Watersports day in Islamorada

We got up and headed about a half hour north to Islamorada.

A couple days ago we set up a jet ski and snorkeling adventure at a place called Robbie’s. I found it on the internet, but it seems to be quite the tourist trap, although I guess you could argue everywhere in the keys is a tourist trap. I will say, I’ve never heard so many different languages in one place before.

Florida is actually pretty strict about it’s boating laws, and because of this, Kacie had to pass a safety test before driving a jet ski herself. I’ll let her describe that, but she knocked it out quick. So since she had to take this test, we got to Robbie’s around 10am for our 2:30pm adventure. Once she passed the test, we headed over to the restaurant to grab a bite.

[Kacie’s note: The test was 25 multiple choice questions and they give you a study guide. They make it pretty fool proof. The study guide is basically all the questions stated a few times and they even tell you at one point there is a question that will try to trip you up so read it carefully. I did get one wrong - I didn’t know you could drive a boat at the age of 14 in FL even though I had just read it. You can’t rent one until you are 18 and I mixed that up. Anyway, you are allowed 6 incorrect answers so we were all good.]

I had a sausage, egg and cheese while Kacie had a steak and egg burrito. Everything was good, but we didn’t get to have mimosas since they have a no drinking and skiing policy. And if you’re going to break it, don’t do it at the same place’s restaurant. That was good though anyway because we wanted to be quick and get some kayaking and paddle boarding in. With the purchase of a jet ski package, you also get a half day rental for free. So not a bad deal really. And we weren’t going to leave any of those things on the table.

Kacie was excited to paddleboard. I was actually still on the fence until we walked up to the rental place. The same place that rents the jet skis and does Kacie’s test. So we spent a lot on time on land around that little rental office. This was also the first time we met Stevie B. Stevie B worked at the place and was going to be our guide. There was a different guy that asked if we needed anything, they’re very accommodating at Robbie’s, and when we told him what we were here for, he assured us that we wanted Stevie B and that we would be in good hands. Now of course he did, he works at a tourist trap and had to say Stevie B was great, but being on the side that was being told that, I was like “yeah, we’re on Stevie B’s tour, for the cool kids” And although Stevie B’s reputation proceeded him, he still ended up being a pretty cool guy.

We both went for paddleboards, and have differing opinions on them. We head down the beach to where you launch these things from, along with the kayaks and jet skis, where the guys had two paddleboards waiting for us. The girl at the office had radioed down to get them to have our gear ready and get us on the water before a large group was coming and would be a pain in the ass, and for us to get the max time on the water before we had to get back for our other adventures.

For me it was a good sign when the guy off handedly asked if we had paddle boarded before, assuming we had, and then looked at me and said “oh…” Cool, but I figured we have done enough of this stuff to not worry about it. I was pretty right. So he tells us that you start out on your knees and then hop up on your feet when your comfortable. Cool, he gave us a map and we were off into the ocean… kind of. I guess technically it’s a channel or something.

We had a route which shortly after we launched took us into the mangroves. We’re both still on our knees at this point, but the mangrove tunnel was so low that even leaned back on my knees I couldn’t get through without having to duck as well. Kacie was a little better suited for this height, and cruised ahead. She definitely led this one the whole way.

As we were coming into a lagoon, Kacie tried to stand up on the board. She figured out a pretty good technique and stood up with no problem. She got back down and we continued into the lagoon. Kacie was up and down on the thing, every time getting more steady, so I found a pretty shallow section and figured I’d give a try. It was not so easy for me to hop up on my feet. Not only was it trying to throw me off from side to side, there were a few times I thought I might fall forward or back. And I always figure I have pretty good balance for my size, but this thing made me think very differently. I was up for a sec and then had to bend back down for my paddle which was laying flat on the board and still didn’t go over. Kacie thought that was impressive anyway. I didn’t last long and before going too far was back down and a little more steady.

We wondered around a little bit before turning around and heading back a slightly different way that would take us through a little more open water. Kacie was fully up at this point, and real paddle boarding, I was not. But it was still cool to paddle through, and on the way back we saw a couple feet long shark wondering around beside us. He was cool and we eventually passed him as we left the mangroves. Kacie then spotted a stingray as we went around the point. I don’t know which was cooler, but I missed the stingray. As we got close to the launch, the morning jet ski tour was also coming in, so we got to ride a few waves on the boards before bringing them in. We landed them in-between the jet skis and turned in our vests. We still had a bit before we needed to meet Stevie B and we wanted to change and slop sunscreen all over ourselves again.

