8 February 2025 p.m.
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| Crane Point |
The four of us, Cathy, Franklin, Clark, and Ev, went directly to Crane Point Hammock after our morning spent at Pigeon Key. We planned ahead and brought a picnic lunch with us to eat on site. After lunch, we watched the video describing the history, grounds, and things to see, and then we set off to explore some of the expansive 63 acres.
We had several choices and the one we chose to explore first was rough terrain due to us having to walk over the roots of the mangroves. Watching our steps was critical to prevent a twisted ankle.
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| Watch your step here! |
We thought we lost Clark in the woods because he was no where in sight for quite some time. It turned out he was trying to capture a picture of a spider that the rest of us failed to see. He finally managed to capture a shot in focus.
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| Spider in center of picture - on trail at Crane Point Hammock |
Thankfully the trails we explored after that were mostly stone and easier to walk on.
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| Awe! That's better! |
Crane Point is a conservation area exhibiting a large variety of Keys plant life. A few are shown below.
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| Gumbo Limbo aka "Tourist Tree" due to its red, peeling bark |
Of course Clark wanted to get up close and personal with the tree that was labeled "Poisonwood"! AI says: Touching a poisonwood tree will likely result in a severe, itchy rash due to contact with its sap, which contains urushiol, a potent allergen similar to poison ivy, and is considered significantly more toxic than poison ivy, meaning even a slight touch can cause a strong reaction; it's best to completely avoid contact with the tree and seek medical attention if you suspect exposure. Another link says, the sap of poisonwoods cannot be washed off with water, and must be treated with oil-dissolving soaps or hand sanitizers.
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| Poisonwood Tree |
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| Triangle Cactus |
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| Florida Thatch Palm |
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| Spanish Moss |
Next we spent some time walking around the Crane House. We could explore outside the house only.
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| "School of Fish" hanging sculpture |
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| Turtles hanging sculpture |
From there we walked out to "The Point".
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| Rainbow Parrot Fish as seen from the dock |
Kayaks are available for rent here. The price of $60 per person struck us as a bit more than expected.
Just like at Pigeon Key, we got to see a wreck of a boat that probably brought folks into the country illegally.
While we were admiring the parrot fish, Clark went further down the trail and discovered that he could see Marlin Bay.
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| Marlin Bay Tower as seen from Crane Point Hammock |
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| Shoal marker on the Gulf |
After checking out the waters of the Gulf, we walked back past Crane House to relax for a bit in the chairs there.
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| Big Chair shared by Ev & Clark |
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| Clark's feet |
We saw some folks sitting at the water's edge with their feet in the water.
We had heard about getting a Fish Pedicure at The Point, so Ev and Cathy gave it a try.
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| Quite a few found Ev's foot tasty! |
Our next stop, after drying our feet, was the George Adderly "Bahama House". On the way there we passed the Sunset Boardwalk. Since it was nowhere near sunset, we did not go that route.
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| Sunset Boardwalk |
Unlike the Crane House, Adderly House was open for us to go in and look around.
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| Old Glass Bottles in adjacent shack |
Carved signs hung on the wall describing the house and how George lived and made a living.
Some rudimentary furnishings showed how George lived.
Once again, Clark found a spider to pose for a picture.
From the Adderly House, we moved on to the Butterfly Conservatory.
Our last stop at Crane Point was the "Wild Bird Rescue" portion of the property.
Birds are located here for rehabilitation if possible. An eagle named "Rita" lives here. She has a broken wing and cannot fly.
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| Rita |
Miscellaneous other birds were also housed in the area. As we watched someone came out to feed the birds. Cathy was told that they try to feed birds the way they would eat in the wild, so feeding schedules vary considerably.
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| Pelican Area |
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| Cranes Cage |
The sights here were quite different than the views at The Point, for example.
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| Fake Flamingo |
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| Fake Raccoon |
We finished our tour of Crane Point Hammock with some time to spare before dinner, so we decided to visit Sweet Savannah's for an ice cream treat before heading back to the boat for dinner. Cathy and Ev walked down to the gift shop to look around after our treat. Ev found some sweet crochet stuffies that caught her eye. She brought a crochet turtle home as an example to see if she can make one herself.
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| Crochet octopus on sale |
Before heading back to our boat, the four of us decided to take a stroll along the docks near Boot Key Harbor. We parked near Docksides and then walked along the boardwalk checking out the boats at the marinas. So far today we had walked just over 3.5 miles. We added about another mile by strolling the docks.
Having walked 7 miles yesterday in Key West, we were interested to see just how far we had walked today. At the end of the day, my phone app showed that we had covered just under 5 miles!
9 February 2025 - Super Bowl Sunday
Cathy and Franklin left this morning to return home to Vero Beach via a stop in Miami to see family / friends. Ev and Clark left on our bicycles shortly afterwards to go to church as per usual. Also, as usual, Clark and Ev were one of the last to leave the church after services concluded. We enjoy the conversation and camaraderie with the people we have met there.
Service ended just after noon, we got back to the boat close to 2:00. Although food is served at the church, we prefer our own cooking, so we ate lunch when we got back to the boat. No sooner had we finished lunch than it was time to think about preparing to head up to the pool bar for the Pot Luck Super Bowl party.
We checked out the game at three spots at Marlin Bay. Like Goldilocks, we were looking for the best option. We watched at the pool bar for a while where most of the pot luck food appeared, checked out the screen at the Captain's Lounge, and then because we were alone at the Captain's Lounge and got an invite to move, we went to the bar in the Club House. We found a comfy spot and stayed there to watch until nearly the end of the game when we once again joined the crowd at the pool bar.
Neither Clark nor Ev had a favorite to win. The Eagles did a fabulous job of stomping on the Chiefs, and it was fun to watch it happen. Some of the plays were amazing.
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| Watching the Super Bowl game at the pool bar at Marlin Bay |
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