Sue - Carlsbad, Legoland and the desert beyond

Matt has been desperate to go to Legoland, but all website information indicates that it's for younger kids, so Holly and Anna are not too keen. So Matt and Jim have a 'daddy date' and off they go. Matt has an awesome day! For the girls, "what is there actually to do in Carlsbad?" We discuss heading to San Diego for the day, but decided there isn't really enough time to do any of the main attractions and it's raining, so hanging at the beach isn't much of an option either. We decide to take it easy and explore the shops in Carlsbad - not too much to choose from, but manage to fill in our day happily at the Premium Outlets. Have a great dinner at BJ's, and experience their trademark dessert, Pizookies. (Soft cookie cooked in a small pizza pan, topped with ice cream)  Mmmmmmm delicious!
Next day, we head on our road trip inland towards the desert. We stop in a little town, where they say has heavy snowfalls in winter, then we wind down way to the desert floor. The cooler climate that is being experienced all over California has been felt here too, and in Anza Borrego Desert State Park (the largest state park in California. Named Anza, after a Spanish explorer and Borrego which is the Spanish name for the Big Horn Sheep that live in the desert) it is much cooler than normal. Not the desert temperatures that we expected, but pleasant summer heat. We go for a short desert exploration, and I see a 'red racer' snake just off the path. I was so excited - later I think that I should have been a little scared, but it happened so quickly and it was an exciting sight. It was moving VERY fast....but thankfully not into our path. This is a huge desert park, with 500 miles of desert road - you could spend alot of time exploring here - the few hours that we spent were fun, but we must hit the road. Have a reasonable drive ahead of us to reach Palm Springs - our last stop before our holiday comes to an end :-(

Ouch - a bit prickly! 

Sue - a day of cruising from north of LA to south of LA

Don't really have time to explore Ventura but it looks like a cute town...it doesn't look flashy or sleek, but the village looked worth a meander. Instead we head to the Ventura library, where we have free use of computer terminals. Handy when we want to update our blog plus book some accommodation in advance for our next destination. Our initial plans were to skirt around the outside of LA and then head inland to Palm Springs, but we have worked out that this route will put us in Carlsbad for Matthew's day trip to Legoland, on a day that Legoland happens to be closed! So we decide to head south, driving right through greater LA - Malibu, Santa Monica, Venice Beach, Huntington Beach, Newport Beach etc. After buying a few cheap second hand novels books at the library and a smoothie stop at 'Tom and Jerrys', we are on our way. Lots of swanky homes in Malibu, many behind big gates so we don't really get to see much. We stop for an explore and goof around at Huntington Beach -a bit hard to feel the whole SoCal surfie vibe when it's chilly spring but it seems like a pretty relaxed sort of place.

Dinner today is chicken, salad and rolls from the supermarket, eaten in the car! We arrive in Carlsbad in time for the kids to enjoy a swim in the hotel pool. Have been surprised how cold it has been in California so far - apparently usually much warmer this time of year.

Sue - a coastal cruise down Hwy1 plus an unexepected diversion!

They say that no trip to California is 'worth its salt' without a jaunt along the scenic central coast. Well it sure is beautiful in a very untouched raw way. It's a far cry from what I have seen of the Californian beaches 25 years ago - the commercial surfy beaches of SoCal (Southern California). As we drive along the high cliffs, we spot a few pods of dolphins along the coastline.

