Day 10 - US, Last Day!!! Key Largo, Universal and MK in one wonderful just about perfect trip

[KathyM2]

Wow!! What an amazing experience!! We did this in the keys too a few years ago, but from your pics and description it sounds like you got to do a lot more, and different types of interactions with them...how cool!! They are really amazing creatures. I'm sure Boo will remember that forever.

 

[sharona]

After Dolphins Plus we were wet and hungry. We hadn't thought to bring a change of clothes so we weren't really fit for anything other than take out. Even though our hotel was right next door, it didn't have a restaurant or food at the pool and Boo was "STARVING" so we grabbed lunch from the McD's drive through and brought it back to our patio to eat. We enjoyed some pool time and a try on the stand up paddle board (harder than it looks, even with the "training" board). We were on the bay and it was smooth as glass so no current to speak of. I can't imagine it's that easy back home. We've seen people at our favorite NH and Maine beaches out there on the SUPs in water with a lot of movement, not sure how they do it!!!

More pool time:


For dinner we were in search of the elusive steak. We checked the menu at a dozen restaurants before we found one in KL that served steak. I was amazed that it was such a challenge but I guess they have to ship in the beef whereas they can just buy the seafood fresh. We went to the Island Grill at the Mandalay. Outdoor seating on the water, live music, family friendly and (according to reviews) a local favorite. Unlike just about everything else in KL, it was not right on US1 which probably would deter a lot of non locals. We found it easily enough and decided to order a few apps plus 2 rib eye dinners and share it all. The waiter was very accommodating. Boo was feeling a bit silly (probably too much sun , and was hamming it up at the table.



The steaks were delicious and the entertainment was really good. There were indeed a lot of local looking people at the bar. Boo and I split a brownie sundae for dessert. Sorry no food pics when Boo's STARVING because she digs right in! The guitarist was singing a lot of Jimmy Buffet and some other stuff. He took requests and played some James Taylor for me. He even called up these 2 adorable little girls to play tambourine with him. One of them ran back to her mom but the other made the most of her 15 minutes of fame:



It was a wonderful day! We barely made it through sunset before all 3 crashing hard.

 

[sharona]

Wow!! What an amazing experience!! We did this in the keys too a few years ago, but from your pics and description it sounds like you got to do a lot more, and different types of interactions with them...how cool!! They are really amazing creatures. I'm sure Boo will remember that forever.

It really was amazing and a once in a lifetime experience. I'll remember the joy on my daughter's face forever (especially through the upcoming teen years when she turns into a little monster).

I highly recommend this place for anyone looking for maximum dolphin interaction and the team working there was so friendly and fun, they really made the whole thing perfect.

 

[KathyM2]

I love those out of the way restaurants...looks like you found the perfect place. I love to SUP...it is so much fun. But usually I do it on a lake..last time I was in FL I tried it out on the ocean for the first time...and boy did I look like a fool...fall down, get up...repeat...but it was a lot of fun. After a while I did manage to stay standing for a few mins lol...but yeah...it is harder than it looks on the ocean! Maybe if you show Boo those pics when the monster comes out...it will help her chill out and remember this perfect vacay...I'm hoping that will work with my DD who will be approaching that scary monster stage in a couple of years too...sigh.

 

[sharona]

@KathyM2 we'll come on the DIS and get lots of sympathy and encouragement I'm sure.


I'm sure you're all wondering when the hello are we going to get to the Universal stuff!!! 2 more days in the Keys and then we will be off to Orlando. I'm glad writing about the 4.5 hour drive will be easier than living it

I'm hoping to get the rest of Key Largo written up this weekend. Have to coach Boo's softball games tonight and tomorrow afternoon and of course Sunday is Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all on the DIS!

