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Tags: Animal Travel / Tourism Boards / Ecotourism / Florida Keys / → All Tags

Watch Florida's Baby Turtle-Hatching Livecam, Or Go See For Yourself

The Florida Keys Tourism Council is trying to raise awareness about the endangered Sea Turtles who nest on their beaches. And what better way to get people's attention than by letting them watch cute little turtle hatchlings emerge from the nest for the first time and find the ocean all on their own?

Every summer on Big Pine Key, in the lower Florida Keys, turtles crawl ashore at night to dig nests and lay about 100 ping-pong-ball-sized eggs. After covering them with sand, the turtles return to the water. Approximately two months later, the baby turtles are born.

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Tags: Summer-Signature-Cocktails-Map / Beer Travel / Drinking Travel / Key West Travel / Florida Keys / → All Tags

Belly Up For A Root Beer Barrel Shot At Key West's Green Parrot Bar

While the summer is at its peak and you're no doubt tired of chugging bottled water under the sun at tourist sites, we're going to hit some of the world's best watering holes and down their famous summer cocktails. Bottoms up!

When one thinks of an evening spent in Key West, sipping some of the more alcoholic local flavors, drinks like Key Lime Martinis or the Key West Cooler come to mind, but at local favorite Green Parrot Bar, the regulars tipple something decidedly more down-home.

For one of the cheap, but tasty Root Beer Barrel Shots at the Green Parrot, you must first bypass all of the tourist-trap bars along Duval Street. The Green Parrot isn't far—only a couple block away on Whitehead Street—but it's divey, Florida Keys laid-back ambience is a world away. Sure you can get key lime drinks here as well, but if you've been scarfing key lime pie all day anyways, we'd recommend the Root Beer Barrel.

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Kayaking Trend Going Strong Into 2009

We've spilled more than a few pixels on the subject of kayaking, but that's because it's just such a perfect vacation activity. It's cheap, it's fun, and it always provides a unique perspective on your destination. Last year might have been the year of the kayak, but the trend is showing no signs of abating, if a story in Friday's New York Times is any indication. It highlights a kayaking adventure in the Florida Keys, where the abundance of shallow water, mangrove swamps, and marine life make the kayak the preferred mode of transportation for those seeking to leave the highway behind. With so many kayak outfitters on either side of the Overseas Highway, "it is entirely plausible to go on three different types of kayak trips, in three distinctly different environments in the Keys, all inside of a single day." Sounds like a nifty challenge to us.

In Key West, for example, the Lazy Dog Kayak Company will ensure that your kayaking won't come at the expense of your drinking, as an open-air bar is located just 20 feet from the put-in area. Those looking for more action can join a kayak fishing expedition organized by Key Largo-based Florida Bay Outfitters. A sizable tarpon is strong enough to pull your kayak around for half an hour, giving you the ride of your life. And to really feel like you've left civilization behind, Reelax Charters on Sugarloaf Key will ferry your kayaks in a motorboat to remote beaches and mangrove islands about as far away from pavement as you can get in the Keys.

But whatever kayak journey you take, you'll be rewarded with spectacular views and that unique feeling of floating that somehow makes all your troubles seem smaller.

[Photo: The New York Times]

Related Stories:
· Florida Glide [The New York Times]
· Lazy Dog Outfitters [Official Site]
· Florida Bay Outfitters [Official Site]
· Reelax Charters [Official Site]
· Kayaking Coverage [Jaunted]

Tags: Thanksgiving Alternatives / Thanksgiving-Alternatives-Map / Thanksgiving / Florida Keys / Kiteboarding / → All Tags

Thursdays Are Always Thanksgiving In Key West

If you’re going to skip town on your family for Thanksgiving, you might as well go somewhere warm. Heading down to the Florida Keys is a good bet for nice weather and beach time, and the relaxed atmosphere doesn't allow for Black Friday insanity.

For dinner, head to Pepe's on Caroline Street. This is one of the oldest restaurants in Key West, and the place serves up a Thanksgiving-style meal every Thursday.

Then, instead of watching the parade on TV, head out to the water where kiteboarders are planning to congregate during the holiday weekend to put on a show for anyone watching. If the winds are blowing the right way on Saturday, a group plans to ride about 80 miles through the water from Islamarada to Key West.

Related Stories:
· Pepe's Cafe [Yelp]
· Thanksgiving in the Florida Keys? [Kiteboarding Magazine]
· Thanksgiving coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Stig Nygaard]

Tags: Florida Keys / National Parks / → All Tags

National Parks Travel: Another Park on the Way?

If you've already picked a new cheap place to live you might as well start planning your first cheap vacation as well. National Parks are always a great choice for affordable trips, and there may soon be one more to add to the list. The Miami Herald reports that Monroe County, home of the Florida Keys, is looking to become the nation's 59th national park.

The Keys have strict regulations against building and development, and local officials worry that residents will soon bring lawsuits claiming they have the right to build, sell or develop vacant land in the islands. So officials are off to the state capital to ask for $1.2 billion to buy up the turf.

Although another national park would be nice, lawyers have already begun contacting residents asking them to resist any possible sale. One Key Largo attorney even noted that this idea was, "The dumbest thing I've ever heard."

Related Stories:
· Monroe County Makes Pitch for National Park Designation [Miami Herald]
· National Parks coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Lee Coursey]

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The Florida Keys New Slogan

More Keys fun...

The Florida Keys want to let you know that they escaped hurricane damage this year, so you should plan your visit immediately.

Crass?  Insensitive?  Well, this is the place that Hemmingway said "Murdered the Vets" back in 1935.

Related Stories:
·   Also: No Katrina and No Wit [Gawker]