Perpetual Change

Arriving in the lower Keys, we saw the greatest hurricane destruction, but yet much new construction as well. All the debris was cleared up, besides a random storm tossed boat, and the bike trails were clear and in relatively good shape. We biked through the National Key Deer Refuge (https://www.fws.gov/refuge/National_Key_Deer_Refuge/), and spotted one of the miniature bucks with 6 points, as he nibbled road-side. We then enjoyed the bike paths of Cudjoe and Summerland Keys, before hitting Baby's Coffee (https://babyscoffee.com/). The owner, Gary, retired with his wife to the Keys and flipped a quarter to see if they would open a pizza place or coffee shop. Coffee won – big time. As the Southernmost coffee roaster they have a strong following and ship beans all over the USA. They are popular with cyclists as well, because the last 16 miles of the Florida Keys Overseas Heritage Trail is complete from their shop to Key West.

Refueled on smoothies and caffeine, we made the last push. Some of the group stopped for a dip in the ocean at Smathers Beach, popular with the spring break crowds. We cruised past Casa Marina, Flagler's crown jewel hotel at the end of his railroad, and then took photos at MM 0 after competing our 165 mile sojourn. We were pretty beat though, and we didn't have much time to lounge by the pool. We checked into our home away from home, Captain's Corner (http://captainscorner.com/) and then hurried to our boat, Floridays (https://floridayskeywest.com/). It was good to see Captain Alexis again. She showed us a great sunset cruise as we passed Ocean Key Resort and Spa's (http://www.oceankey.com/) famous sunset pier, our other hotel on our Backroads Keys itinerary. We didn't expect much of a show, as there was heavy cloud cover, but then all of a sudden the sun burst through low in the skies for a spectacular sunset. Upon arriving back to Key West, just like the sailors of old, we walked across the crazy party of Duval Street to Santiago's Bodega (www.santiagosbodega.com/home.php?restaurant=1

), where we had a wonderful dinner of tapas. Several of us feel it is one of the best meals in all the Backroads' catalogue.

Finally, the next morning we headed out once more on the open water. Lazy Dog Stand Up Paddleboard (www.lazydog.com/) took us to explore to the salt flats and mangrove mazes on the back of Key West before we had to get on the road to drop our bikes off to Steve and our riders off at the airport. A few riders stayed behind to enjoy one more day in Key West and then catch the ferry to Fort Myers. And there were some odd summer-like rains that began, but not before our bikes were safely packed away. We had a great trip, and can't wait to paddle the Keys again!

A special thanks to Backroads for making it possible, to all our great partners in the Keys, our sponsors far and wide, and to our riders: Rebecca Collins (who took a break from her winter job on the mountain: https://www.vail.com/plan-your-trip/ski-and-ride-lessons.aspx), Amanda Arling (escaping the snow where she now manages in Mystic: www.whalersinnmystic.com/), John Kruchoski (on spring break from grad school:https://www.fuqua.duke.edu/) and Lara Garvas (exploring the Keys for the first time from her home in Slovenia:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neGcwTg4AFA)