 

[chiamarie]

4pm finally a text that our room was ready! I was a bit disappointed that they hadn’t honored our request for 2nd floor. They offered to move us the following day and I said I’d take a look at the room and let them know. The reason I’d asked for 2nd floor is that I like to leave the sliders open at night and have fresh air but didn’t think we’d be able to do that with people walking by our room on the way to the beach or pool. The room itself was great. Fridge, microwave, wetbar, coffee maker, nice flat screen, table and chairs and sliders to a small patio - and yes, we would be on the path to the beach for about ¼ of the other rooms. Boo and The General decided that they liked the easy in/out to the pool and beach though and they overruled my intention to move to the 2nd floor.

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We headed out to get some very late lunch/very early dinner – the highly recommended Mrs. Mac’s. Food was just ok but that had more to do with our choices than the food quality. We’re not big seafood eaters and the Keys is all about fresh seafood, some restaurants don’t even have steak on the menu! Your options in Key Largo are pretty much fish or Denny’s! Since Boo and I love BFD (breakfast for dinner), you know we did Denny’s at least once. While my dinner was unremarkable, the key lime pie I had for dessert was fabulous. My first key lime pie. Not sure how I avoided it on previous trips to Key West…blame it on the margaritas I guess.

Returning to the hotel about 7, we could see that the sun was setting. Boo and I headed to the beach to watch the sunset. Mom decided to sit on the patio and read her book and relax. We stopped at the Tiki Bar so I could grab a frozen anything and we met Mango, the bartender’s parrot. Mango and Don run the Tiki Bar. He pulls up in his little boat every afternoon with Mango riding along on his shoulder. He also has a bike with a wagon that he pulls his groceries and laundry in and Mango rides in the back.

Boo with Mango:
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When we reached the beach area, we took off our shoes and waded in just a bit. I had my camera with me and was snapping some pics of the sunset. There were a few other people standing in the water and many sitting on the beach. Suddenly one of the teenage boys near us called out “there it is” and something large and dark swam by us! It was a baby manatee, about 4 ft long. It swam around and right over to us. It was amazing!!! We’d read in the hotel reviews that some guests had seen manatees in the bay but I didn’t expect them to be so people friendly! Boo put her hand in the water and it swam right up to her. She sort of petted it for a few minutes. When she took a step back it followed her like a dog wanting more attention.

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We’d see the manatees, both the babies (there were 2) and what we assumed was the mom, throughout the week. Very cool experience. Boo declared it “the best hotel ever!” Great first day!

Now, I am sure you mean zero harm; and that this was a pretty incredible experience; but just as a heads up, and I mean this is the nicest way possible....
Just remember that Manatees are protected by 3 different laws (Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, The Endangered Species Act, and The Florida Manatee Sanctuary Act) which makes it illegal to hunt, harass, feed, approach closer than 150 feet, touch, or in anyway interact with manatees. The idea is being that you don't want them to become friendly with humans. Unfortunately not all humans are good. Manatee's are often hit by boats that can cause many different problems. Just a couple pieces of advice; 1) I would take down the photos of your daughter touching and interacting with these manatees. If anyone from Florida Fish and Wildlife Law Enforcement sees the pictures; they could easily track you down and fine you up to $10,000 because what she is doing is technically illegal; and breaking three different laws. 2) In the future; remember that they are endangered and many things are being done to try and protect these amazing creatures, so observe them from a distance. More information; and info about what I have stated here can be found on the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission's website here: http://myfwc.com/education/wildlife/manatee/viewing-guidelines/

 

[livingthedream]

Dolphins Plus looks fantastic! Of the four of us, only my husband is a reasonably strong swimmer and is the most comfortable in water. So I have competing desires - to be able to be that close to a dolphin in deep water, and yet needing to avoid deep water. I believe they have a shallow water package, too, but I can't imagine its nearly the same experience. We are considering veering off the main Orlando-centric tourist path to other areas of Florida on our upcoming trip, and your descriptions and pictures of Key Largo are pulling me in that direction. Thanks for taking the time to share your wonderful experiences so far. Keep them coming!

 

[sharona]

Hi All. Sorry for the brief time out, I haven't been online since Saturday am which for me is an eternity. Boo and I have both been really sick. I'll spare you the gory details but wanted to quickly check in to say that I hope to post another entry later today.

