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Key West or Bust

A gale was blowing;

At least that's what they said. And It seemed like it this morning on the wharf as the wind was howling in the rigging of the sailing ships in the harbor. ;

I must be rested because I woke up at my normal time of 0630. Breakfast isn't out until 0800 so I killed time on the internet. Continental breakfast was OK, the coffee was hot and rich so that was nice. By the time I was satisfied this was going on in the driveway.

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I started my walking tour at the seaport, two blocks from the house. The old train station is at the entrance to the docks. Mr Flagler brought the world to Key West in the early 1900's with the completion of the Overseas Railroad.

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The Conch Republic

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From the port area I wandered back up Duval St. to see the sights.

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Sloppy Joe's famous as the hangout of Hemingway.

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The original location of Sloppy Joe's and claiming to be the oldest bar in Florida.

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I stumbled upon the HD tee shirts shop and had to get a souvenir, I earned it. As I was paying for the tee the lady at the register said I should ride down some day and they were surprised when I said that I did. I told them of my trip so far and they were properly impressed. ;-)

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One good thing about the high winds was that the three cruise ships that were supposed to dock today all canceled. So there were much fewer people as I wandered about. Here is the cruise ship terminal.

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Lots of chickens roam the town.

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I visited the shipwreck museum because I wanted to climb the 65 foot tower and get a higher view of the place. They has actors portraying salvagers and they put on a good tour. Very informative.

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view from the tower

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On top they had a tower cam so I called my wife in her office and had her go to the website. That was pretty cool. A little bit down the street was the Customs house.

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In front was a statue of a photographer taking a photo of a statue. There are lots of these statues around town.

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Next up was Mel Fisher's Treasure museum. It had more artifacts on display than the shipwreck museum. Lots of gold and silver artifacts on display. You could even buy some for prices ranging from $400 to over $10,000.

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This was the tour guide.

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The Little White House used by several Presidents as vacation and meeting location.

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I stumbled across the end of the road. I wasn't looking for it, it was just there.

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I had been walking around for several hours and was thirsty so I popped into The Green Parrot. key West is famous for the bars and this is one of the well known dives. Lots of character inside.

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Next post; the military tours.
 
The military tours

There are a couple of Coast Guard cutters tied up at the pier near Fort Taylor. First I went to CGC Mohawk. The ship was built as an ice breaker in 1934 and saw duty in WWII as convoy escort in the North Atlantic. She was decommissioned in 1947.

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The bigger and better preserved is the CGC Inham. At 327 feet she was the largest cutter at the time of her construction in 1936. In WWII she served in the North Atlantic were she sunk U-626 in 1943. She also served in the Mediterranean during WWII. Near the end of the war she moved to the Pacific and was MacArthur's command ship for the retaking of Corregidor and the several other engagements in the Philippines. She also served in Vietnam. She is the most decorated ship in the history of the Coast Guard.

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Nearby is the Fort Taylor State Park. A coastal protection fort built in 1845. It was held under Union control during the civil war. Ships captured running the blockade were taken here. The fort was used through the end of WWII and was closed in 1947 along with most of the coastal forts.

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Time for dinner. It's corny but I want' a cheeseburger in paradise so I made my way to Jimmy Bufett's Original Margaritaville and got a cheeseburger. Pretty tasty.

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Key West is famous for it's sunsets and they are celebrated every night.

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Walking back to the house I had to catch a photo of this place. It can't be a day without a picture of a motorcycle. Check the upper left corner. Now this qualifies as a ride report on a motorcycle site.

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Re: The military tours

Thanks for the nod to the Coast Guard. :hail:

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We are planning on getting down that way in April. It looks great!
 
Re: A gale was blowing;

I stumbled across the end of the road. I wasn't looking for it, it was just there.

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I had been walking around for several hours and was thirsty so I popped into The Green Parrot. key West is famous for the bars and this is one of the well known dives. Lots of character inside.

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Next post; the military tours.

Brings back fond memories of my trip that direction back in 2008.



My favorite bar in Key West.

 
A new plan, not for fun

I've spent most of the morning figuring out what to do next. Problem 1: on the way down I notice the back light in the Harley's radio display was not working. Display works I just can't see it at night. Problem 2: factory two year warranty expires day after tomorrow. :doh: I spoke with Cen Tex and they could not get me in the system without diagnosis. Something he called warranty fraud. :shrug: The closest dealer is in Naples. So, first thing tomorrow I make a speed run to Naples, about 5 hours, to let them diagnose the problem. I'm betting they don't have a replacement radio so they will be able make the record of the problem and I can arrange for the replacement to be done when I get home. There is the possibility that a software re-flash will fix it but I'm skeptical. Routes are loaded into the GPS, it's a balmy 57* with 16 mph winds, gusts to 30. I'm going for a walk.
 
