Independence Day

July 7, 2010





Independence Day

To cap off July 4th, already a long day for us, Kathy & I decided to travel up the Keys to attend the July 4th celebration at the Sugarloaf Airport hosted by the Big Pine & Lower Keys Rotary Club. The party in Key West at the Casa Marina was a viable option as well, but neither of us had ever been to the Sugarloaf party and our friends Brian & Rob and their band The Prime Movers were playing there as the featured entertainment, so we choose to head up the Keys a few miles.

Kathy

Brian & Rob

The Sugarloaf Airport is a tiny, single runway affair nestled back off of US 1 behind the Sugarloaf Lodge and next to the famous Bat Tower, It is isolated but has all the necessary space to host a party for a few thousand people including ample parking and space for the various food vendors and stage for the band to perform.





We arrived early in the evening, while it was still light out and there were not yet too many people and staked out a good spot to see both the stage and the fireworks display before grabbing some food and settling in to watch the Prime Movers. The event soon packed up and we were joined by our friends Reggie & Terry for the remainder of the evening.

Terry & Reggie

Rob

Brian

It was sort of strange being so close to home, yet knowing so few people, but it was nice. The event had the sort of small town Americana feel that I am certain was happening in countless towns and communities across the country on July 4th. Families packed the place by the time the fireworks got underway and the oohs and ahhs could be heard for miles out over the water.





It was a perfect night for fireworks and the display presented by the Rotary Club was really first rate. It was way better than I ever expected and featured a large number of huge, innovative fireworks and a great finale. It was just about a perfect Fourth of July so much so that we didn’t even mind getting caught in the traffic jam as people filed out. Happy Birthday America!!

July 4, 2010

July 4, 2010

Kathy





July 4th Strollin’

Rick

The July 4th weekend was a busy one for us. In addition to the traditional celebration of American independence, we joined our friend Alison to help her celebrate her 50th birthday and participated in two very different events that involved walking, a 5K walk/run at 7 AM on July 4th and the 2nd annual July 4th Bar Stroll later the same day, all this before heading to Sugarloaf Key to watch a traditional fireworks celebration.

Alison







The birthday party for Alison which was held at her home was really nice, complete with homemade beer, delicious food and even wonderful live jazz music (including a few songs featuring Alison’s impressive singing talent. Alison is a fellow preschool teacher at the Key West Preschool Co-op with Kathy and the party included a good number of students, who joined Kathy & I in escaping the heat of the day by lounging in Alison’s pool. Kathy was able to give her new Olympus waterproof camera a try.






The party was great fun and we stayed as long as possible, departing only to go and register for the Crimestopper 5K walk/run at the Sheraton hotel at Smather’s Beach. Kathy signed up as a runner, and I of course registered as a walker.



Ellen & Kathy

The event begun at 7 AM on July 4th, to avoid the July heat as much as possible and the route made its way along Smather’s and back. Kathy did a great job running and I managed to actually finish in a sweaty heap, amazingly taking a medal for finishing in 5th place among the men walkers. We stayed around for the post race party before heading home to rest up for the next, very different sort of stroll.







The 2nd Annual Fourth of July Bar Stroll is organized by our friend Rick Dostal, who also organizes the wildly popular St. Patty’s Day Bar Stroll. This one is a little different in that it sticks to bars located along the water, mostly in the area of the Key West Bight. The event began at 2 PM at Dante’s then hit stops such as B.O.’s Fish Wagon, the Schooner Wharf Bar, the Tiki Bar at the Galleon, Island Dogs and more, eventually wrapping up at Mallory Square.

Mike Mongo & Rick

Kevin



One of the cooler aspects of this stroll was a stop at Kermit’s Key Lime Shoppe
where participants got a free slice of Key Lime Pie. It was a fun day, and an event that certainly has a chance to establish itself as a permanent fixture on the holiday calendar. Kathy & I only made it just past half way, time constraints and the desire not to get too tipsy prior to driving up to Sugarloaf for fireworks made that decision for us, but we wanted to get out and check it out and support Rick, who works hard to deliver a quality event.

Key Lime Shoppe

Dry Tortugas

July 3, 2010





Gae & Jeff

Dry Tortugas



This week, Kathy and I spent a lot of time with our friends Gae & Jeff. Gae has been a good friend for years, even performing our marriage ceremony and her beau Jeff , lives in New York, but spends a great deal of time in Key West, where he owns a sailboat which he keeps at the Key West Sailing Club. This week, while he was here, he took Kathy out for one of the evening sailing races that the sailing club sponsors and later in the week, they all spent a day at the Dry Tortugas National Park.

Dave & Breanne



The sailing race was helped out by a stiff breeze and an able crew that kept the boat going in spite of a few minor difficulties. A great evening of sailing topped off by a visit to the Thai restaurant at Garrison bight where we sat on the deck overlooking the bight as the evening light faded into darkness.

Kathy



The trip to the Tortugas was great as well. The Yankee Freedom Dry Tortugas Ferry makes daily trips between Key West and Fort Jefferson which is located on the small chain of islands that make up the Dry Tortugas some 70 miles west of Key West. They offer a great locals discount, departing early in the morning and returning each evening before sunset.







The Dry Tortugas is home to some of the most pristine and impressive coral reefs in the US, abundant opportunities for bird watching, incredible diving and snorkeling and the impressive Fort Jefferson, an unfinished Civil War era fortress that has an amazing history. It was at one time a prison that housed Samuel Mudd, one of the conspirators in the Lincoln assassination.







Visiting the Dry Tortugas is one of the coolest things to do in the Keys and this visit was no exception, it was a beautiful summer day with snorkeling, hanging out at the beautiful beach, touring the fort and bird watching all on the agenda. The Tortugas are visited by 299 species of birds including the amazing and massive frigate birds. Frigate birds can be seen throughout the Keys, but the best spot to get close up views is in the Tortugas. Only seven species actually nest on the islands among these are the Sooty Terns which number over 80,000 during nesting season.





Frigate Bird

Visiting the Tortugas was a great lead in to the July 4th festivities here in Key West. It has been 5 years since Kathy & I spent a July 4th weekend actually in Key West and we are looking forward to all that goes on here.