 

[sharona]

Day 4/Tuesday/Marathon Key/Turtles/7 Mile Bridge/Bahia Honda State Park

We decided to fit all our longer distance must see's into one day. We chose the Turtle Hospital on Marathon Key and Bahia Honda State Park. This trip would include the famous 7 mile bridge. I called the Turtle Hospital and scheduled us for the 11 am tour. We had breakfast then headed south. The drive was fairly easy - US 1 again. I was getting used to the leisurely drives up and down Rte 1. Now, were they leisurely drives because I was on vacation and in relax mode or was it because I was always behind someone else who was in relax mode and it's mainly a 1 lane road??? Ahem. Marathon Key was much more bustley than KL and Islamorada - it seemed much busier area with a lot more options in the retail and restaurant arenas. Office Depot anyone? We found the Turtle Hospital and checked in.



The history behind this place is very interesting. Originally a family resort hotel where the owner turned one of the saltwater pools into an aquarium for the children to observe some sea life and eventually became a dedicated turtle rehab center when Hurricane Wilma flooded the hotel in 1995. There are even actual turtle ambulances that are used to transport the injured turtles! Note you can participate in one of the turtle releases if your timing is good.

When the tour started we were given a quick info session by our guide. Here's a chart they have posted showing the number and types of turtles they currently have at the center:



Here are a few pictures from the tour.

Turtle having surgery to remove tumors:


Turtles in various stages of rehab before being released:





We really enjoyed our tour and most of it was either indoors or shaded and by the ocean so for April, it was a nice daytime non beach activity. If you go in summer, I would plan for the earliest tour which I think is 9am. We bought some cute souvenirs from the gift shop (have to support the turtles you know) - Boo got these colorful turtle bracelets for herself and her 2 BFFs, I got a beautiful aqua blue and sea green turtle printed beach wrap and mom got some socks. Yes, that's right, socks. A store full of necklaces, knickknacks, t-shirts, printed wraps, key chains... and she buys turtle socks.

To be continued next post...

 

[sharona]

We left there and headed south to 7 mile bridge and Bahia Honda State Park. It was about 1pm and we were hungry. We had planned to eat at the beach as their website had indicated there was a beach concession but just before the bridge we saw a sign for the Sunset Grill at 7 Mile Bridge so we pulled in there. It was a great find. Big and open air with a high thatched style roof and a bar overlooking their swimming pool and small beach area (available to restaurant guests). You can also eat poolside. We chose to eat in the main restaurant as we wanted some time out of the sun before heading to the beach. Food was good - Boo had her usual chicken fingers, mom had a burger and I got this cuban style pulled pork dish that was delicious. Yes, the only 3 non fish dishes on the menu, lol.





After lunch we changed into our swimsuits and were off! Bahia Honda is just on the other side of the bridge and is an unbelievably beautiful beach, one of the prettiest I have ever been to - including Hawaii and the Caribbean! The water was crystal clear and warm. I didn't have my dslr at the beach but I snapped a few with my p&s, they do not do it justice, you'll just have to go and see it for yourself!







We stayed there for about an hour just hanging out in the water and enjoying the scenery. There were lots of families here but it was not crowded. It's a popular camping area with a big rv park and there were some kayakers and people sailing, SUPing and fishing. We were hoping to find a sunset sail that night so we decided it was time to head back so we could make arrangements. We stopped at Sunset Cafe again to change into dry clothes for the ride back and stopped again at an ice cream parlor. They had coconut ice cream which is a favorite of mine.

It was another leisurely drive back to KL. We did run into some rain on the drive back, our first real "weather" of the trip. We drove right into the storm and I was just thinking how it was going to be a long drive back when we suddenly drove out of it again. Lucky timing as we learned that it had rained in KL most of the day while we were gone. We stopped at the marina where most of the charters leave from to see about a sunset cruise since the rain had gone away. We wanted a catamaran. We were pointed to a booth where there were pictures of 2 cats. We discussed what we were looking for with the woman in charge but we were out of luck. They had put the sails from their one boat in to be repaired and their remaining boat had just broken down. They were going out on the working boat but it would not be sailing, only using the motors. We decided to skip it. I was glad that we did because it turned a bit cloudy and there was really no sunset to be seen!

