Dry Tortugas

The Dry Tortugas National Park was not even on my radar to visit before a surprise trip in January 2024. But it ended up stealing the spot as my number one favorite park. Sorry, Glacier. My sister and I were in the Florida Keys for a major surgery our Mom was going to be having. Our parents kept insisting we HAD to go and see it. So, while Ma was healing, we got our ferry tickets and made the 2-hour and 40-minute ferry ride, 70 miles away from all civilization and cell service.

Quick Overview – Dry Tortugas

The Dry Tortugas National Park is known as the US’s most remote national park. It’s home to an old military fort and renowned for its snorkeling.

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Camping is allowed at Fort Jefferson and it’s definitely something that’s been added to the bucket list. Loggerhead Key is another part of the park, but it’s 3 miles away by paddle only. You have to book a private tour or camp on the key in order to do this. There are more reefs and shipwrecks to snorkel around a mile from Loggerhead. The National Park Website advises booking tickets and sites a year in advance through the Yankee Freedom. If this sounds like your jam and you want to plan a trip, reach out to me on my Instagram or Contact Page.

Rough Seas

The ferry is plenty big, with options of indoor or outdoor, upstairs or downstairs seating. Since it was a nice morning we opted for upstairs and outside to take in the fresh air. The further we got out to sea though, the rougher it got. Announcements came over the speakers. They warned passengers to stay seated and let a ferry guide know if they felt sick. Dramamine was available for $1 a dose.

Now, I’ve never gotten seasick and am not usually bothered by boats, but these seas had me anxious about it. I felt better having my empty sea bag out – just in case. It ended up coming in handy when the girl across from us started vomiting into her hands. The staff on the ferry were great though. They helped her clean up and gave us extra sick bags. They offered to get drinks for folks so they wouldn’t have to risk walking on the rocking boat.

Pterodactyls

After some time out to sea, my sister pointed, “Look! It’s those same pterodactyl things we saw in Brazil!” Sure enough, mini pterodactyls swooped over the boat and waters. The ferry guide came over the loudspeaker as if he heard us “Listen up folks”.

We learned that the mini pterodactyls were actually ‘Magnificent Frigatebirds’. They swoop through the sky, unable to land on the water due to their feathers not being waterproof. Instead, they chase other birds for food and skim across the top of the water.

The Ferry Guide also made some announcements about the park.

• The best snorkeling would be along the moat wall.
• Giant lobsters were frequently spotted about 100 yards straight out from the moat wall, don’t do this if you’re not a good swimmer.
• The pilings and dock were also a great place to snorkel.
• Always have a buddy with you when snorkeling.
• Lunch, included with the ticket would start being served at 1130 and end at 1.
• Bush Key is open. It’s normally closed from February to September as a bird breeding ground. Definitely don’t skip it.

Arrival

As we caught our first glimpse of Fort Jefferson, you could practically hear the boat sigh with relief. The sight of land and the solid red fort were a welcome sight after the rough ride. We watched in delight as seaplanes landed next to the docking ferry.

The sun still hadn´t made much of an appearance so we decided to check out Bush Key first. We hoped the sun would decide to come out later. While other folks headed straight to Fort Jefferson or the beach, we were the only two going towards Bush Key.

Bush Key

Bush Key is only about a half mile long and naturally leads out to Long Key, which was swarming with the same birds that close it down part of the year. As we made our way towards Long Key, there was a steady stream of ¨Hey, Come look at this!” A walk that we thought would take maybe 15 minutes, easily turned into an hour. The closer we got to Long Key, the more and more birds swooped and circled overhead.

The further you walked on Bush Key, the more the sand was replaced with chunks of broken seashells and coral. The pieces piled up on each other until eventually that’s all you were walking on. Larger shells and pieces of coral littered the island. The sky was gray, the water was robin’s egg blue, and mini pterodactyls swooped overhead. We walked in awe through the seashell graveyard, but nothing could have prepared us for what we found next.

Shrine after shrine made from old conch shells, coral, and other sea shells decorated Bush Key. They created this otherworldly effect that left me entranced. Captivated by the mix of nature and man-made beauty, I forgot about the modern-day world with its technology and roads and politics and wires. I was awe-struck, that somehow, every moment in my life had led me to standing right here on this beach. There was only this Key and this moment right now. I´m not normally a happy cryer, but tears pricked up behind my eyes.

Lunch

We were jolted back to reality as more and more people started to join us on the key. We still had to eat lunch, explore the fort, and snorkel, so as much as we wanted to stay, we figured we should make our way back.

After a quick lunch, we decided to check out the Fort, still hoping on that sun to come out.