[That black thing in the water is the shark. It’s a little hard to tell]

[Kacie’s note: I really liked the paddle boarding and would do it again. As long as we aren’t in a place with a strong current I think it is as easy as kayaking. Like James said I kept getting up and down - I will say the first time I was up I was wobbly but every time after that I was more steady. I guess your body gets used to what you are doing. Also, I was impressed that James reached back down for his paddle. I took mine with me while I stood up and with how unstable he said he was I don’t know how he balanced to bend back down for it. After I had been up and down a few times I stayed up and could see some things in the water because of the vantage point. I even stood up for the ride back into shore which I was pretty proud of myself for. Overall, I think we were out for about an hour.]

So we head back to the rental spot around 2 for gear pick up and instruction. Turns out 2 of the people going with us still needed to take their tests, so we would be delayed a bit. Didn’t bother us much and in the meantime we could wonder around the marina and check out some sea life hanging out by the fish cleaning tables. There were a few sharks and other large fish swimming around, and then to everyone’s surprise, 2 manatees showed up. We don’t have any pictures because our cameras were all put away in our dry bags and Kacie was too busy running around trying to see them better to get hers out, or I’m sure she would’ve. I was just too lazy. The one would just hang out and drink the water from the hose the fish cleaning guy was using to clean off the his table, Kacie got a pretty good view of one of these beasts.

There were 8 people total on our trip, we were the only 2 riding solo. We both wanted to drive the whole time, so we rented 2. Because of this, we both ended up with the red “hot rod” skis. Since we all had previous jet ski experience, Stevie B didn’t bother with extensive instruction. Although I have ridden jet skis before, these things were light years better than anything I’d sat on before. Stevie B told us we’d top out around 50 mph, and he wasn’t lying. We each loaded up our skis with snorkeling and camera gear and putted out to the rally point.

Stevie B had set us up so that he obviously would lead, then the doubles, followed by Kacie, with me bringing up the rear. Stevie B and I had talked before we all headed out and I think he kind of wanted me back there so he didn’t have to worry about stragglers. That was cool and I kind of liked being able to sit back a bit and then hammer down to catch back up to the group.

Off we went and these things were monsters. I don’t know what the 0-50 mph time was supposed to be, but they get up there in just a few seconds. Although when Stevie B asked how long it had been since we skied before, we both said “a couple years”, but really, it had been a while. And nothing as high end as these. Kacie and I both talked later about how we didn’t really warm up to it, once Stevie B started the tour, we were all at top speed. I think it took us both a second to get comfortable enough to go full throttle, but really just a second. Before we knew it, we were zig-zagging through the clear blue water somewhere between 40 and 50 mph.

[Kacie’s note: The last jet ski I was on was a stand up and had to have been 6 or 7 years ago. These were much better and I did think a short adjustment period would have been nice. You pull that throttle and there is no lag time. I took a few minutes to have my life flash before my eyes, realize I’m doing pretty good, then punch it.]

Since we were flying around at high speed most of the time, there wasn’t a lot of opportunity to video anything, but we did slow down and cruise through a mangrove tunnel where boats hide during hurricanes. Since this is a slow zone, I got my camera out and took a quick video.

After we all got through the tunnel, we wrapped back around to our snorkeling spot. This spot was a nursery for various fish, at the edge of the mangroves. We tethered our skis together and grabbed our gear from the jet ski trucks. Before getting in, Stevie B told us that we needed to get pretty close to the mangrove to see the most fish. But the closer we get, the less clear the water. It was still easy enough to see fish. Luckily, nothing showed up that was big enough to attack us, but that was always a possibility. We had just seen a variety of sharks and a stingray a lot closer to civilization than we were now. We found a few schools of fish, a few stragglers, and Kacie even found a little buddy that stuck with her as she swam around.

We hung around snorkeling for probably 20 minutes or so before mounting back up. While we were waiting for everyone to get ready, Stevie B wondered around taking our pictures for us and giving us little interesting facts about the area. I don’t remember any of them though. I think might have been where he told us that the tunnel we went through was where boats hid. He meant well anyway. [He did, boats go in that area during hurricanes and I believe he said they can fit 10 in that pass thru. The mangroves don’t get blown away with the winds so it’s a safe spot.]

Once everyone was ready, we went back to full speed skiing. Shortly after our stop is where I think we both hit top speed. I was watching ahead of me more than my speedometer, but I did see 75 kph, my ski was on kph instead of mph, at one point before pulling the throttle to 100%. It was a nice, long straightaway, I wasn’t going to try to turn at that speed. Kacie was doing the same. Most of the time I could check back up to her once I let her get away a bit, not this time.