We were heading south but this photo is taken looking north 

We see some signs, that alert us to road closure - oh no - our scenic coastal drive is going to be cut in half by a non avoidable detour inland. This is a wild inland road, winding and winding and winding and more winding as we steeply climb inland - this is a huge detour and takes us to who knows where!!!! Again, it's surprising how the landscape changes so dramatically - once we are back inland and pass over the coastal mountains we are back in dry, hot climate. We are getting low on petrol, but civalisation is not particularly evident anywhere! YES, we see a small local store that sells gas....at HUGE prices. We aren't travelling with a physical road map and at times like this when we have no idea where we are going, relying on 'Doris' our GPS is a bit hair raising. I think that we should have just put more trust in her, because she was right most of the time! My recommendation for anyone doing a road trip though, is don't leave home without your GPS and your map! Eventually we link back to the highway and back on the road to Santa Barbara.
Due to our unexpected detour, we arrive later than expected  - early evening - it's Friday night and we cannot find accommodation anywhere that fits our budget. Later we read in the guide book, to be prepared for a price shock. Places are either too expensive or full. Oh dear! After no success, we head further south, try another town and then another - stop at Carls Jnr for an American fast food dinner experience (green burritos - uuuugh no!) and eventually find some accomodation (by this time it's well after 10pm) in Ventura. Yes, we are ready for sleep!

Sue - Monterey, it's all about the sea

The bay itself looks abundant with sea life, (it is apparently - Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary) the coastline is rugged and jagged and there's kelp and seaweed everywhere! Not so inviting for swimming (far too cold this time of year anyway) but would make a great kayaking adventure. We have one full day and some time the next morning to soak up as much as we can, but the kayaking will have to be on hold until another holiday! Our agenda for this trip is to visit the aquarium and possibly do a whale watching boat excursion.
Historically Monterey was well known for it's sardine canning industry, today it's well known worldwide for its Aquarium so we thought we had better check it out. A great educational experience for the kids. Lots of stuff happening there to increase enviromental awareness. Loved the sea horses!
The '17 Mile Coastal Drive' is well talked about as another must, so we head off on an afternoon jaunt.

Clambering over the rocks at Lover's Point in Monterey.  

Amazing coastline! The pay-to-view drive winds its way through flash golf courses, extremely expensive homes and most impressively, stunning, spectacular coastline. Cruised past Pebble Beach Golf Course, and saw a wild deer. It was just hanging out just near the side of the road near some people's homes. It looked so tame, I wondered if it was someones pet! They are such gentle, graceful looking creatures. Stopped off at Carmel by the Sea (Clint Eastwood was once Mayor here) which is a gorgeous little coastal town south of Monterey. It's like a manicured 'text book' town (the shops gave me the impression that the people were of a twinset and pearls type) ...the town is very cute though ...lots of 'gingerbread type' houses. I was so excited looking at them all, ("look at this one, look here, oh look over there, look, look, look!") that I didn't think to take any photos....
Day 2 in Monterey, the whale watching boat trip was fun.....but not so much fun for Holly. She managed to give the fish a change to their diet..mind you she wasn't the only person being sick over the side of the boat. The only one in our family though.The sea had big swells and because of this, it was difficult for the crew to spot the whales. We did see 2 Humpback though and we followed them for ages. It was exciting, and pretty impressive especially when their head came out of the water enough to see the texture of their skin.(Humpbacks have knobbly bits on their face) They flicked their tails at us, and even though they are known for breaching, they weren't interested in breaching today. Also saw quite a few dolphins plus stacks of sea lions resting close to shore. We buy some fresh hot smoked salmon and some sourdough bread from the fisherman's wharf, then it's time to hit the road south, an epic California drive ahead of us through Ben Sur and down the Coastal  Highway...........

Sue - goodbye Yosemite, hello Monterey

I loved Yosemite so much! The whole experience was magical. We had an amazing day hiking high in the wilderness (in NZ we would be in the 'bush' or 'mountains', here we are in the 'wilderness') It really does feel like bear country, and I really wished that we had seen one. Perhaps the sight of a bear is unlikely this time of year, so it now still sits on my 'to do' list in life!  We saw so many squirrels (Matt counted over 100 on our hike - a great way to keep him distracted from the steep track ahead of him!) and the kids loved them! Also Stellars Jay birds. We made a camp fire and had marshmallows. We hiked, we oggled at the amazing 'wilderness' and  we were only here for a few days, but we experienced the 'calling' of Yosemite.. please, can I come back!!! The park facilities were incredible - we loved our cabin experience, but there were loads of other options for people, from a hotel, to campgrounds. We brought lots of food for breakfast and lunches with us, but there were also lots of food options available as well. Pizza, Buffet, Mexican Cantina, Coffee shop etc. Showers we hot (hard to get out of them when the air outside is so cold) and great laundry facilities. Thank you Yosemite for the amazing experience!

