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mollyc

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Just got back from the Keys (aka, the Florida Keys), posted one pic last week but I was basically offline otherwise and mostly offshore / in the water, in some capacity.

We drove the Tesla for the first time (have driven down ICE vehicles for decades), for anyone interested in how that worked out:

https://talkedabout.com/threads/ele...chasing-modifications.2738/page-5#post-105407

So much fun as always, it's just one of the most beautiful places, the water is glorious and if you're into diving, snorkeling, boating, having an amazing water experience, it's fantastic.

For those NITK, the Keys are a group of islands off the southern coast of Florida:

View attachment 14884


Surrounded by amazing reefs, this is where John Pennekamp state park is located (specifically Key Largo), one of the more famous dive locations. We mostly don't go south of Islamorada and avoid Key West. :D

Got a super nice place, a private/VRBO condo on the ocean side, two big rooms so the little G had her own suite, balconies, and setup with nice boat parking/ramp/docks too. Super nice area, lots of trees, very natural, way off the road, so completely quiet at night.

Our sunrise from the bedroom balcony (better from the other, I'll have to get that pic from the wife):

View attachment 14888

The Royal Poincianas (the tree with the bright red flowers) were in bloom, and all around the condo:



View attachment 14897


The one pic I posted last week again:


View attachment 14885


We rented a boat a nice 23' Seafox CC, ran around the close reef spots, one stop that's always a must is the Alligator Reef lighthouse (above), since it was a weekday and not lobster season, nice and quiet. Anchored and hung out for a long while, some interesting fish, a few curious barracuda and a bunch of sea turtles that kept swimming right up to us.

That water is around 10' deep or so and and that clear, it's glorious. We had some great weather, a little cooler than expected for June (which was terrific). Ran out to Cheeca Rocks, very close, knocked around the bay side for a bit in the evening, that's the NW side of the islands, you see all sorts of interesting things, different critters (manatees, dolphins):

View attachment 14904



... an occasional boat eaten by the ferocious mangroves and being claimed by an osprey :D


View attachment 14896


I'll post up a few more later ...


We are headed back for Christmas, already reserved the condo, while we love NYC around that time, the travel/cold/packing in winter is just a bit tough, our NYC trips are now scheduled for Spring and Fall :)
so pretty. we hope to do a keys trip sometime. but we are running out of time as our daughter is going to be a high school junior. stupid covid took away a lot of good travel time for us as a family.
 

DT

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so pretty. we hope to do a keys trip sometime. but we are running out of time as our daughter is going to be a high school junior. stupid covid took away a lot of good travel time for us as a family.

Heck, you guys could fly into Miami, rent a car, Key Largo is about an hour away. Stay at some place like the Reefhouse, they run all sorts of water tours (diving, etc., to some killer locations like Molasses Reef ) from there (if you'd prefer not to run your own boat), smaller groups, really fun crews, they have an actual beach, a fun bar and grille, we were actually there this trip too:



IMG_1512_1920.jpg
 

mollyc

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Heck, you guys could fly into Miami, rent a car, Key Largo is about an hour away. Stay at some place like the Reefhouse, they run all sorts of water tours (diving, etc., to some killer locations like Molasses Reef ) from there (if you'd prefer not to run your own boat), smaller groups, really fun crews, they have an actual beach, a fun bar and grille, we were actually there this trip too:



View attachment 14912
Yes, we've thought about it! My husband is still scared to fly because of Covid and gets a bit anxious when we talk about it, so for now I think we are stuck with driving only trips. šŸ˜• But some day!
 

Huntn

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Just got back from the Keys (aka, the Florida Keys), posted one pic last week but I was basically offline otherwise and mostly offshore / in the water, in some capacity.

We drove the Tesla for the first time (have driven down ICE vehicles for decades), for anyone interested in how that worked out:

https://talkedabout.com/threads/ele...chasing-modifications.2738/page-5#post-105407

So much fun as always, it's just one of the most beautiful places, the water is glorious and if you're into diving, snorkeling, boating, having an amazing water experience, it's fantastic.

For those NITK, the Keys are a group of islands off the southern coast of Florida:

View attachment 14884


Surrounded by amazing reefs, this is where John Pennekamp state park is located (specifically Key Largo), one of the more famous dive locations. We mostly don't go south of Islamorada and avoid Key West. :D

Got a super nice place, a private/VRBO condo on the ocean side, two big rooms so the little G had her own suite, balconies, and setup with nice boat parking/ramp/docks too. Super nice area, lots of trees, very natural, way off the road, so completely quiet at night.