Instead we went to the movies. We saw Mall Cop 2 which was funny enough to be entertaining. There was only 1 other family in there and a few scattered couples. Haven't been to the movies with the General in ages. I'd forgotten how she loves to laugh really loud and clap at every stupid joke. Sometimes, she even recaps what just happened, in case you missed it. I thought it was hilarious and could barely contain my giggles, Boo was mortified! After the movie we went to Denny's for a classic BFD. It was a perfect ending to our day.

 

[sharona]

Dolphins Plus looks fantastic! Of the four of us, only my husband is a reasonably strong swimmer and is the most comfortable in water. So I have competing desires - to be able to be that close to a dolphin in deep water, and yet needing to avoid deep water. I believe they have a shallow water package, too, but I can't imagine its nearly the same experience. We are considering veering off the main Orlando-centric tourist path to other areas of Florida on our upcoming trip, and your descriptions and pictures of Key Largo are pulling me in that direction. Thanks for taking the time to share your wonderful experiences so far. Keep them coming!

The water is not that deep and you are wearing a vest to keep you afloat. Mom was fine. While we were waiting for our turn, we could see the families with younger children who were doing the shallow water experience, they were enjoying it and it looked like a lot of interaction too.

 

[KathyM2]

Great update!! We went to that turtle hospital in Marathon a couple of years ago and we really liked it too. It's small and you get to get pretty close to everything and my kids learned a lot (while having fun). Those open air waterside restaurants in the keys are the BEST! And that beach...wow!!

 

[Lynne G]

wow, so enjoying the key part of your vacation.

 

[sharona]

Day 5/Wednesday/Snorkel Trip!!!

Boo and I really wanted to snorkel. I had tried to find a boat trip that mom could also come along and enjoy even if she didn't get in the water because she doesn't like to be in the open water. Nothing seemed to fit. She urged us to go without her and said she was happy to sit by the pool and read while we were gone. I booked Boo and I on a tour out of KL with Sundiver Snorkel tours. There was a discount for booking online but rather than using the very slow sketchy wifi at the hotel, I called and asked for the online rate and she agreed. We booked the morning of - I had tried them the night before but they were closed until 8:30am. We went with the noon tour (back by 2:30) instead of rushing to get ready for the 9am. I had checked the seas report earlier as there is nothing fun about snorkeling in choppy seas. The report was 1-2 foot seas which basically is smooth and lake like conditions ideal for snorkeling and provides good visibility. It was a bit cloudy and overcast which is good as far as sunburn goes but for the best conditions for seeing the true colors of the fish you want sunshine. All in all, I'll take the calm water and cloudy skies over the opposite!

Boo's an experienced snorkeler having practiced in our pool for a whole summer before our 2013 Hawaii trip and then proving herself on the trip. She's also an excellent swimmer after spending a year on the local Y swim team which she eventually left due to their too intense practice schedule and hyper focus on winning. She enjoyed the team atmosphere and the swimming but was a wreck over the swim meets and the coach's over the top aggressive style. I was pretty happy when she told me she didn't want to go back after one of the short breaks between seasons as it was so time consuming and expensive. Arriving at a meet at 8am to sit in the stands in an overheated pool area waiting to watch your child swim one race for 2 minutes at 10am and not being able to leave until the meet ended at 12 was a bit crazy. If she wanted to stick with it I would have fully supported her but thankfully, she didn't!!

Anyway, I related all that to say that I'm comfortable with Boo being in the water but even so, would not enjoy snorkeling if I had to constantly keep checking on her or looking to see if she was beside or behind me, so we have a system. We snorkel together, either holding hands or she'll take the lead and I'll follow right behind. She gets the underwater camera since I can't see the tiny screen well enough to tell if I'm on target and usually end up with pictures of rocks. It works well for us and we have some hand signals worked out when we spot something interesting. We have signals for turtle, octopus, dolphin, eel and shark. Of course we've never had to use the last 4 but if we ever see any of them while we're snorkeling, we're ready!!

