AUTHOR’S NOTE:  For those of you just catching up, I’m documenting my recent trip to the Florida Keys from three weeks ago, so if you’ve missed the first two installments, make sure to read “Part 1 – Islamorada” and “Part 2 – Key West” from the last two weeks!

Not being the young, party bucks we used to be, it was slow going as we arose in the morning to leave Key West.  I made one more run for Cuban coffee, and we packed up to begin the slow trek back up the island chain towards the mainland, but we weren’t done with the Keys just yet.

We made a late morning stop at Bahia Honda State Park, which had a wonderful small horseshoe shaped beach that we could lay out on to soak up some of the steamy Florida sun while still slipping in the warm waters of the Atlantic to cool off a bit.  My friend and I hiked to the top of the old trestle bridge that bordered the park.  This engineering feat was first the railway that linked up all of the Keys back in the early 1900’s, and then a roadway was added as a “second floor”, allowing car traffic to make the trek southward.  This bridge was used by cars all the way up to the early 1970’s, and while standing on top of it (the highest point in the Keys) with the hard winds of the ocean blowing into our faces, we could only imagine the extra adventure a car ride would have been like back in the day.

After leaving the beach, we then once more traversed the Seven Mile Bridge, this time stopping at the Sunset Grille for a late afternoon lunch.  It was happy hour, and while we did not imbibe in cocktails on this day (as we were drying out from our Key West antics), we did nosh on baskets of fish tacos, Cuban sliders, and buffalo shrimp.

We then checked into our final accommodations, the Tranquility Bay Resort, located in Marathon Florida (about halfway up the Keys).  We had rented a wonderful two-bedroom beachfront house, and the steps from our lodgings led right out onto a pristine white sand beach, looking out over the palm lined shore that bordered the Gulf of Mexico.  It was our friends’ wedding anniversary, so while they took off for a private celebration dinner, my wife and I lingered in the beach-side tiki-bar and listened to live music as the sun set over the gulf.

The next morning my friend and I arose before sunrise to balmy temps and a morning of offshore fishing.  We first stopped at the Wooden Spoon diner for heaping plates of eggs, bacon, home fries, and coffee before finding our fishing charter at a local marina.  The boat from Manic Sport Fishing was a sturdy twenty-six footer, and after hopping aboard with our friendly captain and first mate, the four of us sailed out into the harbor to test our fishing skills in the salt waters.  The surf on the Atlantic side was raucous and choppy, so we opted to traverse under the Seven Mile Bridge and head out into the calmer Gulf to try our luck.

Our first mate, Alex, was a fish magnet and knew just where to go, checking charts and relaying directions to our captain, Greg.  After about a half hour, we were about five miles out, but the water was astonishingly still only seven to ten feet deep.  The rod and reel set-ups we used were pretty standard fare (much like you would find for fishing in the Potomac River here at home), and after some priming of the waters with chum (pieces of fish bait) and some instruction from Alex, we were casting in and hoping for success.

The fishing style here is totally counter-intuitive to what one might think.  When you feel a fish biting, instead of yanking on the line and trying to set the hook, it is important to give the line to the fish, allowing him to take it on his own.  It was a hard habit to break, but soon, we were getting better, and although we missed quite a few, we did start landing fish in quick succession.  We caught a wide variety of species, such as red snapper, lanes, and mutton.  I caught a nice yellow jack, and even landed a small grouper and a young hammerhead shark!  Fish that were not up to size were either thrown back or cut up to use as future bait, and Alex was quick to assist in getting our catches on board, re-baiting hooks, and keeping the mood light and fun.  Captain Greg also joined us to cast in a few lines and regale us with great fishing stories and other interesting information.  After about four hours, we returned to the docks, and Alex expertly filleted our catch, telling us we could take our prizes to any local restaurant and they would happily prepare it for our lunch.  The whole experience (a first for me) was absolutely fantastic.

While we were out fishing, our wives were off touring the Turtle Hospital, where injured sea turtles are collected and rehabilitated for eventual release back into the wild.  It was a fun and informative morning for all of us.

With lunch ingredients in hand, we traveled to Lazy Days South, where true to Alex’s word, the staff was more than happy to prepare our recent catch, which we had cooked two ways – grilled and blackened.  It was presented to us on a large platter, along with bowls of conch chowder and creamy coleslaw.  A fresher lunch I have never experienced!

We then returned to the beach house and spent our last evening watching the wave runners, paddle boards, and catamarans return to the docks of the resort from the calm waters of the gulf, enjoying the last Florida Keys sunset with a final tropical drink.

The next day we drove back to Miami for the flight home, filled with a week full of wonderful memories from our time in America’s island paradise.