My First Time in the Keys

by Kristin R.
(Saint Petersburg, FL)

Another Beautiful  Bahia Honda Sky

Another Beautiful Bahia Honda Sky

I will never forget the first time I visited the Florida Keys. It was a family vacation and involved the usual "Are we there yet?" questions from my brother and I in the backseat. I also remember asking my dad if we could stop every so often so I could take pictures because the water seemed to shift from every imaginable shade of blue and green to colors I never knew were possible in nature. He stopped once or twice but was eager to make our destination: Bahia Honda State Park.

We had decided to "rough it" for a few days by camping and to our surprise, our campsite overlooked the water. We had a beautiful view of sea and sky that seemed to stretch on forever and if I did not love Florida and the sea before then, I can say that I fell in love with it completely at that moment, because there was nothing more lovely than the sight before me.

The family did the usual things in the park such as fishing, swimming, exploring and such. We grilled hot dogs and hamburgers every night for dinner and we even made a trip to Key West where we wandered up and down Duval Street going in and out of the shops. But the best experience of that first trip down was waking up early in the morning on the day we were supposed to leave and sitting on the picnic table at our campsite with my dad.

We didn't say much - didn't need to - and just looked at the sky and the sea. There happened to be a meteor shower that morning and we watched until the sun came up and we packed everything away to go home. I'll never forget seeing shooting stars for the first time above the sea in the Florida Keys. It was simply unforgettable.

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