Our sunrise from the bedroom balcony (better from the other, I'll have to get that pic from the wife):

View attachment 14888

The Royal Poincianas (the tree with the bright red flowers) were in bloom, and all around the condo:



View attachment 14897


The one pic I posted last week again:


View attachment 14885


We rented a boat a nice 23' Seafox CC, ran around the close reef spots, one stop that's always a must is the Alligator Reef lighthouse (above), since it was a weekday and not lobster season, nice and quiet. Anchored and hung out for a long while, some interesting fish, a few curious barracuda and a bunch of sea turtles that kept swimming right up to us.

That water is around 10' deep or so and and that clear, it's glorious. We had some great weather, a little cooler than expected for June (which was terrific). Ran out to Cheeca Rocks, very close, knocked around the bay side for a bit in the evening, that's the NW side of the islands, you see all sorts of interesting things, different critters (manatees, dolphins):

View attachment 14904



... an occasional boat eaten by the ferocious mangroves and being claimed by an osprey :D


View attachment 14896


I'll post up a few more later ...


We are headed back for Christmas, already reserved the condo, while we love NYC around that time, the travel/cold/packing in winter is just a bit tough, our NYC trips are now scheduled for Spring and Fall :)
My 1972 college story about John Penneycamp State Park:
Some friends and I at University of Miami (Coral Gables) wanted to snorkel the reef. So we drive down to Key Largo, rent a little dingy, outboard motor, and with a mostly worthless map head East out into the expanse of water, no food, no water, no sunscreen, no hats. We canā€™t find it, so we chase down a boat, actually the only way we could do that was because it was stationary.

We ask directions, and head North a bit and find it! Snorkel and have a great time until the combination of salt water ingestion, sun exposure, and di- hydration, most of us get sick and throw up our guts. Somehow, we limp back and actually find the marina where we rented the boat. I think we could have easily become one of those lost at sea stories. :)
 

Herdfan

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So much fun as always, it's just one of the most beautiful places, the water is glorious and if you're into diving, snorkeling, boating, having an amazing water experience, it's fantastic.

Surrounded by amazing reefs, this is where John Pennekamp state park is located (specifically Key Largo), one of the more famous dive locations. We mostly don't go south of Islamorada and avoid Key West. :D

One goal was to dive the Duane and Bibb, but ever since my eye surgery I am hesitant to go that deep (100'+). Also wanted to dive the Atocha even though there is not much to see anymore.

You have to go to Key West at least once to visit the Hemingway House and its 6 toed cats. I was able to see Phil Clark's (subject of Jimmy Buffett's A Pirate Looks At Forty) ashes above the cash register of the Full Moon Saloon before it closed. :)
 

DT

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My 1972 college story about John Penneycamp State Park:
Some friends and I at University of Miami (Coral Gables) wanted to snorkel the reef. So we drive down to Key Largo, rent a little dingy, outboard motor, and with a mostly worthless map head East out into the expanse of water, no food, no water, no sunscreen, no hats. We canā€™t find it, so we chase down a boat, actually the only way we could do that was because it was stationary.

We ask directions, and head North a bit and find it! Snorkel and have a great time until the combination of salt water ingestion, sun exposure, and di- hydration, most of us get sick and throw up our guts. Somehow, we limp back and actually find the marina where we rented the boat. I think we could have easily become one of those lost at sea stories. :)

Laughing [reaction] only because it's a great (and funny) story __and__ you didn't die :D

We actually got creamed by a storm on the ocean side, we stayed a little too long, I ran back out around the lighthouse, down south, ducked under a bridge for a few (there was some lightning). Then came back up the gulf side along the flats, it was high tide, but there are a lot of shallow areas, that unless you know them really well, you can get into trouble - so I decided to turn into the storm, follow the channel markers - hahaha, wow, I was getting pelted with rain, the temp dropped like 10 degrees, it was a serious adventure :D I should've snapped a pic, it was literally just gray for a few minutes, the channel markers would just sort of appear :D
 

DT

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Speaking of boating/routes, knowing your way around, I used this app quite a bit:


It's pretty stellar, and the free version lets you download one tile which was enough to cover the entire Keys (you can download the entire US at one time, including lakes/rivers, plus additional real-time data for $20, which is a steal).
 

