March 1, Day 249 – In Marathon

We woke up early this morning so we could catch the 8:00 a.m. bus to Key West. By the time we got there around 10:00 Gerry was starving so we stopped in at a local restaurant on Duval for some breakfast. We were going to eat at Blue Heaven, but the breakfast smells along the way were too much for Gerry. We did walk there later and Linda bought a T-shirt with a rooster on a bicycle.

We went to a couple of attractions: Pirates Soul Museum and the Mel Fisher Museum. The Pirates Museum was not much to speak of -- more for kids. They are actually moving it to St. Augustine next year. They will probably revamp it a little as any technology used in the current museum is pretty dated. The Mel Fisher Museum was quite interesting. Mel Fisher was the treasure hunter responsible for finding the sunken ships Atocha and Santa Margarita which were shipwrecked off the Florida Keys in 1622. Over 260 crew members were carried to their death, along with the ships’ cargo which consisted of items that have been valued in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

We tried out Finnegan’s Wake Irish Pub and Eatery for a late lunch and also the Rum Bar for a couple of …. what else, rum drinks. We walked the area around the harbor where everyone gathers for the sunset, but since it was still mid-day it was not very crowded. We browsed through some of the shops and, after checking the bus schedule, decided we’d try to catch the bus that goes all the way from downtown Key West to Marathon – you don’t have to transfer to another bus. However, there are only two; one first thing in the morning and one around 5:00 p.m.

As luck would have it, the bus was about 45 minutes late. We were just about to give up and go have another drink when we saw it turn the corner. Once we were on our way we learned that one of the buses had an accident earlier in the day and thus, all the buses were behind schedule. The bus was quite crowded – a lot of regular commuters on this bus. We were a couple of miles from the 7 mile bridge (and thus about 8 miles from home) when they announced they were letting us off (well, kicking us off would have been a better term) so they could turn around for Key West to try and get back on schedule. They told us the next bus would be along in a bit and take us the rest of the way. What a way to run a railroad! There we were in the dark of night (no lights, no moon yet) hoping a bus would soon stop. As it turns out, another bus did come along in about 10 minutes, but the whole process seemed quite bizarre. We can only attribute it to “We’re in the Islands”.

Entrance to the Mel Fisher Maritime Museum. Following are several pictures taken inside the museum.
Some dishware that was recovered

... and some galleyware. Notice the long handle on the skillet so they could hold it over the flame without getting burned.

Here's some interesting items -- enema syringes -- strange things to find on the ocean floor

An emerald cross, c. 1580

gold spoon, c. 1590. Believed to be used for consecrated wine

One of many of the gold bars recovered. It was inside a case with a big hole so you could lift the bar. It was very heavy.

Gerry trying to figure out if there was anyway to sneak the gold out.

This was a photo of the salvage crew recovering silver bars. This was the first bunch brought up and they improvised, using a shopping cart to lift the silver from the wreckage.

Gerry at the entrance to the pirate museum. This was the only picture, as cameras were not allowed.

As we walked the harbor, we came across 3 pelicans fishing. Here they are checking out their tacklebox trying to decide which lure to use :)

... and this pelican was enviously watching. He obviously forgot his fishing pole

It was just a lazy day in the harbor. Water was gorgeous

Saw this poster in a shop window ..... the story of Gerry's fishing luck

The other day in Key West we took a picture of the END of Highway 1. Here's the beginning, right across the street.