We left the marina with Captain Karl and first mate Tony (?) I think. He gave out the equipment while on the way out and provided some instruction for the few people who had never been snorkeling before. He was the usual type that you run into on these tours - happy, funny, friendly, tanned... after all it's a tough job but someone has to do it. There were about 20 of us in total, mostly couples but 2 other families with boys about Boo's age. I have started to see a change in how she acts when there are young boys around. I'm trying to ignore it for now. Both of the other families were also from Massachusetts but they were from Western Mass which is really not the same state that we live in (lol). There was a cute young couple from Canada who were in the area visiting her grandparents - she was an experienced snorkeler but he had never been before and was a bit nervous.

We arrived at our snorkel site - the captain said he had chosen it because based on the current conditions and the tide, we would be able to swim right over the top of the reef and it would be only a foot below us in most areas. He cautioned everyone to never stand up or touch anything to avoid damaging the ecostructure of the reef and sent us on our way!!!

I don't have many pictures but here are the ones that Boo took that aren't too blurry:












In addition to these beauties, we saw a ray that was hanging out in the sand under the boat (Boo saw him on our way back in and just about everyone got a look) and we saw one of the scrawny FL lobsters scurrying around. It was a beautiful spot for snorkeling, well chosen by the captain. You didn't have to work hard at all to get from the boat to the reef, maybe 25 ft away, and the water was just deep enough that you could swim over the reef without disturbing it instead of having to swim around it. The classic KL snorkel spot is the one at John Pennekcamp where the sunken Christ statue is located. You've probably seen photos of it. I was a bit disappointed not to have gone there but it's much deeper and we would not have seen as much. This was a perfect spot for Boo and I - a nice short no frills trip.

The trip back in was uneventful, we were very close to "home", in fact we could see the tower that was next door to our hotel the entire time we were snorkeling. The first mate told some funny stories about the residents along the channel on the way and pointed out a boat with 5 $500K engines that he said he had never seen in the water in the 12 years he had been there. We also passed the original African Queen on our way to the dock.



kind of sad the condition it's in.

more on Day 5 to follow...

 

[sharona]

Great update!! We went to that turtle hospital in Marathon a couple of years ago and we really liked it too. It's small and you get to get pretty close to everything and my kids learned a lot (while having fun). Those open air waterside restaurants in the keys are the BEST! And that beach...wow!!

It's a must see for kids and adults!

wow, so enjoying the key part of your vacation.

Thank you!! It's nice to relive the trip by writing about it.

@livingthedream I found this pic of the area where they do the shallow encounter, thought you might want to see the platform you stand on

 

[KathyM2]

Wow, snorkelling looks amazing!! My DS is so afraid of fish that he won't swim in the lake or ocean...sigh...hoping now that my dd is 9 she will do it one day soon though. Your Boo's pics of fish were pretty cool! I like that they offered a shorter, close to shore trip...often you can only find longer trips that just would be too far out and long to do with kids (and some adults as well)

 

[sharona]

Wow, snorkelling looks amazing!! My DS is so afraid of fish that he won't swim in the lake or ocean...sigh...hoping now that my dd is 9 she will do it one day soon though. Your Boo's pics of fish were pretty cool! I like that they offered a shorter, close to shore trip...often you can only find longer trips that just would be too far out and long to do with kids (and some adults as well)

I have to say that the snorkeling in KL rivaled what we had seen on Maui for variety and number of fish! I was very pleasantly surprised. We had snorkeled in Key West a few years ago and the experience had been horrible. Choppy seas, everyone feeling queasy, low visibility and a bunch of boring fish all looking the same. I had been very disappointed that trip and learned my lesson to book the day of AFTER checking the seas report and weather. This excursion was definitely more on par with our Caribbean and Hawaiian experiences. And, for the 2 of us, including equipment rental, we paid under $50. Of course there was no buffet lunch or free punch offered on the way back in like you get on the cruise ship excursions but I don't drink much and we're pretty picky eaters so it was nice not to have to pay for extras that we wouldn't be using.

