Dry Tortugas and Fort Jefferson

Sunday afternoon we headed out for an exciting adventure. We took a seaplane to one of the keys, this one located about 70 miles west of Key West, which actually puts it in the Gulf of Mexico. It appears that Key West is the end of the road of the Florida keys. While it might be literally the end of the road - there are no more roads heading west from Key West - it is not the end of the keys. There are many more keys but they are inaccessible from land. They can only be reached by ferry or plane. 

We tried to get a ferry reservation, but they were sold out, so we took a plane and it turned out to be the better choice, as it was quite the adventure. The plane flew from Key West to Dry Tortugas National Park. Dry Tortugas is North America's most inaccessible National Park. Fort Jefferson is located on the island and is part of the National Park.

Our trip began in Key West, where we checked in for our flight. There were 8 people (beside the pilot, Kris) on the flight: a group of 5 people, the 2 of us, and a single woman. 

Our pilot Kris

Boarding the plane

When the group of 5 in front of us were boarding the plane, Kris asked them where they were from. They said "Pennsylvania". When we got to the front of the line, he asked us where we were from and we also said "Pennsylvania". Kris responded by saying, "Oh, you're with them" and we said no we weren't with them. One of the group heard us say that we were from Pennsylvania and turned around and asked us what part of Pennsylvania we were from. We told them Pittsburgh area, and they said they were from St. Mary, which is located about 2 1/2 hours from Pittsburgh. I have a good friend that is originally from St. Mary, and I asked if they knew her. It turns out they knew her mother and one of the ladies was her mother's hairdresser. Small world.


The plane ride was unbelievable. We took off from Key West airport and had great views of the city of Key West from the air.



The flight was low enough for us to be able to enjoy the ocean below. Shortly after we took off, Kris said that we have reached our cruising altitude of 500 feet. We could see the ocean below clearly. Everyone on the plane had a window seat and we had earphones to be able to hear Kris' narrative as we flew along. 

The first part of the flight was over very shallow waters - about 3 to 5 feet deep. We could see sharks (small ones) and lots of turtles. In fact, Tortuga is the Spanish word for turtle and the Dry Tortugas was named for the many turtles in the area. The word Dry was added to Tortugas to warn seagoers of the lack of fresh water. 

A little farther along the water was a little deeper, about 30 feet deep, and we flew over two shipwrecks, including one that is an active treasure site today. Kris said that this part is like flying over an underwater desert because the seabed here is made up of huge sand dunes. 



The flight took about 45 minutes. As we were approaching Fort Jefferson, Kris banked the plane so we could get some excellent pictures from the air. Because there isn't an airport or even a landing strip on the island, we landed on the water, which was amazing. After the water landing, Kris backed the plane up onto the beach, and we got off the plane by stepping onto the float and walking toward the back of the plane and onto the beach.



Our group

Once on the island, we took a self-guided tour of Fort Jefferson. Construction of Fort Jefferson began in 1846, and was originally intended to be a place to control navigation between the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. During the Civil War, the fort was used as a military prison. Perhaps the most famous prisoner was Dr. Samuel Mudd. After John Wilkes Booth shot Abraham Lincoln, he jumped over the balcony and broke his leg upon falling below. He went to Dr. Mudd who re-set the broken leg. Dr. Mudd was later arrested for helping Booth by setting his leg and he ended up as a prisoner at Fort Jefferson. The expression "Your name is mud" comes from Dr. Mudd and his story of being imprisoned for giving medical help to someone in need. 







After wandering around the fort for awhile, we then headed to the beach and spent a couple of hours in the sun, enjoying the glistening water. The seaplane company supplies you with cold drinks, so we were refreshed as we sat in the hot sun, just enjoying a nice Sunday afternoon.




After a few hours on the beach, we returned to the plane for the return flight to Key West. This time we took off from the sea and enjoyed the return ride back to Key West. What an amazing way to see a beautiful National Park.





When we returned to Key West, we drove to the Miami area to continue our Florida adventures.


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