Our campground at Yosemite

Mirror Lake, Yosemite

A long drive  back to the coast to Monterey - amazing that not long after leaving the Yosemite National Park we were in dry grasslands - the sudden change of terrain was unexpected. We travelled through the valley between the mountains and the sea, the area that has a fantastic climate for growing produce. "Hola"  - I purchased some cherries from a spanish speaking ("no no english")  man at a roadside stall...must have been his rejects because they weren't a match on Cromwell cherries. But have I mentioned Californian Strawberries? SUBLIME!
We arrive in Monterey - the first capital of Spanish and then Mexican California and the west coasts most historic city. It's much smaller than I expected...which is a good thing since we need to drive around and find somewhere to stay. Yes! We see an information centre open and get great help from them. We find a motel around the corner, not far from tomorrows planned trip to the Monterey Aquarium. Order pizza delivery, that is so slow: it would have been quicker to go out for dinner! We're all pretty tired, and I must say, it's nice not to go to bed with 8 layers of clothes on! (I am not kidding about the 8 layers. Perhaps that's being conservative! Yosemite was an amazing experience but not a warm experience!)

Sue - photos - the sun shines in Yosemite!

Overlooking Vernal Falls

Hiking up to Vernal Falls

Somewhere high up in the wilderness at Yosemite! The bears and mountain lions are nearby, but are hiding....perhaps it's for the best that they didn't come out to say hi!!!!

Anna- our last day at Yosemite

After waking up and packing up all our stuff, we left Housekeeping Camp. We did a few short walks- Mirror Lake and Lower Yosemite Falls, before leaving the wilderness and heading for Monterey. When we found a place to stay at in Monterey, we ordered Pizza hut, and watched american idol before heading off to bed. 

Sue - this is it! YOSEMITE!

Breakfast at our cabin

I wake up because my nose is about to drop off. It's just a little bit cold! I do recall getting up in the night, grovelling around desperately trying to find a few more layers to put on. Never mind, we are here! It was such a great feeling getting out of bed and seeing where we were..we are in the Yosemite valley by the Merced River, literally surrounded by these huge granite rock faces. A truly majestic sight! It's a little rainy, so we decide to explore the valley for the day, without venturing too high into the mountains. Since we are wearing every warm layer that we have with us, the thought of getting wet hiking isn't looked on too favourably by any of us! The rain is getting heavier, and by early

Jim in his sleeping attire!

afternoon the snow has started to fall! Being late spring, we always knew that we could encounter all sorts of weather, but the beauty of being here at this time of year, is the waterfalls are really spectacular, and the valley is thundering with the sound of the water. (in summer, Yosemite is a completely difference experience, with waterfalls just a trickle and some even completely dried up)  Loads to do and see on the valley floor....we check out the river and the squirrels, get drenched at Bridalveil falls, explore the information centres and the Indian Museum.

A bit wet from the rain and a LOT wet
from the spray of Bridalveil Falls

The Ahwahneechee lived in the Yosemite area for 4000 before explorers came through in 1833. The greed in the gold rush era has a lot to answer for, and during that time the Ahwahneechee were forced off the land that was their home. Today, we can thank Abraham Lincoln for signing the Yosemite grant in 1964 which eventually turned the Yosemite Valley into a National Park. We fill in the day easily and have had a great introduction to this amazing place.

Kids loved the squirrels! Weren't meant to feed them, but we assumed we weren't meant to feed them our ham sandwiches! Here the kids are feeding them berries.

Looking for squirrels by the Merced River, YOSEMITE

Dinner is at the main dining room where we have a fantastic family buffet for a very resonable price. Its 'thumbs up' from all the kids, so it's definitely a winner. We retreat to a warm lounge ( Matthew calls it "the warming place") to play cards for a bit before heading to our chilly cabin! (We have managed to hire some more blankets so hopefully will sleep a little better!) Tomorrow the sun is going to be shining!

