Dry Tortugas

Up at 5:30am for the run to Key West to catch our boat/ship to the Dry Tortugas.

The Dry Tortugas are 70 miles WSW of Key West. A two and a half hour ride each way at 30 knots. Pretty speedy. The key we visited in the Tortuga group was Garden Key home of Fort Jefferson.

Fort Jefferson construction by the US Army was begun in 1846 with an eye toward controlling navigation in the Gulf of Mexico. Construction continued for thirty years but by 1880 the Army had abandoned the fort before construction was finished. By 1908 the area had become a wildlife refuge. In 1992 the area was designated Dry Tortugas National Park (http://www.nps.gov/drto/index.htm)

An interesting day trip (4 hours on the Key - 5 hours on the boat) and camping is possible but the Key has no water hence DRY Tortugas.  The water color surrounding the Key is to die for.

Gordon inside the dungon

Cruisers sail over from Key West

Fort surrounded by a mote (sp)?

Frigate birds populate an adjacent area of the Key.

Gordon inside the munitions storage area reminisces about the four years he spent as a munitions specialist in military service.

Below:  Our vessel behind a seaplane that also shuttled tourists to the Key.