Key West Conch Train Tour

Thursday 2/22/2018
Car trip Marathon to Key West.

I made pancakes and scrambled eggs for breakfast. While we ate the food, we talked about how we might spend the day. We considered the Turtle Hospital, Dolphin Encounters, and Sombrero Beach. With cloudy skies and a threat of rain, we quickly removed the beach from the list of potentials.

After taking a trip to the marina building to use the head, I had a revelation... We could go to Key West! Since I knew Ann and Mel from Morning Star II had been there twice recently, I stopped to talk to Ann on the way back to the boat to get the inside scoop on where to park. Darlene and Mike favored a trip to Key West over the other offered options, so off we went.

Heading West on Rte 1 to Key West

Besides parking suggestions, Ann highly recommended the Conch Train Tour to get an overview of the city. As we traveled, I ordered tickets on line. We arrived in Key West shortly after noon and headed straight for the conch train stop. We had very fortunate timing as we had almost no wait to grab a train for the first leg of our tour.

Conch Train Selfie
(Mike and Darlene are hidden by my hat.)

We rode the train down to the docks looking for a place to have lunch. Our timing was phenomenal; just before we got off the train, it started to rain lightly. Fortunately, we had a very short walk to get under an overhang at a dive shop before it started to pour. As we stood waiting for the rain to subside, a line of bicyclists came riding by with their shirts so soaking wet from the rain that they were glued to their bodies. With no sun and a cool breeze, they must have been pretty miserable.

Having debated our dining possibilities during the rain, we decided to eat at The Waterfront Brewery. As soon as the rain let up, we took off. We almost made it to the pub before more rain hit us - but not quite. Although not soaked through, my shirt picked up a little moisture and felt slightly damp by the time we arrived.

The Waterfront Brewery

We could see available tables in the restaurant and had one set of four people in front of us looking for a table as well. As we stood at the hostess's desk, we wondered if a hostess even worked there. Finally, she appeared. I decided as I watched her work that I have never seen a less efficient person. She seemed to take forever to complete any task and visited each table no less than three times before finally seating a customer at the table.

As we watched, the hostess first cleaned the selected table, then cleaned the seats, then surveyed her work, then retrieved and put out place settings and menus, and finally came to the hostess station to collect the next set of patrons. Since she worked as slowly as molasses flows in February, some groups of customers gave up waiting and walked on to find another choice for lunch. In some bizarre way, I found watching her intriguing. I decided it took real talent to be that slow at doing one's job.

Finally we got seated at a booth overlooking the docks. Since this pub is located very near to where we docked during our Key West visit last month, we could see the dock where we tied up during our visit. Clark decided to take a walk over to where we docked to see if he could find our missing flashlight. He came back empty-handed as the fire box that had been open when we stayed here now had a solid lid on top that would not allow Clark to peak inside.

Even though we had to wait for a table, we enjoyed the restaurant. The food was well-prepared and tasty. Mike and I sampled and enjoyed one of the pub's home-brews - American Lager. By the time we finished eating the sun had come out and our shirts had dried.

Ev, Darlene, and Mike enjoying fine food at
The Waterfront Brewery
(Clark - photographer - absent from picture)

After lunch we walked to the Conch Train station for the next leg of our trip. When we disembarked,  we decided to find a shop specializing in Key Lime pie that Mike visited on his last trip to Key West about 4 years ago. By the time we found the shop we had walked almost all the way back to where we had eaten lunch.

Kermit's Key Lime Pie Shoppe

Man holding Key Lime pie at door

Surprise!!!
We did not expect him to be a real person!!!

Besides the usual pie, a specialty of this place is a chocolate dipped, frozen key lime pie on a stick. Clark and I are not Key Lime pie fans, so we passed on purchasing their wares. While Darlene and Mike placed their orders, I wandered off to find a restroom and walked into a wonderland of vegetation.

Dining area for Pie Shoppe and neighboring restaurant

Complete with fish pond

and an infinity pool!

We grabbed a table to admire the view while Mike and Darlene enjoyed their tangy treats. Although I am not a fan, I did sample Darlene's pie to see how pie here compared to other places. I was glad I had not purchased a slice for myself. After enjoying the pie shoppe, we walked back to the train for the final leg of our train tour.

Our final leg of the Conch Train tour was the longest with a 45 minute duration. As the train wove its way through town,  the driver / guide told us some of the historical significance of homes and buildings, related ghost stories (Key West is rated the 4th most haunted city in the U.S.), and miscellaneous tidbits of information including the history of the Conch Republic.

The first Conch Train tour of Key West occurred in 1958, and they have been telling stories ever since. While passing the cemetery, for example, the guide told us about two epitaphs engraved on headstones. The first story was one about a woman hypochondriac. On her gravestone, it said, "I told you I was sick!" She had it engraved herself before she passed away. The second epitaph was also written by a woman about her "roving" husband. It said, "At least I know where you will be sleeping tonight."

Touring the town, we saw too many historical and interesting sights to include in the blog. Some of the highlights are pictured below.

Key West "Whaling Wall"
painted by marine artist Wyland 

"Curry Mansion"
decorated for Valentine's Day

The Bull & Whistle Pub
- the last of the old-time Duval Street open-air bars

First Flight Restaurant
where Pan Am made first commercial flight

We heard about Mel Fisher as we passed the Ship Wreck Museum. Mel Fisher searched for years to find the Atocha  which, when discovered, yielded $450 Million in treasure.

The Mariana carried 24 Cubans to the U.S. in 2015.
The rusty craft sits in front of the Ship Wreck Museum.

 When visiting Key West it is a common occurrence to see roosters roaming the streets. Until we took the Conch Train tour, I did not know the story behind their roaming freely. Prior to 1986 when cockfighting became illegal, fighting roosters provided entertainment and income to people in Key West. When they could no longer use the roosters for cockfighting, and they could not kill them, the owners released them to wander the streets.

Typical sight in Key West - Roosters on the streets

Famous "Sailor's Kiss"
at Customs House in Key West

Harry Truman's "Little White House"
Harry Truman loved Key West and spent his presidential vacations here.

150 Year Old Banyan Tree in Key West

U.S. Route 1 starts in Key West at Mile 0 and ends 2269 miles later in Maine. The sign above and the one below are located on the building at the start / end of Route 1.

2 people taking selfie at end of U.S. Rte 1

People in Key West take a lot of pride in being located at the southernmost point in the U.S.  The builders of the house shown below wanted to own "The Southernmost House" in the U.S. but that title was already claimed by their neighbor.

"The Southernmost Southernmost House USA"

As we passed Sloppy Joe's Tavern, we learned about its close association with Ernest Hemingway who spent so much time here he had a desk where he could write. Some while after he passed away, incomplete manuscripts and uncashed royalty checks were found in the desk. When we passed by here, the music blasted from the bar which enjoyed standing-room only for its patrons. Very popular place!

Hemingway Hangout

Our fascinating tour of Key West ended around 4:15 or so. We agreed at that point that we had seen all that we needed to see for one day and headed back to the car for the drive to Marathon. Prior to the Key West outing decision, we had agreed to dine at the Sunset Grille tonight to enjoy the view. As we drove back to our boat, however, we all agreed that dining on board sounded like a better idea.

While I prepared dinner, Clark took off to attend the Faro Blanco staff recognition pot-luck dinner being held at the lighthouse. Since he was there, he could not resist getting a sunset picture.

Faro Blanco staff appreciation pot-luck dinner at sunset

When Clark returned, we ate our home-cooked dinner of boater-style "Chicken Testaverde". As we ate and after we ate, we talked and talked and talked  the night away.