Sue - Goodbye San Fran, hello bear country.

Didn't leave San Francisco until late in the afternoon (too many things to do and places to see) knowing that we had a big drive ahead of us. Hard to fit it all in! We still wanted to get a sneak look at the Redwoods and with Redwood country too far north for this trip, we decided to drive over the Golden Gate Bridge and head to Muir Woods. That's the amazing thing about San Francisco - just a short drive out of the city (12 miles) and you are in a different world - we even saw wild deer on the side of the road. Coastal Redwoods are Earth's tallest living things and exist only on the Californian coast. Muir Woods has it's fair share  - only had time for a short walk, some tree hugging and a few photos. The trees really are spectacular. Plenty of squirrels too - the kids love them!

Muir Woods

Muir Woods

It's a long drive to Yosemite and by the time we get even remotely near, it's already dark. We have already been lost a few times - we came across a sign that says the entry road into the park is closed due to snow, so we need to find another entry route - Doris (GPS) does not like this and keeps trying to take us the way we are not allowed to go!! We know that by the time we reach the national park it will be 10pm ish or even later at this rate and we don't really know what to expect. Will the gates to the National Park be open? Will there be someone at the campground at that time of night to check us in? With no mobile phone coverage and even 'Doris' losing sattelite coverage, we knew we really were in the wilderness. Not ideal to be arriving so late, but hey,
that 's all part of the adventure! I must say that I have a small fear that we would get a flat tyre and would need to unload a full boot in the dark whilst we were looking for the spare, all when bears were lurking nearby!!!!!!! (perhaps I have just been watching too many 'I shouldn't be alive' programmes on TV!) Anyway, we survived! Kids fell asleep, which was ideal so that Jim and I could concentrate on finding our way through these mountains to some form of civilisation! (in the form of a National Park Village) We passed some snow on the ground, some wild deer, but not bears! We made it - 11pm! It is wickedly cold!!!!! Our booked accommodation is a cabin/tent at a place called Housekeeping Camp...check it out, it's pretty cool! www.yosemitepark.com then click on accomodation and scroll down to housekeeping camp. We hired bed packs for us all and went about getting our cabin ready for what would undoubtably be a cold night! (Next time I will be taking a 'down' sleeping bag!) Jim and Holly are pretty happy that they bought ski jackets in San Francisco - they are about to sleep in them. Kids and I are happy that we packed thermal leggings - Jim doesn't have any and is wondering how that vital piece of packing advice got lost in translation!  I purchased a beanie in San Fran and can see that this may well be the best purchase I have ever made! To give you an idea, the cabins have 3 sides of concrete walls and then a roof like a marquee. The fourth side of the cabin is like a big curtain that you just pull over...a bit breezy....and am feeling a bit vulnerable to the possibility of wildlife coming and going while we sleep!

The park has very strick rules about how you store your food, so on arrival we had to sign a document promising that we would not leave any food, food wrappers or any rubbish, as well as toiletries, in our car or in our cabin. Each cabin has a big steel locker outside that can be bolted closed, where we had to store all of our stuff...imagine us...it's now 11.30pm, freezing, dark (thankfully we had a torch) and we are frantically trying to find every single lolly wrapper, food item, toiletry etc (which are spread far and wide throughout our bags and car!) and place it all in the locker...the bears are known for coming into the campground at night, so by this stage we are feeling a bit nervous! (but a little excited about the possible Bear encounter - preferably a distant one!) Beanie on, as well as quite a few layers of clothes, and we're well and truly ready for sleep. Since we arrived in the dark, we are looking forward seeing our surroundings tomorrow!

Jim - San Fran

After a sad farewell from Naples we drove ourselves to Fort Myers airport for our trip to California -  took the rental car back and settled ourselves into the airport. A bit lost trying to get petrol before going to the airport - bloody Doris!!

