Day of Treasures in Key West
“Today’s the day!”
Mel Fisher
This morning we were off to visit the fascinating Mel Fisher Maritime Museum. Ron and I were both excited to learn about Mel Fisher—the world’s greatest treasure hunter. What an amazing story and an amazing life he and his family (who were all treasure hunters) had. Every day he used to say, “Today’s the day.” And finally on July 20th 1985 it was. He found what he’d been searching for for over 16 years: the priceless treasure cargo of the lost Spanish galleon Atocha which sank in 1622. The Atocha treasure was valued at 400 million dollars.
The museum contains an extensive collection of artifacts from the shipwrecks that he found, the Henrietta Maria, Nuestra Señora de Atocha, and Santa Margarita. However the gold bar that used to be in the museum for people to hold is no longer there. Two thieves stole it in 2010. It was later recovered when they tried to cash it in. The museum also told the stories about the pirates that once sailed along the keys. I particularly enjoyed reading the life stories of the female pirates. Many of them disguised themselves as men so that they could be pirates. The kids each picked out a little treasure chest as their souvenir and then spent the rest of the day pretending they were pirates with their treasure chests of gold. It was pretty cute.
Ron and I couldn’t stop talking about Mel Fisher and his family at lunch. I think that was one of my favourite museums. After lunch we walked to the Mel Fisher’s Treasure Store, where you can find authentic shipwreck treasure and jewelry made from the treasure Mel Fisher found. Scott and Anita were fantastic and helped us pick out a unique piece of jewelry made from one of the coins from the Santa Margarita treasure. Ron surprised me by buying this for me and I was very very excited. Scott and Anita helped make this an especially memorable purchase by being so friendly and making it a fun experience. If you are in Key West, we definitely recommend visiting their store. Ariel and Wyatt joked that when I wear it in the water it will send out a signal to pirates like in the movie Pirates of the Caribbean.
Our next destination was to the southernmost point in the continental USA. From that point you are only 90 miles from Cuba. So crazy to think we are that close. Of course, we had to stand at the spot and get a picture. A lot of other people had the same idea so there was a bit of a wait. Thankfully we met the nicest people while in line and chatted with them the entire time. Ryan and Rahil were so much fun to talk to that before we knew it, it was our turn for our picture. I was sad that our time with them was over. That is how much fun they were. Rahil gave us some great tips for places to see when we stay in Saint Petersburg this week.
For the rest of the hot hot day we headed to the beach. We spent a lovely afternoon at Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park. Not only was the water warm but you could also rent beach chairs to relax on. I was in heaven!!
My family and friends in Canada were all enjoying Thanksgiving dinners tonight. Our Thanksgiving is officially tomorrow but a lot of Canadians enjoy Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday and then leftovers on Monday. We decided to finish up all our leftovers from the day and we are going to make our Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow after we arrive in Saint Petersburg. I did however pick up a Key Lime Pie for our special dinner. We found the local hot spot to pick up a Key Lime Pie. It’s called Kermits and it’s supposed to be the best in Key West. I did try to find a pumpkin pie at first but then decided on a more fitting choice.
After dinner the kiddos showered and got in their pj’s and we took a little night golf cart ride. I made popcorn for the kids to enjoy on the ride. They were thrilled. The kids said that this would have been my mom’s favourite golf cart ride ever because she loves popcorn. We missed you, Nana! Our nighttime adventure made for a great ending to our day and time in Key West.
Good night from Florida!