The Mud Keys are one of those areas around Key West that just put you in a place that is pure Nirvana. This little maze of mangroves and waterways will captivate you as you cruise at no wake speed through it. The whole area is surrounded by sandbars that turn into beaches at low tide and home for rays, barracudas, and sharks at high tide. as you navigate the mangrove lined waterways, it becomes noticeable to you that you have reached a part of the world that was just put here for your enjoyment. This natural habitat for fish, birds, and a few raccoons that seem to be willing to share their home with you as you idle through.
Once on one of the sugar fine sand beaches that are hidden in the midst of the mangroves and waterways, you can wander in the shallow sand bottom waters and watch the little fish as they scurry along the bottom. The cleanliness of the beach and the footprints in the sand make you feel like you just discovered a new world that is all there for your exploration. You can spend the entire day there without any effort and it is amazing to me that the day can disappear so quickly as you spot one new thing after another. You know others have been their before you, but the pride of those who were shows by the way they left the place feeling untouched because they took their trash with them and maybe even cleaned up some other's as well. This is why I can enjoy it as much as I do and try to follow in the footsteps of those who passed through this Key before me and clean up as I wander.
I guess it is time for me to be heading back to reality in Key West, what ever reality really is down here. I now see the Key West rising out of the ocean as I approach and see the end of my little adventure to Mud Key coming to an end. I think what makes me feel so at home here in Key West is the ability to do so many things with in a hour or so of the marina. This was a very fine day even though the winds had the water white capping at about 2 to 3 feet on the way out and back, in the Mud Keys where it is protected from the wind, it was like glass and made for a perfect cruise. ;o)
