Keys Remembered

Here is a blog post from the Keys I couldn't upload  till now.

 December 17, 2012

The Manatees and Dolphin of Canaveral National Seashore seem a distant memory.  We are in the Keys now after several weeks of family time in South Florida.  My parents, brother and aunt all live in Boca Raton and Highland Beach.    We’ve had many family dinners and my nephews even visited from Virginia and met Gwen and Phillip.  Neal’s stepfather Sid, and his wife, host us for a few days and my Aunt Betty hosts us for more. We love spending time with them.

We leave the beaches of Palm Beach county and head west to Lake Okeechobee where we spent a day and a night.  Though I grew up in this area, and the Lake is so close, I’d only driven past it once or twice.  This time we were at a Palm Beach County Park right next to it.  A large dike surrounds the entire lake - built and heightened several times after repeated hurricanes caused flood surges that killed thousands in the 20s and 30s.  It’s called the Herbert Hoover Dike after his visit and a final effort to build to a height that would protect nearby towns from storm serge.   It is no deeper than 13 feet and “caught fire” once recently when draught left organic matter bare in some parts of the lake. 

Finally after all these years I see the lake for the first time.  Up go Phil, Gwen and I to the top of the dike.  Down below there is a busy boat ramp and bicyclists tearing around the trail at the top of the dike and recklessly speeding down it’s side. I look down and don’t see a lake but a marshy area filled with bird life, looking more like the Glades than a lake. Checking a map a realize I’d have to access a different part of the lake to see an expanse.

Next day off we go South down Rt 27 - the middle of the state.  We pass miles of sugar cane farms.  Some burn in the distance.  Eventually the road turns into everglades on our right and then small fruit and landscaping farms on both sides, their signs often written in Spanish.  We stop for cheap gas only 3.11. A thin dark man with a thin mustache is in an old car and wears a jaunty hat.  We’re near Miami now.

We arrive at John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park.  It’s warm and humid.  The park is thick with vegetation.  The noseeums come out to bite and we are tired. It was a bad afternoon that involved kids fighting over a bouncy ball, bouncy ball going into road side ditch at fruit stand, everyone hot and tired.  We are happy to go to bed.

Today we have big plans for kayaking and swimming.  We blow up our Kayak, put on our safety vests and off we go all four of us.  But the kayak is just too unsteady and though in a safe little lagoon, we decide on a different strategy.  I’m also paddling one way and Neal in another.  Not working. 

Instead, Gwen and Neal take the kayak around to the swimming area and I take the RV with Phil.  Once there we decide to snorkel and this turns into great fun.  Gwen takes to it immediately and is swimming around easily with mask and snorkel.  I rent a mask and snorkel.  We see crabs and several juvenile barracuda. Neal and I haven’t snorkeled  since St. Lucia.  Phil is reluctant about the water but we walk around the shallow rocks looking for crabs and fish.  I see a pink flamingo flying over head.

Later, Gwen and I go into the water again to snorkel.  This time there are two older couples snorkeling already.  They point out a blue crab below, pincers up pushing off the rocks.  Gwen says excitedly, “Did you see it mommy?”  One of the men says, “Do you want to see more fish?”  Gwen says “yes” and I say “yes” and he says, “hold on to my fin!”  Gwen holds on and we all go swimming off to the buoy a bit further out.  (Don’t worry, Gwen has her safety vest on).  There we see a fluorescent blue parrot fish, many schooling grunts and other uni reef fish. One of the women points us to another group of fish. They are attracted by the buoy and the anchor and cannons below, placed there as an “artificial reef.”  The older man asks if we are alright and  “do you want to see more fish?”  Gwen says yes and I say yes and the crew of us all go off to an area closer to shore but for some reason deeper and darker. So fast, they all have diving fins.  I can’t see the bottom.  Gwen is now holding on tight to the gentle snorkeler.  It feels a bit magical.  I’m a little scared of the dark water, it’s mysterious (and I’m a wimp) this intensifies the magical feeling. Gwen is gleefully riding along as if she’s found a dolphin friend.  We come to a school of jacks,  swimming tightly together, shifting in and out of the darkness.  “Do you see Mom?” the man asks me, “Yes!” “Gwen do you see?” I ask,   “Yes!” “Aren’t you afraid there is some larger predator fish following the Jacks?” I ask the man. “No” he says, “they’re not interested in us.”  We all go into shore, it’s so close by.  “Thank you so much for the tour!”  I say as the man comes out the water taking off his mask and picking up his cane.  He turns to his wife as she is coming out, “you alright?”

I’ll hate to leave this place tomorrow - but we are off to another state park and our experience is that the Florida state park system is fantastic.  So we are expecting more good experiences there.