We had a bery brief stay in Key Largo, which we both enjoyed very much...too bad we didn't have more time! Our hotel was right on the marina, which was great. We really enjoyed just walking around and for the first time all trip did not drive anywhere for over 24 hours! The first night we had a late supper at a restaurant on the marina...the crab salad was delicious! Here I am posing by the African Queen...I guess we should see the movie now!
The main reason for stopping in Key Largo was to snorkel. After much research, thinking, and consideration, I finally decided to give it a shot. However, I was expecting nice, calm water close to shore, not very choppy waters very far from shore...I was really nervous getting in, but did it and no sharks ate me. I was less adventerous than Chad, but still managed to see a baracuda, which was very cool. Hopefully we will develop our underwater pictures soon to show off the proof!
Chad on his way back to the boat...
Enjoying another meal at the marina (different restaurant though)
As this was a bit of a road show, we drove from Orlando all the way down the Gulf Coast and across to the other side of Florida through the Everglades. We really wanted to take an airboat tour and decided to go with Captain Doug's.
The boats are really loud, so we had to wear ear protection.
Our tour took us through the mangroves and apparently this is not the best time of year to see gators in the mangroves. It was still an awesome ride though going through all the canals as if they were roads. As we were about to turn around and head back, a gator was spotted in the distance...
We ended up getting super close to him, actually right on top of him and at one point a guy in the boat touched his tail...our captain wasn't very impressed though. It was pretty amazing to be so close!
As we were headed back to the dock, this Brown Pelican decided to swoop in and land less than 12 inches from me. Needless to say it was cool, but I was a little uncomfortable and kept a close eye on him...
After our boat tour, we continued driving through the Everglades and stopped along a dirt road that travelled beside this river. We were amazed at how many alligators saw - they were everywhere all along the river - very cool!