Walking about, more

Planning all done for my return ride home it was time to get out and about. I checked with the front desk, got a good tip on one of the things I had not yet done and hit the streets. Scooter squids of all ages are everywhere including rentals for the tourists. They zip around everywhere and nobody has heard of ATGATT. The sound of wound out small two strokes can be heard just about any time of day. There is lots of on street parking for motorcycles should you want to ride on down here. I picked a placed to stay with parking so I could avoid on street parking to avoid this scene.

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I needed Key Lime Pie and was told this was the best. Kermit's

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Done, and it was very good.

I wandered down to Duval and continued my walking tour. Inside on bar I found a tree and lots of fire load hanging from the ceiling. Yes, those are bras hanging from the ceiling joist.

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What is this hovering above above the horizon next to the Customs House?

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A cruise ship in town. That explains the increased foot traffic and so many people speaking strange languages.

This place had an interesting claim; First fresh water well on the island used by pirates in the 1700's. The sign looked legit and the house was built in the mid 1800's. It's plausible.

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One of the several famous bars is Durty Harry's. A collection of different small rooms to suit just about any preference for adult beverages.

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The walls on the way in were covered with thanks from the many units stationed at the NAS over the years.

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And to end the bar tour, The Smallest Bar. two stools and room for about four to stand.

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I got tips from locals on where to get the best Cuban Cuisine so that's the plan for tonight. They both recommended the same place so I'm going in with high hopes.
 
Goin' Cuban

I had about 8 blocks to walk to get to the cafe' for dinner and I had one stop to make so I left about 4. Half way was the city cemetery. I'll let you read for your self rather than copying the sign.

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Like most islands the burials take place either in above ground mausoleums or in vaults capped with heavy masonry to prevent the casket from floating when it floods, even though this one is on the highest point in the island. It's called a hill but I never saw one.

USS Maine burial grounds.

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These birds were chowing down on bugs and would not hold still for a nice photo.

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4 more blocks and I was at the recommended cafe', El Siboney. I order the #1, puerco asado, AKA roast pork. Lots of food on the plate, I got real full. Frankly I was not impressed. Fairly bland, rice had zero flavor, black beans needed some kind of seasoning. The fried plantains were the highlight of the whole meal. Soft, sweet, very tasty. Overall I'll stick with Tex Mex.

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Best thing about the meal was that it was fast and reasonably priced, a first for food in this town. I had plenty of time for the 18 block walk to the west end for sunset. I envied these folks on their sunset sail.

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And the sun sets on my stay in Key West. I leave around 0630 tomorrow.

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Oh, on the weather, they set an all time record for cold last night and expect to break it tonight. 50 this morning, mid 40's tonight.
 
We've been to Key West by water but have not par-taken in the experience such as your's! Congrats on the IBA cert. Be safe on the trip back..
 
Cuban pork is indeed very tasty. It can be found at many Cuban restaurants throughout Florida and I'd suggest sampling some at another. I bet you just got a dud there.
 
At the HD shop in Naples getting that radio checked. Good news when they ran the BIN, warranty is good to 4/1/11. I hope that is not some cruel joke.:-) I'll let them do the diagnostics and get repairs done at home if needed. Gotta get on down the road.
 
Start the trip home.

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I slept real good after going to bed around 9 pm and woke up at 0530 without the alarm. So, what else is there to do but to layer up and go. Temps were just above 40 as the sky had cleared and the wind died down. I stopped for fuel in Homestead and made the turn west on FL41 for my ride through The Everglades. The road is nice two lane with guardrails to keep you from going off into the swamp should you have a problem.

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I kept looking for some gators to get a photo of one but every time I saw some there were no places to stop. They were laying on the bank of the canal that parallels the highway.

Into Naples and straight to the HD dealer. They were expecting me at 1200 but since I left early I arrived at 1100. No problem. Jax at the service counter took my info and looked up the warranty record. Then she told me that for some reason my warranty is good for an extra 4 1/2 months past the two year anniversary of my purchase. I had her print of a copy of that page just in case I need it when I get home. Since they were ready for me I let them go ahead and do the diagnosis so they could get a service call out of my visit. They confirmed the back light on the display is not working and they would have to replace the radio. That was entered into the computer system, I got a printed copy of that too, and I was back on my way. Total time including filling up with fuel was a little less than an hour and a half.

Moving on north I turned off IH75 onto 275 and went toward the Sunshine Skyway. The first of two toll sections today. I had to stop and shut off the bike. Take off gloves, dig out the wallet, hand the booth some cash, get the change and reverse the whole process. Too bad for those behind me. :-P
Here is the skyway....