We finally find a service station and I am in there trying to make sure there is the right amount of money to fill the car with petrol - you pay first and fill later.  I am asking the girl behind the counter the way to the airport - she interrupts me and goes "oh my gawd!  You got one blue eye and one green eye!"  my response -  yes you are right - so I go out of the driveway right and then turn left?

Quick flight to Atlanta - Georgia -  apparently the worlds busiest airport these days! The screens have hundreds of flights!!!  We are in one of many terminals but thankfully do not need to go far for our departure gate -  we have a while to kill so get something to eat - Asian - and have a look around.

The flight through to San Fran is uneventful -  long enough but not too long. Views of mountains and canyons and farms makes it varied and interesting. First view of snow for a while!

We arrive San Fran airport and pick up the car - a white beast Cheverolette Malibu-  bit bigger than the nice Volvo  in Florida. We do not have too far to go but already I can feel the roads are a lot busier -  we are staying the first night at an airport Hotel (motel really) the Howard Johnsons - or HoJo as they are called.  It really is quite a run down old place but it is only one night -  have a beautiful view of the motorway. Breakfast in the morning we fill up on bagels and cereals - so all is not too bad.

It's off to experience San Fran -  just got to get out of the Hotel, across the busy road and get on the highway!

Travel Snippets

Snakes  in Florida? You bet! They may be in your garden and apparently there are approximately 3,000 recorded snake bites a year, but only 3 people die.

Being struck by lightning is a risk in Florida! Lightning kills more people than the Alligators do. Interesting, where Paul and Sue live (Naples), when the storm is coming and lightning is a risk, the city sirens are triggered, warning people to move to somewhere safe.

There are more than 1 million Alligators in Florida and in Naples (and possibly elsewhere?) there are people whose job is to search all the waterways in the city (there are plenty of them), find the the Alligators that are on the loose and transport them elsewhere. (I expect back to the wild, out of the city)

Alligators travel at a top speed of 18 kph. They rarely chase anything (but I wouldn't trust that theory!) and are more stalkers. (Mothers protecting their young though, can be quite aggressive) In saying that, a friend of my brothers was chased on the golf course by one...luckily that Alligator only had 3 legs!!!!!

Learning to drive on the right side of the road is one thing (however Jim had that pretty mastered) but learning a few of their minor road rules is another challenge! You can take a free turn right on a red light! (in NZ this rule would equate to being able to take a free turn left on a red light) That was the rule in Florida anyway and we never did discover whether that rule actually applied in California as well, but we did it anyway!!!! Another thing, is weirdly there is no give way rule at intersections where their are no lights. The rule is 'first there gets the right of way'. Well that did create some confusion for us Kiwis...too much if, but and maybe....and always thinking " who has the right of way" so there was much hovering at intersections!

People say that New Zealand has lots of weird words to pronounce and a whole slang language of our own...and we do! All countries do I am sure...and America has it's fair share...we were fascinated. How about  Whooperwill Lane, Sour Puckeroon Gummies  and Cotton Candy?!

Californian strawberries are the best! The best! THE BEST! I have never tasted strawberries this good! They are in a league all of their own!

But in saying that, the best and crunchiest apples I tasted were the ones in NZ before we left, and the ones in NZ on our return. Nothing on our travels came close.

Never really got used to the whole tipping thing. It was recommended that we tip 20%, but couldn't get used to having to tip when the service was only average. Isn't the whole idea to tip for good service? But we felt like we would be tight travellers if we didn't tip, so you feel kinda 'stuck between a rock and a hard place'!

1 cent coins! They should be banned! You just end up with so many of them! Everything you buy is 'plus tax' so your drink at the shop would be advertised as $3.00 plus tax. I think the NZ system is much better, with having the GST already added on and included in the retail price. Maybe it's just what you are used to......

Such silly things I remember - America has great natural almonds..they are so fresh. I am sure it has something to do with their superb packaging. They come in a container that is like a tin (with cardboard sides) rather than a plastic packet.

