Gray - Insiders guide to Florida Keys & Key West, [2015]

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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available

ISSN 1529-174X

ISBN 978-1-4930-0148-4 (paperback)

ISBN 978-1-4930-1554-2 (e-book)

The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information SciencesPermanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.

Juliet Dyal Gray is a native Floridian who writes about the Florida Keys for many national publications, including Delta Sky magazine. She is also an editor of Key West Magazine Her writing career has taken her on many journeys, including snorkeling around the islands of the Galapagos and on safari in South Africa. In addition to writing, Juliet produces theater at the Key West Theater and is a co-founder of both the nonprofit Performing Arts Project (performingartsproject.com) and On the Rock Productions (ontherockkeywest.com). Juliet writes from her home in Key West, Florida.

I am extremely grateful to the amazing people in the Florida Keys, which I am proud to call home. My eternal thanks goes to my Key West friends for their support, especially Liz Love, Mike Marrero, Elizabeth Miller, and Anne Walters. I am also grateful for the support of my parents, Jake and Kay Dyal, my husband, Christian Gray, and my siblings, Caroline and Jake Dyal. As I continue to live and work in the Florida Keys, I am also truly thankful to be a permanent Insider in paradise.JDG.

Here at the southernmost tip of the continental US, the serpentine Overseas Highway fuses many of our 800-plus islands with ligaments of vaulted bridges and concrete connective tissue.

Ours is a marriage of land and sea. To merely introduce you to the topside society of the Florida Keys would neglect the flamboyant and fascinating communities living below. This guide lifts the curtain, bringing the many facets of our watery stage to life. We treat you to our unique geology and colorful history. We introduce you to the flora and fauna of the habitats of our tropical ecosystem. We take you where you may have never been beforefishing, diving, and boating in our waters.

Well help you sate your appetite with listings of restaurants, seafood markets, and specialty food shops. Well show you where the action is with the rundown on attractions, recreation sites, festivals and special events, and nightlife of the Keys. Well offer myriad alternatives for you to rest your weary head: hotels, motels, inns, guesthouses, and condos; campgrounds; even resort marinas and anchoring-out spots for your motor or sailing yacht. Landlubber or seafarer, everything you need to know is in the Insiders Guide to Florida Keys & Key West.

To navigate this book, begin with the assumption you are traveling down the Keysthat is, from Key Largo to Key West. We have organized our information alphabetically traveling down from the Upper Keys through to Key West. Most addresses are indicated by mile marker. Mile markers are those small green signs with white numbers youll see posted at the sides of the Over-seas Highway (US 1). We have designated mile-marker addresses as either oceanside (on your left as you travel down the Keys) or bayside (on your right as you go toward Key West). At Key West, which is MM 0, locations are stated using street names.

Most chapters have several parts. A general preface to the subject matter acquaints you with aspects of the topics common to all areas of the Florida Keys. This is followed by specifics for the Upper Keys (MM 106 on Key Largo to MM 70 on Long Key), Middle Keys (MM 70 to MM 39 on Ohio Key), Lower Keys (MM 39 to Stock Island), and finally Key West, the entrance to which is actually about MM 5 on Stock Island, although mile-marker appellations are not used in Key West.

Throughout all the chapters we have sprinkled Insiders Tips (indicated by an i ), extracted from those in the know (with a little arm-twisting). Youll find enlightening Close-ups chock-full of information on everything from where to find the best food festivals to details about our amazing and rich history. And just so you will be sure to understand the language, we have included a glossary of Keys-speak. Youll also find listings accompanied by the symbolthese are our top picks for attractions, restaurants, accommodations, and everything in between that you shouldnt miss while youre in the area. You want the best this region has to offer? Go with our Insiders Choice. Moving to the Florida Keys or already live here? Be sure to check out the back of the book, where you will find the Living Here appendix that offers sections on relocation, real estate, education, health care, and media.

You hold in your hand a passport to the Florida Keys. We help you hit the road, explore the sea, and speak the language of the natives. Locals call this Paradise. You can judge for yourself.

The saga of the Keys, like the livelihoods of its inhabitants, tethers itself first, foremost, and forever to the sea Our fragile strand of coral beads, which arcs southwest from the US mainland to within 100 miles of Cuba, has been for eons at the mercy of the elements. Nature determined, more than humans ever did, the course of our history. That is, until one man accomplished what natural forces could not: He connected the islands to each other and to the mainland US.

We will chronicle the Florida Keys, therefore, as a man-made triptych, highlighting the eras before, during, and after Henry Flaglers Florida East Coast Railroad Extension refashioned the subsequent history of the region.

The Gulf Stream: Treasure Highway