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Progress slowed greatly as I made my way up the small towns that dot the barrier island west of ST. Petersburg. I didn't mind the 30 mph, it was quite nice. After a while I finally rolled into Clearwater.

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I doesn't all look like that, just the first view. There is a real nice boardwalk area with some restaurants and a great beach park.

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Getting out of Clearwater on the route I wanted to take was the worst of the trip so far. Like 20 miles of heavy traffic. But I hung in there and made it. I had no hotel reservation anywhere and had looked up a cheap place on the gps. As I got close I spotted one with a Denny's in the parking lot that was not in the gps database. Bingo. So here I am in Crystal River, FL looking forward to the hard freeze tonight. I think I'll hang around for breakfast while the temps climb a little. The have 70 forecast for tomorrow.
 
Man I haven't been down to Key West since the early 70s. Thanks for the trip back. Speaking of trips, I don't know if it's still there or not, but if it is, don't eat those flowers on that tree in front of Ernest Hemmingways house.

:rofl::shock:
 
Man I haven't been down to Key West since the early 70s. Thanks for the trip back. Speaking of trips, I don't know if it's still there or not, but if it is, don't eat those flowers on that tree in front of Ernest Hemmingways house.

:rofl::shock:

I didn't go by his house, which was built by Mr.Tift, the king of salvagers. So you need to tell us what will happen if you eat those flowers.
 
Ummmm, they are pee'd on my 6-toed (Polydactyl) cats....... DUH!
 
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Crystal River to Pensacola, FL; scenic route.

It was cold this morning. 28* cold to be exact. So I took my time getting ready and ate a good breakfast before finally getting on the road at 0900. The temp had warmed all the way to 40* so it wasn't bad at all. In contrast to the hades that I endured north of Clearwater there was almost no traffic on a divided highway that had recently been resurfaced and was smooth as silk.

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I was in the pine forests along the gulf coast. There is a logging industry here and I passed a few logging trucks heading to the mills.

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Passing the mills was nice because of the smells of pine and cypress that filled the cool morning air. Many places I recognized without looking ahead on the map: Suwanee River, Apilatchicola, Destin. Once making the turn west the highway dropped to the coast and followed along most of the afternoon.

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There were even some nice sweepers as the roadway followed along the waters edge.

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A rest stop at a park....

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Palms along the road coming into Port Joe, IIRC.

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As a cold front approached I first noticed flags indicating wind out of the north. Then the clouds got darker and soon descended to the ground and it rained. I stopped soon enough to gear up before the downpour so I stayed dry. I rode in the rain for about 45 minutes total. Most of it light with maybe 5 minutes of heavy downpour causing traffic to slow down. I kept the gear on all the way into Pensacola beach just 'cause. As I stopped at the toll both over the bridge, you know the drill, the large truck behind me thought I could go faster if he honked his horn. :yawn: I was chatting with the lady in the booth the whole time. She just shrugged and grinned and reminded that the beach was closed due to high waves and rip tides. OK, I'm not planning on swimming, just sightseeing. It was nice with the big waves coming in.



And the usual sunset photo (I love sunset and sunrise if you couldn't tell yet)

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I was looking for dinner but everything looked touristy. I spotted a couple guys pull into the parking lot in front of Hooters on their Harleys so I thought I'd see if they were local or like me just looking for food. One guy was local and the other proudly proclaimed through his three front teeth that he was front somewhere in backwoods Alabama. Toothy says he likes Hooters. I say that I like hooter too but I'm looking for food. ;-) So local guy says I need crabs. I say "what?" Crabs, and he points across the road to this place. Called Crabs, we got 'em.

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It looked like a chain but I'd never heard of them. Turns out it's a local joint. They have this place and a chowder house on the other side of the island. I got a fried platter and everything was awesome. 2 coconut shrimp, 4 fried shrimp, 6 delicious scallops, 6 Apalachicola oysters, stuffed crab, and a fillet of fish that was delicious (some kind of white fish, very light and tasty). Fries, slaw, hush-puppies. All topped of with fried biscuits and honey. Wow! I ate most of it but the slaw, fries, and pups.

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I got a really nice hotel room online for 43 bucks. Tomorrow I visit NAS Pensacola and the National Museum of Naval Aviation. I'm excited about that.
 
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Pensacola to Baton Rouge; short update

Just a quick note to check in. A couple shots from the day.

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Should get home tomorrow. Full report when I get a chance.
 
Glad you're having fun!

Ahem..... I recall a few of us talking about that cold weather you were going to have to pass through...... cough-cough.....

Let us know when you get in Saturday.
 
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