At this point we were indirectly heading back to the marina. Stevie B then decided to take us out to more open ocean, which meant travelling under the Route 1 bridge. Once we came through the bridge the water noticeably changed and got pretty choppy. I thought it was great. Although they tell you not to, I was jumping a lot of the waves. Not on purpose at first, but I quickly decided that hammering the throttle as I went up a wave was pretty fun. And since Stevie B was in front and I was in the back, he wouldn’t see me beating this jet ski. There were a few where I probably got a little too much air, when that happens you slow down in the air and slam back down pretty hard. You hear and feel those. Although she wasn’t slowing down and keeping a decent distance ahead of me flying through the air, Kacie was having a little different experience. She’s little. And while I was enjoying the waves, the same waves were trying their hardest to throw her off of her ski. As far back as I was, I couldn’t tell how high she was being thrown from her seat, but once we talked after we got back, it sounds like she had to hold on to the handlebars pretty tight as the rest of her body continually flew off the seat.

We all came to a stop out in the middle of the ocean to regroup and for Stevie B to give us a few more facts I don’t remember. [He was so full of information about the area. He told us about the birds around and how to find fish. We were out at the biggest fishing area in the world he said at one point. There are spots you used to be able to ski and boat but now have been shut down. There were always people in those areas anyway and he said they could get fined a certain amount per foot of boat I think. He showed us how to spot the differences in water level with polerized glasses so you don’t run into mud.]

We could tell how big the waves actually were while sitting still, and it was a choppy day. Since he was right beside Kacie, Stevie B asked her if she wanted a rough or smooth ride back to the marina. Given that she had to hold on for dear life through the chop, she said smooth. Which was cool because smooth means fast, but we still had to bounce through some chop to get on the other side of the bridge again. And once we were, we were flying through the water again heading back to the marina.

One by one, we pulled onto the beach to end our high speed rip around Islamorada. It was a pretty sweet trip. Stevie B wanted us to meet him back by the rental place once we caught our breath and gathered our crap. We went over to where they had a large map of the area posted and Stevie B showed us the route we had just traveled and where we hopped in to explore. We had ended up covering about 30 miles total out and back. Then although we had already used our free kayak/paddleboard rentals, Stevie B gave us another voucher for a full day of kayaking. He said it’s not dated, so we could use anytime in the future, assuming we don’t loose it.

So after already spending the whole day at Robbie’s and doing all of our adventures, we were hungry. And since we were still wet and already there, we decided to go back to the restaurant we got breakfast at and get some food and drinks. It’s a nice place so why go somewhere else. Kacie got some kind of seafood tacos and I got a burger, and we each got a few rum and cokes. We pretty much shut the place down. Like I mentioned before, Robbie’s is a tourist trap, but when we finally left, the Bronco was all alone out in the parking lot.

We jumped in the car and headed back to our Marathon house. We both were more than ready for showers. After cleaning up we got some stuff packed up and loaded into the Bronco. The next day we would travel north a couple hours to our next house in Orlando.

First Day in the Keys

After a nice, relaxing night of sleep, it was time to start our vacation. And in our typical fashion, we were up and out pretty quick. Before we passed out the night before, we made our plan for the day: get a good breakfast, go grocery and rum shopping, then off to do something familiar in an unfamiliar place… ocean kayaking at Bahia Honda State Park.

We had seen a few places south of our house the day before and decided to hit one we saw, The Wooden Spoon. It was a cool, little place… pretty much a diner. I had an omelette and Kacie had eggs and sausage which she made into a sandwich. She could’ve just ordered a sandwich, but she did it herself. Might have been cheaper that way, not sure. After knocking that out pretty quick, we headed for the Publix liquor store. We bought the old stand-by, Sailor Jerry, and new one to us, Tommy Bahama rum. Although we were right beside the Publix we hit the day before, we decided Publix is for rich people and went down the street to Winn-Dixie. Back when I lived down here it was the same deal, Publix was more expensive so I always shopping at Winn-Dixie. Turns out neither are cheap in the keys, although Publix probably was still more expensive. There we bought burgers, chicken, man n cheese, salad, soda, water, etc… We tend to go a little nuts when we stay at places with kitchens, and this time was no exception. Then back to the house to drop off our groceries and get dressed for kayaking.

To get to Bahia Honda from Marathon you need to drive over the Seven Mile Bridge. It’s a big tourist attraction if you look it up on the internet, but it’s a bridge. Granted, it’s a long bridge, but still just a bridge. It is cool to check out the ocean that surrounds you the whole way, but you’re in the keys, the ocean surrounds you no matter where you are.

There are a few high points on your way across the bridge though: Pigeon Key, the lonely tree, and of course various people doing various water sports all over the place. Pigeon Key is a tiny little island that has a little settlement on it that you can only reach by boat or seaplane. You can check out more about it here. We didn’t go there, but it might be cool to check out if you’ve already done everything else there is to do in the keys.

