On our last evening in Key West, Paul and I took a 2 person kayak down the canal near where we had our van parked. Its a small peaceful canal that no motor boats can go through and has plenty of fish and cassiopeias. The canal is the only water way that cuts through the whole island. We caught the sun in time and the sky did not disappoint.

The morning we departed I met a friendly man on a bicycle. His name is Charlie Roswell. He was admiring the mural but I admired his bike. It was decorated with items he found or was given over the years. Charlie has been riding his bike everyday since his wife Pat passed away in 1999. He nearly drank himself to death with grief but was turned around when his friend, a doctor, said he would die also and Pat would not have wanted that. He stopped drinking and now rides 35 miles a day, volunteers and loves to share stories. Please stop and say hello if you see him.

Off the Island with a stop at Baby’s coffee!

We headed to our next adventure through the Florida everglades. This is just mind boggling that people could navigate let alone settle in these wet lands. The air boat tour had a humorous guide that fit the part well.

I was impressed we saw many alligators  on the tour only to find that they are everywhere on the side of the road all up the coast. Still, pretty cool ride. We stopped a night in Palmetto, Florida and had a nice visit with my old friends, Suzi, Louie, and their son Josh. I completed a 20 mile run in the morning which left  me super hungry and able to eat all the sausages, eggs, and biscuits we had for breakfast.

On our way to Texas we planned to stop at a Loves truck stop. But it turned out to have only truck parking (very noisy) and was really unpleasant. Paul had noticed an independent truck stop 10 miles earlier on I-10, so we headed back. We slept very peacefully at this one, called Oasis in Robertsdale, Alabama. Plenty of room to park and the place is clean and even has laundry, along with the expected mix of god, guns and family that lets you know you’re in the deep south.