Fort Jefferson

Fort Jefferson was built from 16 MILLION red brick and is STILL considered ‘unfinished’ Built in the shape of a hexagon, ditches were dug around the entire perimeter to create moats, as an extra layer of security. There’s one bridge that lets you cross over the moats and into the fort. As you cross the bridge, you can’t help but be stunned by the water inside the moats. The robin’s egg-blue water somehow turns a brilliant emerald green against the red brick. As you pass through the giant archway, you’re greeted by the remnants of an old courtyard in the middle of the fort.

To your left and right, you’ll see down a long corridor formed by the arches running around the fort’s interior walls. I doubt there’s any force in the world that could keep you from not immediately turning and walking down one of those halls. As you walk through arch after arch, there are plaques, describing what life would have been like on the Garden Key 150+ years ago. Cisterns trapped fresh drinking water, always a concern. Prisoners of war were sent here. Sickness and hurricanes flooded and damaged the fort. It was hardly the paradise then that it is today. Signs now caution of falling brick.

Spiral staircases, intended to give soldiers visibility and advantages if attacked, take you to the top of the fort. At 40 feet high and 8 feet wide with no guard rails, we joked that only Florida would allow such a thing. Where the cannon mounds are, the narrow little path gets dangerously close to the edge (for someone afraid of heights at least). In every direction you look are some of the most beautiful waters I’ve ever seen.

Walking the Moat

After we decided we’d teased our fear of heights enough, we decided to walk down one of the moat walls we’d spotted from the top. As we walked along, there were times it was just me and my sister. By now, most people had wandered back onto the boat for adult beverages, over to Bush Key, or were chilling on the beach. We spotted a sea turtle inside the moat, just barely poking his head up enough for us to grab a blurry picture. We hung around a little while to see if he´d come back up but never saw him. Also inside the moat walls, man-o-wars floated around. For those that don’t know, man-o-wars are jellyfish that have a nasty sting sure to ruin your day. The sun still hadn’t come out.

Attempting to Snorkel

The water was gorgeous, the way it changed color as you walked along the moat was mesmerizing. We decided sun or no sun, we needed to be IN it. We grabbed our snorkel gear and jumped in. It was warm and easy to adjust to but the swells were big and frequent. As we stuck our faces under, we couldn’t see a thing. The waves bobbed us up and down, going over our snorkels at times and filling our mouths with salt water. We went out a little further but still had the same issues. We went closer to the moat wall but still had the same issues. Creeping into my head every time I stuck my face under were man-o-wars, sharks, barracuda, and other various ocean horrors, none of which I’d be able to see. After about 20 minutes we gave up.

I can’t say that we were disappointed even though our snorkel session didn’t go as planned. We had been looking at the gorgeous waters all day and just bobbing around in them was a treat. Whatever expectations of the day I had, had been blown away tenfold already. Snorkeling would have just been a cherry on top. With about an hour in the day, we excitedly realized that if we changed fast enough, we could probably make it to Bush Key and back before the ferry took off. We gathered our things and got on our way.

Surprisingly, as we passed by the boat with about 40 minutes left, almost everyone was on it. I set a timer for 30 minutes – we both agreed, we’d walk for 15 minutes and then turn around and hustle back.

We found the biggest hermit crabs having a little party, more shrines, and more time to take in the beauty. We got back to the boat in plenty of time and then headed home.

Rough Seas Home

The ride back was a little rougher. We sat upstairs and outside as we did on the way out. Water and cool winds blasted us. We covered ourselves with our wet towels to try and stay warm. We hadn’t packed or dressed for this harsh weather. Even so, neither of us was eager to go inside. Most seats were taken and it was standing room only so we just hunkered down.

After the first hour or so, the sun finally broke through the clouds. It was a VERY welcome feeling. It was still breezy and we were still getting splashed with water, but it was more bearable. The warmth of the sun’s rays gave us our second wind. We decided to go to the bow/front of the ship and see what the winds were like there.

The Bow

We had to pass through the downstairs interior area. The quiet was a stark contrast to the wind and waves in our ears. Our hair tangled, our faces red, smiling & giggling like idiots, we tried our best not to disturb the other passengers as we made our way towards the door. “Careful – you’re gonna have to push hard to get the door open” the ferry guide warned us. “It’s pretty wild out there”

We managed to get through the door and out to the bow. The strength of the wind made it hard to walk. We laughed as it whipped our hair in every direction. There was one other guy out there, rain jacket pulled up in full turtle mode. We could only stand it for about 2 minutes before we crashed through the doors back inside to the quiet cabin. Still giggling, hair wilder, smiles bigger.

The sun continued to shine the rest of the way to Key West and the ride got smoother as we got closer. As we pulled up to the docks, for the first time all day, I felt a little jolt of sadness.