentary about the 1935 hurricane, “Hurricane 35: The Deadly Deluge.” I kept thinking how good it was for someone to capture video accounts from survivors (before they passed away). The half-hour documentary was released in 1997 – 62 years after the hurricane.
Ray was shocked to learn how World War I veterans had been treated by the government. They had not received their promised bonus payments, and they could not find jobs. They were offered federal work relief jobs building bridges to connect the Florida Keys, where they were housed in mosquito-infested camps and worked for a dollar a day. Over 250 veterans were killed minutes after the rescue train arrived (too late -- due to government delay).
As of 2020, the 1935 hurricane “still holds the world record for the lowest pressure ever recorded at landfall for any tropical cyclone or hurricane, at 892 mb or 26.35 inHg. […] The combination of an 18 to 20 foot storm surge and sustained winds of 185 mph, with gusts to 200 mph, swept the train cars off the track and almost completely wiped the Middle Keys clean of human habitation.”
For additional info, reference: https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/florida-keys/article245376200.html
Sunsets
Drone Photos.
What’s next? More food sampling, a fun excursion, boat (and hair) maintenance, and provisioning to head north.