70 miles from the coast of Key West lies the island of Dry Tortugas, a beautiful sanctuary for both humans and sea life.
Temporarily escaping the rooster filled tourist trap that is Key West, I hopped on the 2.5 hour ferry ride out to Dry Tortugas National Park- the 3rd least visited National Park in the mainland United States and one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever visited.
A National Monument since 1935 and a National Park since 1992, the park is centered around the massive Fort Jefferson:
Originally envisioned as the ultimate coastal fortress against our foreign enemies, Fort Jefferson has instead become one of the shining jewels of this rarely visited Park. Ringed by a large coral reef and just 90 miles from Havana, Fort Jefferson is an unfinished Naval defense base that can be fully explored on foot by anyone who visits the Park.
Here are my photos from my visit:
Looking out at the Ocean from Fort Jefferson
The Arches of Fort Jefferson
Inside of Fort Jefferson
A Wild Crocodile! Evidently these get washed into Dry Tortugas by large Hurricanes
Arriving in Style- instead of taking the ferry, you can pay $300 more to arrive by plane
An actual Moat surrounds the Fortress!
One of the many frequent residents of the Park
That’s all for now- next up I am off to my final Park in Florida, Biscayne Bay!
-Morgan
