I’ve decided that this blog just wouldn’t be complete if I didn’t include reports from my previous National Parks visits. I also think this will help keep the posts coming at a more regular pace since my limited vacation days won’t allow as many trips as I’d like! So today, we go back in time to last Labor Day weekend and to one of the more remote National Parks in the system.
When I found out that I was moving to Miami, the first thoughts to flash through my mind were not about finding a place to live, packing up all my stuff or even finding a moving company…I would deal with those later! I immediately started thinking about a trip to Dry Tortugas NP. Living in Orlando, the long drive to Key West made it difficult to make this a weekend trip, so it just hadn’t been on the top of my list.
Dry Tortugas NP is located seventy miles west of Key West and the only way to get to the park is by private boat, a ferry or sea plane. I’d estimate that at least 95% of the people who visit the park come by ferry and stay only for a few hours…My plan was to camp on the island overnight and get to experience more of the park. I invited my friend Chris and he said he was in.
We stayed in a hotel in Key West that Friday night and woke the next morning to the sound of thunder. Great. At first I thought I was dreaming, but as I came to, I could hear the steady sound of rain. As we loaded the kayak onto the car, the rain continued, but we remained optimistic…Florida storms like this can come and go pretty quickly.We arrived at the dock around 6:15 and loaded our water (fresh water isn’t available on the island), gear and supplies for the next two days onto the ferry. While we waited for passenger boarding, we had a nice big breakfast at Turtle Kraals since we would be living on PB&Js until we returned to Key West.
The duration of the two and a half hour boat ride was gray, rainy and windy. Even with the gloomy weather, the water still managed to be pretty spectacular. And as Garden Key came into view, the weather finally started to break. It couldn’t have been more perfect timing! The majority of the park is underwater, but there are seven islands as well. Garden Key is the most visited island in the park and is the home of Fort Jefferson.
We docked, set up camp and headed out to the water for some snorkeling. Snorkeling here is unique because you don’t have to go out in open water to access reef formations. The fort is surrounded by a moat (as all proper forts should be) which is enclosed by a retaining wall. Over the years, the portion of the wall submerged underwater has become an artificial reef covered with coral, sea fans and urchins. Brightly colored tropical fish dart in and out of crevices and nibble around the coral. As a result, we simply followed the wall, swimming in a circle around the island until we had our fill of underwater exploration. This may sound like the lazy man’s version 
of snorkeling, but it was actually quite nice. Swimming out in open water can be a little daunting especially if you aren’t with a large group. Here you don’t have to worry about swimming too far out, currents or waves…I was really able to relax and just enjoy exploring the nooks and crannies of the reef.
One of the coolest things we saw were the thousands of tiny fish swimming in schools. They formed glimmering ribbons that swayed back and forth with the water. When we stuck our hand out, they would move away in a perfectly synchronized motion and return in a wave when no longer threatened. The coaling dock ruins are also a unique place for snorkeling. We weaved in and out of the pilings searching for barracuda and other fish hidden in the shadows.
Late afternoon and the ferries filled with tourists had left the island. The few park rangers and volunteers living in the fort had retired to their quarters to beat the blistering afternoon sun. With the exception of a handful of other campers, we had the entire fort and island to ourselves. We crossed the bridge and started exploring.
The sheer size of the fort is pretty amazing. I’ve read that this is the largest brick structure in the western hemisphere and from a constructability and logistics standpoint it is incredible. It’s hard to imagine building this structure on an island 70 miles from the mainland in current times, let alone over 150 years ago. The original design had underground rain water cisterns, but unfortunately settling from the weight of the structure caused them to break and the seawater to contaminate them.
After at least an hour of exploring the fort, we decided to take the kayak out. Before arriving at the park, I had been hoping we would paddle out 4km to Loggerhead Key and checkout the lighthouse on that island. After speaking to the most pessimistic park ranger ever, we decided to stick to the closer islands. A younger guy, new to the park, he did everything he could to convince us that it was too dangerous to attempt. We didn’t really buy it, but there were plenty of other things for us to do so we opted for a shorter trip.
After a nice paddle, we returned to the fort and climbed to the top to watch the sunset with Loggerhead Key in the distance.
Dinner was more peanut butter and jelly and a little wine (in plastic cups) to keep it classy. After our meal we spent the evening admiring the clear starry sky and chatting. A little advice…camping at this park would be more enjoyable in fall/winter. Even on a tiny island in the middle of the ocean, the breeze isn’t enough to cover up September humidity! It was a clear night when we went to sleep so opted to sleep with out the fly for extra circulation. But (of course), in the middle of the night a little rain started and we had to put the fly on. The fly immediately made the tent stuffy and hot and it was a sleepless night from that point.
Feeling surprisingly rested despite the lack of sleep, we emerged from the tent the next morning and had…you guessed it!…PB&J! Although this time we threw in some bananas to make it more “breakfasty”. 
On this day the sky was practically cloudless and it immediately got hot. Our only respite was to head back out to the water. We opted for a quick kayak trip and another loop or two snorkeling around the island. Around 10:30 or so, that day’s load of tourists arrived. The ferry we used to get to and from the island provides lunch for the day trippers which we chose to save for our return day. We loaded up our gear on the boat, ate lunch and then it was time to head back. This time, it was sunny and clear. We spent most of the time out on the deck watching fish jump out of the water and skip across the surface.
We docked in Key West early evening, checked into an awesome B&B called the Frances Street Bottle Inn (I’ve stayed there twice now) and experienced one of my all time favorite meals at Blue Heaven. This trip may have taken a little extra planning, but it was worth the effort. Having the opportunity to spend the night on a beautiful island sans crowds (even in high humidity!) made this National Park trip truly unique.
alison's adventures in wonderland 