The pictures are taken with our underwater Kodak PlaySport which is really a video camera that can be set to take stills but that's not it's true purpose so it's not the easiest to use in that way. When we return to Hawaii, I'll have to find something better for Boo to use. She fancies herself quite the underwater explorer since spotting the ray and the lobster. She even dove down a few times to get a bit closer for her pics.

 

[sharona]

... after snorkeling we were famished! It's a lot of work swimming around like that in the ocean for over an hour, even in perfect conditions. We had been struggling to find good lunch options so we weren't quite sure where to go but I knew the General was probably ready for something to eat too and she can be a bear when she's hungry so the pressure was on. We were heading back to the hotel to get her when we passed the Publix grocery store and decided we would check out Publix to see if they had the same type of precooked options that our local stores at home have. Worst case scenario we could grab some cold cuts and rolls. Well - we were certainly late to the party at Publix. The deli/prepared foods area was rockin! They had rotisserie chickens, fried chicken, hot subs, cold subs, sushi, pasta salads, salads, mashed potatoes, mac & cheese... There had to be 30 people over there placing orders or waiting for their food. This was apparently where all the families and locals in KL get lunch. I'd had Boo try to call mom a few times but she wasn't answering her cell - that's pretty common for her - so we had to decide what she wanted. We ended up with a 1/2 bbq rotisserie chicken, some fried chicken, mashed potatoes, mac & cheese, King's Hawaiian rolls, butter, and some individual desserts - key lime pie for me, strawberry shortcake for TG and chocolate mousse for Boo. We were the ultimate case in point of never go grocery shopping when your hungry! We grabbed a pack of paper plates to go along with the napkins and plastic cutlery available at the deli and headed back to the hotel. The General was by the pool and yes, she was hungry having snacked her way through whatever was on hand in the room while we were gone, which wasn't much.

We feasted on our grocery store gold then all lapsed into a food coma for about an hour...

After some swimming in the pool and a last dip in the bay we decided to spend our last night just hanging at the hotel. I had some laundry to do, Boo wanted another visit with Mango and we needed to start packing up. The hotel laundry was $2/load to wash and dry. I did 2 loads of laundry so the General would be going home with clean clothes and Boo and I had a fresh start for Orlando!!! Since about Tuesday, Boo had started with the "when are we leaving for Orlando?" and "I can't wait to get to Universal" lines, followed by the occasional "there's nothing to do here at night" which usually was said 4 minutes before she fell asleep exhausted from all the swimming and sun. I know this trip would have made more sense in reverse mode with the parks first, it really just couldn't work that way with our schedules so I was prepared for a little of this and all in all I think she handled it well. But now what Orlando was looming, she was really revved up! And I have to admit, so was I!!! The General was looking forward to going home and having a real cup of coffee (something about the FL water per TG) and getting back to her routine. We were all laundered, showered, packed and ready for Orlando by 9pm Wednesday night! Of course we weren't leaving until the next morning and Mom's flight wasn't until 645pm so we had plenty of time to get there.

Orlando is a 4.5 hour drive from Key Largo. I wasn't really looking forward to the drive and neither were my 2 passengers but we had a plan. Sleep in, big breakfast at the hotel (it's free!!!), dip in the pool so Boo could burn off some energy before the drive, pack up the car and be on the road by 11am. That would put us into Orlando 3:30-4pm depending on if we had to make any pit stops. We wanted to have a nice late lunch with Mom before dropping her off at the airport with plenty of time for her to get through security and find her gate without having to try to find something to eat at MCO (the worst of the worst, IMO).

 

[wiscbugs]

Ready for the Orlando portion of the trip!

 

[sharona]

Ready for the Orlando portion of the trip!

We were too!!!!