JayMysteri0

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Saw this post & thought it was interesting, wondering how they came up with what is "average" & why these specific places.

https://www.twitter.com/i/web/status/1538122053907259392/

I was surprised to realize I could only say I've been to 10 of those places.

  1. Statue of Liberty
  2. Walt Disney World
  3. Times Square
  4. Chicago River
  5. Washington Monument
  6. Empire State Building
  7. Road to Hana AKA The Hana Highway
  8. Liberty Bell
  9. Central Park
  10. Arlington Cemetery
Of the 10, half were due to living near the locations. I may need to get out more.

How about yourselves?
 

SuperMatt

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Saw this post & thought it was interesting, wondering how they came up with what is "average" & why these specific places.

https://www.twitter.com/i/web/status/1538122053907259392/

I was surprised to realize I could only say I've been to 10 of those places.

  1. Statue of Liberty
  2. Walt Disney World
  3. Times Square
  4. Chicago River
  5. Washington Monument
  6. Empire State Building
  7. Road to Hana AKA The Hana Highway
  8. Liberty Bell
  9. Central Park
  10. Arlington Cemetery
Of the 10, half were due to living near the locations. I may need to get out more.

How about yourselves?
Hereā€™s my list:

1. Statue of Liberty
2. Walt Disney World
3. Hollywood Sign
4. Las Vegas Strip
5. Times Square
6. Chicago River
7. Washington Monument
8. French Quarter
9. Golden Gate Bridge
10. River Walk
11. Niagara Falls
12. Mall of America
13. Gateway Arch
14. Empire State Building
15. The White House
16. The Liberty Bell
17. Central Park
18. Arlington Cemetery
19. Lake Tahoe

I think I might have gone to St. Augustine and/or Fort Sumter but I canā€™t remember for sureā€¦
 

Cmaier

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Been to 15 of them. Helps growing up in NY - itā€™s an automatic 7 or 8 between just living there, cheap family vacations, and field trips.
 

Edd

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Been to 12 of those. I take some pride in hitting the road to Hana but my NYC hits are non-existent. Iā€™ve been to almost every state but never spent a night in NYC.
 

Herdfan

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How about yourselves?



The ones I have actually visited (with qualifiers):

1. Statue of Liberty (from Manhattan)
2. Walt Disney World
3. Pikes Peak (didn't drive to top)
4. Las Vegas Strip
5. Times Square
6. Chicago River
7. Washington Monument
8. French Quarter
9. Zion National Park
10. River Walk
11. Niagara Falls
12. Mall of America
13. Gateway Arch (Didn't go up in it)
14. Empire State Building (Didn't go up in it)
15. The White House (from the gates)
16. Road to Hana
17. Central Park
18. Arlington Cemetery
19. Everglades (drove on what was formerly known as Alligator Alley)
20. South Beach (just driving through it)
 

Alli

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I am all set for the next vacation though. Our 25th anniversary is in August, but the trip we wanted wasnā€™t available then. Weā€™re doing a riverboat cruise on the Dutchess (American Queen Steamboat Co.) round trip New Orleans on Dec. 23rd. I loved my last cruise with them on the Queen and knew at that time it was something my husband would love.
 

Herdfan

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I am all set for the next vacation though. Our 25th anniversary is in August, but the trip we wanted wasnā€™t available then. Weā€™re doing a riverboat cruise on the Dutchess (American Queen Steamboat Co.) round trip New Orleans on Dec. 23rd. I loved my last cruise with them on the Queen and knew at that time it was something my husband would love.

I know you do cruises. Have you looked at Virgin? I keep seeing ads for them and 1) they are not as expensive as I expected and 2) no one under 18.

Might have to give them a try.
 

Alli

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Do I get to count St. Augustine?
Of course you do. šŸ¤£
I know you do cruises. Have you looked at Virgin? I keep seeing ads for them and 1) they are not as expensive as I expected and 2) no one under 18.

Might have to give them a try.
I havenā€™t been on one of their cruises. I also see a lot of ads for them lately, and the kid-free feature is a big draw.
 

Herdfan

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Of course you do. šŸ¤£

I havenā€™t been on one of their cruises. I also see a lot of ads for them lately, and the kid-free feature is a big draw.

Yes it is. Did the kid one once (Disney) and it was nice to have a few adult-only areas. Sadly I didn't realize until we were aboard that there was no Casino. :eek:
 
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