Starbucks - They are everywhere. Must say though, the iced 'coconut mocha frappuccino' was so damn good! And I don't normally even drink coffee. Granny, you would love it  - a variation of your iced coffee!

Carls Jnr wasn't so hot! Tried my first Carls Jnr Green Burrito... and it will definitely be my last!

'Say whaaaaaaaaaaat?'

They really do chew gum......

Blog followers, read this to piece together the route of our travel because the posts to date have not been in a logical order!

(This is Sue here!) We are now home (and have been for 2 weeks) but because we did not travel with any technology, we haven't been very regular with our blog posts. Because of this, so far our Blog reads that we went to LA, Florida, San Francisco, Yosemite, down to Legoland (by San Diego) and then back to Florida!!!

We had 3 weeks in Florida in total, alot of that time we were based with family in Naples, but also a 5 night stay in Orlando (visiting the theme parks plus a day at the Kennedy Space Centre on the Atlantic coast). Our trip to 'The Keys' was a 2 night trip in Florida, then we had one more night with Paul, Sue and family in Naples, before flying to San Francisco.

This is where we started our 14 day Californian trip. 3 nights in San Francisco, before heading inland to the Sierra Nevada mountain range and the AMAZING Yosemite National Park, where we stayed for 3 nights. Then headed back towards the coast, south of San Francisco to Monterey. From there we headed South, mainly following the coast, all the way through LA (drove through Malibu, Santa Monica, Newport Beach, Huntington Beach)  towards San Diego. Not enough time to visit San Diego, but Matthew had a big request to visit Legoland. (located just north of San Diego) From Legoland, we headed inland towards the desert - a fantastic stop at Anza Borrego Desert, before making our way to Palm Springs for a few nights. From there we headed back to LA where Jim tackled the freeways like a pro - a drive through Beverly Hills, a very quick few hours of shopping, plus our last dinner at the same place that we had our first - 'Chipotle' in Santa Monica, then it was all over!!!!! Returned the rental car, packed away our GPS lifeline, 'Doris' and then wait for our very late flight out of LA. Our bags are much fuller, our bank account much emptier, and our lives much richer - what an amazing time we have had! As we wait at the airport, we feel that we should actually be catching the next flight back to Florida! WE WISH! Life isn't too rough though....back to Queenstown and a winter of Skiing.......

Check out the individual blog posts still to come that will fill in the gaps about our Californian adventure.

Jim - Southern Most Tip of Continental USA

We get up and have a great breakfast and then its into the car -  off to Key West!  Only problem is I forgot my contact lens container and tried to use something else -against the advice given on all labels. I stick my lens in and get an immediate reaction - a burning sensation.  Have to take the lens out and flush my eye for a while which becomes VERY red - means I will be driving one eyed .

First stop Bahia Honda -  apparently one of the nicest state park beaches in the Keys -  today is not that good - it is windy and there is lots of weed and debris on the beach -  there is evidence of the railroad bridges that were built to join Key West with the mainland -  these worked for a while but over time with Hurricanes and storms and other transportation the rail died. Today there are 42 bridges for you to drive the Keys -  the longest is 7 miles long (over 11km) which makes quite a sight - bridges spanning from island to island for as far as you can see.

Matt and I enjoyed some time in the water but it is not that nice unfortunately.  The Keys despite my vision of long beautiful beaches seems to have issues with retaining sand -  the beaches are more about rock.

We arrive at Key West -  home and holiday hideaway for a number of famous people from the past including Zane Grey and Ernest Hemmingway - with many of the old buildings still existing where they wrote and lived in those times. We head to the supermarket to get some lunch and take it to the Southern Most point (we are 90 miles from Cuba)- get the obligatory photo and keep going.  We found another State Park (paid as usual) and spend some time under the pines to escape the heat and again some time in the murky and rocky waters of the Atlantic.

