The Keys are Amazing!

Day 40, May 11, 2011, The Keys are Amazing!

120.1 miles, averaging 15.1 mph

Route from Florida City to Bluewater RV Resort, Key West, Florida

Best Moment – When I arrived around 4:30, hot, sweaty and tired, one of the employees from the RV Resort came to our site with an iced bottle of water for me.  He is also a cyclist and was interested in my ride.  He had been injured and is working back into cycling.  His current goal is to ride from Key West to the Mainland and back in one day. (About 200 miles – wow!)  Also our next-door neighbors welcomed me with an offer of an iced Heineken – nice!

Worst Moment – Hey, it was 1 whole century plus 20 % of another and the longest ride of the trip so far.  It was hot and humid.  Oh, and although I made a $5 purchase of food, Bob’s Bunz Shop wouldn’t let me fill my water bottles or even give me a glass of water – I was told they had bottled water to sell.  (Guess I won’t stop back there.) 

I headed out on Card Sound Road to the toll bridge around 7:15 this morning.  It was already humid, but not terribly hot.  While there wasn’t a lot of traffic, there wasn’t much of a shoulder either and the traffic that there was went fast.  Fortunately, the road was flat and mostly straight so I was given space. 

After going through the Crocodile Lake Preserve, I arrived at Key Largo.  I can hardly believe that I am finally really here in the Keys!  Key Largo is fairly commercial and sort of kitschy – lots of touristy shops.  Anyone want any shell souvenirs?  They have them here.

I did find another interesting mail box to photograph.

The further south I got, the better the scenery.  There was mostly a bicycle path – even over the long bridges between keys.  When there wasn’t the shoulder was wide.  The scenery was just amazing.  The color of the water is the most beautiful aqua blue I’ve ever seen.  It is just so beautiful.

The RV Resort is truly that – a resort.  Our space has its own private dock, cabana and everything an RV’er could possibly want.  I know that when it comes time to leave this area, Neita is going to want to stay.  She is already looking for someway for me to go solo for a while so she can stay here.  I sort of moved the schedule around a bit so we are able to stay here for three nights, and I’ll only have a 30 mile ride one of the next two days.  I feel that I really need to ride to mile marker 0. 

Duncan has been swimming in the bay.