May 19th: More fun with the Rahns

The weather cooperated and we were able to cruise on the ocean side to the Bahia Honda State Park and Marina. It has a great little harbor and the park is very picturesque. We were able to get a great spot. We had a view of the ocean on one side and a view of the harbor on the other.

Craig and Karen, Bahia Honda Harbor - Looking East

View looking West

We walked over to the beach which had quite a bit of sea grass on it. This sign explained the value of leaving the sea grass alone!

Further along, a trail led to the top of the old bridge. It's a great view from the top, 360 degrees. The beach in the picture is on the Florida Bay side. Beyond the trees in the distance on the right, is a very nice beach on the ocean side.

View of Bahia Honda from the bridge

Ibises

There are quite a few birds around the park. These Ibises were pretty tame.

There are many pictures and more information at this link. Bahia Honda Pics

We watched a great sunset through the highway bridge from our fly bridge. It was a beautiful night.

Spanish Mackerel

On the way back to Banana Bay the next day, I decided to try trolling. I was hoping to get a Spanish Mackerel. We were very fortunate to catch this one. It made a great fish appetizer for our dinner. 

In the channel under the 7 mile bridge

Because we travelled along the ocean side, we needed to cross under the 7 mile bridge at an opening for boats. (Banana Bay marina is on the Bay side.) It was a very pretty day.

I know Karen likes to shop and there is a large Flea Market at Big Pine Key. I decided we could combine a trip to look for Key Deer, visit the Blue Hole Hammock and hit the Flea market. It's a short drive to Big Pine Key where Key deer reside. The Florida Keys are the only place in the world where they live. You can learn more about them at this link. Key Deer info

We drove around for quite a while and Karen finally spotted some. They usually hang out where there are houses. They are not very skittish. Karen got some good pictures. Unfortunately, the deer are in grave danger of going extinct. 30% of the population died during hurricane Irma. Humans are encroaching on the areas where the deer live. It took a long time to find them so I included three pictures!

Key Deer

After finding the key deer, we visited Big Pine Key fresh water Hammock. Hammock explained

I always enjoy returning to the hammock. Usually we see two resident alligators and three species of turtles. It's a very peaceful little hammock. Unfortunately, the alligators and turtles were all hiding but it was still a nice walk around the water.

Big Pine Key Hammock - Craig and Karen across the water

Big Pine Key Flea Market

We of course hit the Flea Market before heading back to Banana Bay.

View from the old 7 mile walking bridge

Craig and I decided to take a walk on the old 7 mile bridge. It affords a great view of the water. We spotted a very large sea turtle, a shark, numerous pelicans and an osprey. 

Fishing boat below 7 mile bridge

We also watched the people fishing below. Not a lot of action!

Karen decided relaxing in the lounge chair in front of our boat was a better way to spend her time!

Karen was hoping to spot a manatee while in the marina. I had told her they showed up frequently but we were still waiting. Someone alerted us to the fact one was hanging out across the marina in the afternoons. The young manatee was very cooperative and Karen got some good pictures. Manatees pretty much just lay around in the water. I love their big round tails and funny faces.

Manatee nose & face

 

The Turtle Hospital is always on the list of places to see when people visit me. They do a great job rescuing turtles and educating people about sea turtles. The origins of the hospital are very impressive. The founder spent several years getting all the permits and approvals to start the hospital. It is now very successful and a model for the world. There is more info here: Turtle Hospital website

Craig & Leatherback Turtle
replica - They get twice as large

Here are a few pictures of the residents!

Karen and Craig

That night I talked the Rahns into playing Can't Stop! I am one of the few people who enjoy the game. Karen said she liked the game and wanted to play again the next day. But then she did win!

 

The dockmaster came by and told us to stay away from the marina restrooms Sunday morning. A bee keeper was coming to remove a hive from a no longer used building next to the restrooms. Craig and I went to check it out. There were a lot of bees coming and going. Nice to see but it was quite the flurry of activity.

Bee keeper getting ready

We went over Sunday morning and watched a while. Turned out the bees' hive was inside an inner wall and huge. He had to cut a lot of the wall out to get through it. We hope he retrieved the queen. In the process, there was plenty of honey comb filled with honey. Doris the dockmaster distributed the honeycomb to all who were interested. The honey was delicious! You just never know what will happen next at Banana Bay! 

Honeycomb filled with honey

Doris the dockmaster distributed the honeycomb to all who were interested. The honey was delicious! You just never know what will happen next at Banana Bay! 

Our last excursion was to the Dolphin Research Center. They do a very nice educational show and people can get very close to the dolphins. The dolphin seem to really enjoy the attention. Here is a short video that shows what I mean.

Here's a link that talks about the research they are doing. Dolphin Research

Just before the Rahns left, they took me to the Steak and Lobster House for a wonderful dinner. We had so much left over we ate the leftovers the next night and they were still great. I neglected to get a picture of our dinners but did get a final toast!

During their stay the Rahns saw the green flash twice. In addition we had this fabulous sunset to send  them back to California. It was a very fun visit!