The Islamorada Street Fair was a great success for the Bike tour this weekend. We had Florida Travel and Leisure Magazine along for the ride and will do a piece on the bike tour in June. These photos were taken from the Pinder Grave Yard located on the Cheeca Lodge Property. Cheeca Lodge Beach was at one time the heart of Islamorada dating back to the mid 1800's. This graveyard is what has survived since the Labor Day Hurricane of 1935. I am going to try to do something new in March and see i...
Continue reading ...

We left off in Tavernier around the 90 mile marker going from Tavernier Creek Bridge to the Old Road. The Old Road is on the ocean side of US !. It is the old Overseas Hwy before the expanded one was built along side of it. The Old Road has a nice bike path on it all the way through Islamorada. This is where the scenery begins. The path is shaded with nice high trees on both sides. The area is residential with some pretty high end homes along the ocean. However, due to the tree line, you will...
Continue reading ...

First, let's cover some Keys terminology. Everything goes by mile markers in terms of locations. The county line starts at the 113 mile marker and ends in Key West at 0 mm. The bayside is on the west side and the oceanside is on the east. The 18 mile stretch is the road portion of US 1 that starts in Florida City and ends in Key Largo. There is two ways to get into the Keys, one is the Overseas Hwy or US 1, the other is Card Sound Road. It's an alternative route into the keys and about an ext...
Continue reading ...

 I occasionaly get a phone call asking me about cycling the whole Keys. I have done it several times myself. However, I prefer to take my bike and kayak to different parts of the Keys and experience some of the State Parks, bridges and local islands. With the bike path construction underway throughout the Keys, one day soon, the bike path with the exception of a few bridges will connect the whole length of the Keys.

I will do three write ups going into detail riding the bike path from Key Lar...
Continue reading ...

The proceeds from the t shirt sales go towards the Islamorada Wrestling Club.

Continue reading ...

December's schedule will be the following:

• December 2nd Full Moon Bike Tour at 9 PM- Meet at the Hurricane Monument

• December 19th and 20th at 10 AM-  Meet at Midway Cafe
• December 26th and 27th at 10 AM- Meet at Midway Cafe
• December 30th and Jan 1st-Full Moon Bike Tour 8 PM- Meet at Hurricane Monument
  
• January 1st,2nd and 3rd at 10 AM-  Meet at Midway Cafe at 10 AM
  

Remember, bring your own bike or rent one locally. Call Mark at 305-879-0390 to hold a spot. Please do not show up without ...
Continue reading ...

Today David Brookes and Yuhfen Lin posed on the beach at the Moorings Village with Cheeca Lodge Pier in the background. They both came from Miami for the tour. Thanks for coming and your are really great people. I hope to see you again.
Continue reading ...

Here is a calender of upcoming events.

• October 10th and 11th- Islamorada Historical Bike Tour 10 AM at Hurricane Monument. Free of charge, donation accepted for local youth sports program. 2 hour tour/ 6 mile ride. Bring your own bike or rent one from local shop that delivers to location. Call Mark for details and reservations at 305-879-0390.
• October 30th (Friday) at 8 PM, Full Moon Bike Tour 
• November 21st, The Amazing Race of Islamorada. Three person teams compete in a 3 mile run, 2 mile kaya...

Continue reading ...

Today was the second day of the tour. We had a very interesting and well traveled crowd today. Our friends from the United Kingdom were on a world wide tour going into the month of April. The Keys were their first stop on the way to L.A., The Cook Islands, New Zealand, Australia, and India. Our other guests were history majors and taught me some things about Indian Key. The homes on Indian Key had their kitchens in separate buildings to prevent fires and heat build up in the main house. This ...
Continue reading ...

Today we had a nice crowd from Tampa, Norfolk, and Charlottesville and Richmond. We also had some locals. We are getting ready for our October 3rd and 4th bike and kayak tour out to Indian Key. I am boning up on my Indian Key history so this should be a fun event. If you would like to attend, bring your own bike and kayak or Backcountry cowboy can hook  you up. Go to Backcountrycowboy.com.  The event will start at 10 AM. Call Mark for details at 305-879-0390.  

Michelle Cacares from the Holid...
Continue reading ...

I had a very nice group this Sunday on my bike tour. The Brooks family were in attendance from Islamorada. Also Debra Winger from the Lower Keys attended the ride.  If you have attended this bike tour and have photos, please forward them so I can post them. Every weekend has been special and the people are always fun and interesting. In fact,I keep learning something new all the time. One of our riders was staying at the Pines and Palms and gave us a tour of the place. Very nice, 1950's style...
Continue reading ...

The dates for the bike and kayak tours are set for the first weekend in October which are the 3rd and 4th. The start time will be 10 AM. However, we will meet at the boat launching area on Indian Key fill on the bay side. The groups will be limited to 10 each day.  You can bring your own bike and kayak if you wish. We will stage on Indian Key fill and our club will have people to watch the bikes and kayaks during the tour. Once we set up, our group will ride straight to the Hurricane Monument...
Continue reading ...

Imagine, 160 acres of Beach front property for $3.27. The three pioneer family's of Islamorada actually purchased this property for that little.  They Homesteaded their lots in the late 1800's and that was the fee to obtain a deed.  This picture is of the beach at the Mooring Village properties, once owned by the Pinders. All the pioneer family's lived on the beach because of the ocean breeze and shade which made early Keys life bearable.  Their school, church and homes were built on the beac...
Continue reading ...

This stop is a location in 1994 where the largest drug bust in the Florida Keys occurred.  Over 3,500 lbs of cocaine was seized in the early morning hours in Islamorada.  A neighbor thought someone was breaking into the house and called the police.  When the police arrived they arrested five drug traffickers.  This drug ring was under investigation by the Feds for several years and they could never catch these guys.  A couple of local deputies did more in a day's work than the DEA did in thre...
Continue reading ...

This spot is packed with history.  It is Pa Pa Joe's.  A year after the 35 Hurricane it was built as a fishing camp in Islamorada.  It became the first location in Florida to Host a salt water fishing tournament.  Famous people like Harry Truman, George Bush, Ernest Hemingway and many more have fished in Islamorada.

The car ferry was located here while they were building a bridge system for the highway. The ferry could carry 20 cars and would take you to Long Key.  The car ferry was destroyed ...
Continue reading ...