If you are going to go camping you might as well “go big” and camp on a primitive island. That is exactly what my husband, two of our lifelong couple friends and I did for three days this past November. The Dry Tortugas are a small group of islands about 70 miles west of Key West. Garden Key is home to Fort Jefferson, a civil war fort and the one that you can get to from Key West either by sea plane or by ferry, The Yankee Freedom. After almost a year of planning we chose the latter and set out for an adventure of a lifetime. The hardest part of the trip by far is the shopping, packing your things in sea spray tight containers and loading/unloading it to and from the ferry.
Ok, I need to take a break here. I could definitely just go into the specifics of Camping at the Dry Tortugas 101 and believe me I wish there would have been more online for reference and I promise to give you all (and much more) of the information you would ever need and want but first I want to tell you some of the back story how this adventure got started.
I have known my friends Oscar, Jay and Jay’s wife, Suzanne over 35 years but how I talked them into going with me and my husband, John to an island in the middle of nowhere without running water or electricity is beyond me. My friend Oscar and his girlfriend, Nicole are definitely NOT the camping kind but they were really good sports. They came to visit last year and I see them when I go home to NOLA twice a year. Well, I kept telling them we should go camp. Probably really annoying that we should go camp. I have been twice on the ferry to the Dry Tortugas and vowed I would not go back unless I could be on the beach waving to the passengers as they head back to Key West. There is something very romantic to me about being alone on a deserted island watching the sunset and I really dislike ferry rides, so I could use the extra day/days in between them. I am sure to get sick just about every time. Going on the day trip is amazing and very worthwhile but with the 2 1/2 hours ride to and from you are only on the island for 4 hours and that needs to include your fort tour, snorkeling and getting back on the boat for lunch. For just $16.00 more a day you can have a campsite up to 6 people.
We planned our trip about 6 months ago with booking the ferry, camping and hotel rooms for when we got back to Key West. Plan before you go make sure you get a tent, tub for food/water, ice chest, flashlight/lantern and the air mattress or pad you are going to sleep on. Everything else can be purchased right before you go. You can bring 60lbs of things per person not including how much water and ice you would like to bring. I would suggest at least a gallon of water per day per person and more if you would like to rinse off the salt each night. We decided to use one of the campsite grills and cook both nights. You could easily do sandwiches and cold items but having hot food was something that we definitely looked forward to each night. This does require bringing more items like charcoal, sternos and matches It was quite windy at times and lighting the fire was challenging. You are not allowed to bring propane or lighting fluid of any kind. Sternos work great! Honestly, if you are only staying one night probably not worth the trouble. The ferry will be back the next day at 10:30am and you can get back on and purchase lunch for $7.00. One breakfast and lunch is included in your trip. So basically you are really not stranded out there very long except in case of high winds and the ferry cannot come out to get anyone (which we heard had just happened to some campers right before we went.) So, definitely bring some staples just in case….think crackers and peanut butter! We went to Publix and pretty much bought them out and filled a large tub with chips, makings for smores, bread/peanut butter, Starbucks instant iced coffee, utensils, paper plates and napkins and tons of liquor with mixers!
I am laughing as I write this because I watch Europeans everyday at my beach back here in Marathon, Florida hardly bring anything with them. I usually see a towel, sandwich and a gallon of water. I don’t know why but us Americans have to have so much stuff! We want our chairs, Tervis cup, towel, ice chest full of cold beer, sunscreen and enough food for an army. So here we were the night before all packed up with enough stuff we could have stayed a week!
Campers arrive at the Yankee Freedom ferry dock by 6:30am on your day of departure and have all your things up on the dock packed in water resistant gear. We did have some small dry sack bags for extra protection for clothes and towels. You can bring a kayak or paddle board for an extra charge. Once you get up on the ramp the nice workers on the boat do the rest for you. After a brief passenger safety meeting you are leaving dock at 8:00am sharp. Breakfast begins your day as you sail away from Key West with a full continental breakfast.
The view of the fort is best had at the bow of the boat. It is something of a dream with blue turquoise Caribbean sea all around. Campers have a brief meeting with a park ranger. Mostly to tell you that you are on your own and only come get them in case of an emergency- bleeding or fire kind of thing! Campers head to the trees, pick out your best available spot. I thought it would be kind of like the land run of 1889 but really it was easy for us with lots of extra spaces. The camp sites are private from other guests and very close to the beach! We had a spectacular 3 full days/2 nights of laughs, beach time and sightseeing adventures. I would advise to bring bug spray – no-see-ums and mosquitoes at dusk. We met a solo Swiss traveler named Kevin which we thoroughly enjoyed speaking to one of the nights. It is so refreshing and enjoyable to talk to people from other lands! It was our second night and we were ready for a hot shower, to be out of the elements and he said “We are far from suffering!” Wow! It should all make us think about gratefulness and how much we have to give back to others! He did need our bug spray by the way! 🙂
We spent our days touring the fort and surrounding beaches, being in the water, eating and drinking. Our nights were spent playing games (bring games and flashlights), eating and drinking with lots of old stories and making new ones!
On your day of departure you bring back your trash bag (they give you one) and have all of your things loaded back on the dock for the boat’s 10:30am arrival. We chose to spend that day going on one of the fort tours and back on the boat for a refreshing rinse off, change and a nice lunch!
Would we do it all again? Absolutely and we can’t wait for our next adventure! There is no price that can be put on friendship, laughs, stars, drinks, good food, beach, sunsets, learning new things and meeting new friends!
Barbara