Sitting outside on the patio we all sigh with relief. After a long car ride we’re in the Keys at the Key Largo Conch House, Mile Marker 100.2 Oceanside in the Upper Keys.
Key Largo Conch House. Photo by Lucy Beebe Tobias
Something profound happens when the mainland recedes. The Overseas Highway is the one and the only road. It goes straight south through the Upper, Middle and Lower Keys ending at Mile Marker 0 in Key West.
Florida Bay on one side, the Atlantic Ocean on the other – the view is water, water everywhere all the way down the Keys.
Just that sight – two horizons of water – lowers everyone’s stress level 100 percent. Goodbye busy world, hello island time.
We’ve arrived. There is no hurry to do anything.
Let’s read the menu.
Conch Chowder and Key Lime Pie Calling for You in Key Largo
Conch chowder and key lime pie are required eating, seriously, it is part of the Keys ritual. Throw in a side of conch fritters to cover the conch bases.
Island time induces life changes. After traveling for 24 years Ted and Laura and their sons Jon and Justin in 2004 moved to their favorite vacation place, Key Largo, and opened the Key Largo Conch House, serving an award-winning menu for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
We’re glad they caught island fever.
In the Keys food and fun are joined at the hip.
Key Largo, where we stayed for a few days, has the distinction of being home to the nation’s first underwater park, John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. Next-door is Key Largo National Marine Sanctuary. The long stretch of protected coral reefs with features like the Christ Statue and the Spiegel Grove and 600 species of fish is a magnet for snorkelers, divers and a variety of glass bottom boat trips, including daily trips from the state park. No wonder Key Largo has the nickname Diving Capital of the World.
For those who want to stay on dry land and still learn new things visit Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammocks State Botanical Site on County Road 905 in Key Largo to get a look into a tropical density that can be quite surprising.
A failed condominium project, all that remains (mercifully) is a large arch at the entrance and a paved one-half mile boulevard. Altogether the park has six miles of mostly paved trails. This park has one of the largest pieces of West Indian tropical hardwood hammock left in the United States.
Imagine early explorers trying to machete their way through an ecosystem so dense it is hard to see through the trees.
Seeing Key Largo by Bike
For sightseers (including us) who like the passing view from bikes, the Florida Keys Overseas Heritage Trail is a work in progress. It is certainly preferably to actually being on the Overseas Highway with car traffic.
From our hotel, the Holiday Inn, Key Largo to Islamorada, about 10 miles, the Trail is pretty well finished. In the few spots we encountered construction, the workers actually stopped to let us go by.
The real African Queen from the movie of the same name is docked at Mile Marker 100 in Key Largo. Photo by Lucy Beebe Tobias
A must-see tourist attraction – At Mile Marker 100 the African Queen is docked. Yes, that one. The unforgettable boat from the movie starring Bogart and Hepburn. Partially restored, donated funds are sought to finish the restoration.
Sunset provides another Keys ritual.
It happens every evening.
Be there.
Plan ahead to dine Bayside to watch the sun go down.
We did just that at the Bayside Grill directly behind DiGiorgio’s Café Largo. Sitting upstairs on a screened in porch we opted for fish tacos, another good choice in the Keys. As advertized, the sunset was spectacular.
A sunset on the keys. Photo by Lucy Beebe Tobias
But then, this is the Keys where time is measured in sunsets and conch fritters are calling your name.
UPCOMING
Like to garden but don’t know how to get down and dirty in Florida?
Join Lucy for a two-hour gardening workshop on Saturday, Nov. 15 at Longboat Key Education Center.
Lots of hands on fun, plenty of takeaways and you’ll go home inspired. To know more and to register call (941) 383-8811 or visit the Website
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