A quick explore around town before having dinner in what looks like a nice enough bar overlooking the street so that we can watch the world go by. - Dad gets a cocktail - a Mojita -  just not the same - everywhere in Florida we dine (granted not the flashest of restaurants) they serve drinks and meals on or in plastic.  Now a cocktail normally feels a bit more fancy when it is in glass and made properly.  Anyway a nice enough pizza - Anna is are starting to look like Pizza and Matt's case,  a chicken nugget.  The music is pumping - a bit loud for mum's liking and while some of the music she seems ok with she takes a dislike to some of the more techno beats!

Mallory square is where all the action happens next - a street market and buskers and food stalls - with everyone waiting for the sun to set.  It's fun and we've had another good day but it's time for Hagan Daas ice cream, find the car and drive back to Marathon.

Dorothy (GPS) decides she's had enough and gets us very lost getting out of the town at Key West so it takes a while -  the rest of the journey home is done with a quiet car and many of the inhabitants resting their eyes, apparently. My eye at the same time is burning and sore and I will be pleased to get back to the Holiday Inn and get to bed!

We do so only to find the walls of the hotel waifer thin and a snorer has checked in next door -  oh dear.

Jim - The Keys and Beyond

Blogs are now all over the place as we all just get around to updating this -  even after returning to NZ -  but is good to keep a record of all the fun times that we had together.

After a couple of days back with the Rokela's after our trip to Orlando, we headed towards the Keys - in good spirits and on another adventure but also slightly sad that we will only have one more night with them before we leave Florida. The other issue is we now realise that we just do not seem to have enough time to fully appreciate the area - further than we thought, therefore alot of driving time.(but the hotel is booked and paid for, so off we go!)

Drive down we head off the I75 and cut back through to 45 -  we are heading for the Anhinga Trail.  The area is, like all of Florida, very flat and with not a lot to see from the highway - the Anhinga Trail is an area just off the top of the Keys and another area to experience the wildlife of the Everglades. We walked the paths and saw quite a few alligators in the deeper area at the end of the path - Sue very excited to see one get out of the water and walk along the waterfront before getting back in. Also one old thing lying just off the path literally only a metre or 2 from us and with only a railing in between -  gee we have got brave since we arrived!! Also at Anhinga, there were a large group of vultures, as well as other nesting birds including Anhinga - like a Heron.

We drive onwards knowing that our destination of Marthon in the Keys is still a reasonable drive and not wanting to be too late. A quick stop at "Robert is Here" strange name for a fruit shop?? - where they specialise in boiled peanuts, fruit smoothies and all sorts of tropical fruits. Bought strawberries -  beautiful flavours and also fruit smoothies Papaya (not favoured by the kids) strawberries and Key Lime.

We head through Key Largo and I have Bertie Higgins lyrics in my head.(tried to explain this to Sue but she has no idea what I am talking about -  will have to google later on)  Key Largo does not live up to my expectation but due to time restrainants we do not go much off the main part of the island. Just passed through really.

Next stop, 'Robbies' at Islamorada -  where we are told you can see the Tarpon fish.  We stop and sure enough people are hand feeding these massive fish -  huge things that if you got too close would take off your hand as well I am sure -  check it out of the live webcam at robbies.com and click on 'tarpon feeding'. Decided to have dinner in the outside cafe/restaurant - probably not the best decision we made on our travels as it was average - it was also very windy (Sue's salad leaves kept blowing off her plate!) and a bit cold - must be ready for our hotel...all feeling a bit tired of the traveling. Loved the Tarpon feeding though.

Driving the Keys, we go over bridge after bridge - the amazing feat of construction that make the keys (islands) accessible -  not a huge amount to see and the weather is windy so didn't stop much either.

We now see Crocodile signs  and deer -  clearly this part of the country has an amazing range of wildlife. Lots of places to go snorkeling, diving and fishing, but we need more days than we have to do any of these.We also see nice residential areas to explore but when you go to get off the main road many are gated communities so no way of entering.

We arrive at the Holiday Inn -  pretty new -  nice pool for the kids. Relaxing night as we have another 50 miles down to Key West tomorrow and back here for the night. Great breakfast for all (included in the room rate, which was great) and we load up for the day and take off.