The lonely tree is another thing that you might come across if you look up the keys on the internet. Running the whole seven miles is the original bridge that was used up until the 70’s when the more modern one was built. They didn’t tear the old one down, but don’t maintain it. About three quarters of the way down heading south you’ll see a single tree that has grown up on the bridge, along with a bush or two. I would assume birds carried a few seeds as they flew up and down the bridge and one actually took root. It’s not very exciting, but people still like to mention it. And here I am writing a whole paragraph about it, so…

Once we got over the bridge we found the park entrance. In Florida, you have to pay for most state parks. Really, in Florida, you have to pay for most things. Since there’s no income tax down here, that’s how it works, you only pay for what you use. So the more popular the park, the more money they get for that park, and the nicer it is. Being in the Keys and having two beaches, this park is very popular, hence it’s also very nice and well kept. Parking was easy even though it was crowded, and we went right for the gift shop/rental desk.

The one thing we didn’t remember to bring was towels. Luckily the gift shop had them. And then we also proceeded to buy t-shirts and hats, we’re a little ridiculous. Before taking our booty back to the Bronco, we stopped by the rental spot and asked about the details. Renting a kayak would be nice and easy. So we headed back to the Bronco, dropped off our stuff, packed up our waterproof gear and slopped sunscreen all over ourselves. Down here Kacie and I need it. And so far we’ve done pretty good.

Back over to actually rent the kayaks and grab paddles and vests. Turns out it’s pretty cheap to rent kayaks in Florida and you don’t pay until you get back so you only pay for the time you use them. They have the kayak over on the beach, so you just walk over from the shop and pick them. It’s pretty cool because you really just put in right where others are sunbathing and swimming, no specific spot. So off we went.

We grabbed two kayaks, all of which are sit-on-top ocean kayaks and waded out a bit into the ocean before hopping on. This time we were just going to go straight out into the Atlantic, we’ll mess around inland later at another place. The water is very shallow around the keys, you have to get out pretty far before you can’t stand anymore. And truthfully, even though I assume we did, I don’t really know if we were ever in water that deep.

First thing we did after paddling away from the beach-goers was find a sandbar. Pretty easy since they’re everywhere. So we jumped right back out of our kayaks so that we could just stand in the middle of the ocean for a bit. It’s definitely unique to be that far off the beach and still be able to stand in ankle deep water. You do need to keep a hand on your kayak since the waves will snatch it from you quickly if you’re not careful. Here we also got our cameras out and starting shooting video.

We leisurely cruised up the coast for a while, taking it all in. It’s a whole different experience being in the middle of the water instead of looking at it from the shore. The water here is not exactly crystal clear, not really even close. The reason is that this is one of the places that waves still break down here, kicking sand up and mixing in with the water. We did get out to where it started to clear up a bit a few times, but that ended up being pretty far out. And then you’re into the seaweed, which is also everywhere.

We were out for an hour or two before heading back, probably covered a couple miles. Kayaking in the ocean current is a little different than what we’re used to, but we both were surprised that it didn’t tire us out any more than we usually would have been. Kacie assures me that fighting the Susquehanna current is much worse. We ended up heading in when we did because we were getting hammered by the sun. First day down here and the sun really hits you hard. But like I said, we’ve been pretty good with the sunscreen and didn’t get burned.

Once we got close to the beach, we hopped out on a sand bar and decided to walk the kayaks in the rest of the way. Basically for the sake of walking through the ocean, which again was pretty cool. We dumped the kayaks in their spot and headed back to drop off our paddles and pay. It only ended up being 37 bucks total for both kayaks… not too bad considering we had just spent 5 times that on hats and shirts. Then we bought another towel and a lemonade, told you we’re ridiculous.

We went back to the Bronco to drop off our personal gear and dry off. Instead of just standing there drying we decided to wonder up to the old bridge on the other side of the island from the 7 mile bridge. You can only walk a little way up it, but it gives you a nice, elevated view of the surrounding ocean and bay. You can really pick out the different shades of blue in the sea, along with the huge patches of seaweed dotting the seascape. There’s a word I don’t get to use much…

After coming back down off of the bridge, we hopped in the car and headed back over the big bridge to Marathon. Between ocean water, sweat and sunscreen, we were both looking forward to showering after our little adventure.

Once we got cleaned up I went out and fired up our grill to cook some burgers. The handmade burgers from Winn-Dixie are pretty good, although they fall apart a bit. I had two, Kacie had one. Then we started drinking. The new rum we had bought earlier, Tommy Bahama, was really good. It’s not as cheap as our usual rum, and we might be able to get it anywhere, but at least to us it was a special island rum and it was excellent. We sat out on our dock all night talking and drinking. The overnight low down here is about 75, so we didn’t finally go in to fall asleep because we got cold, we just finally were too tired to stay out anymore.

We decided the next day, Saturday, was going to be a chilling day in Marathon, so there was no reason to go to bed early or to get up early. And we had planned on making breakfast in the morning, so we knew we wouldn’t be in a rush to get up and go anywhere, which is not like us, but nice.