In the early and mid  70’s Florida Keys Travel........

Things were still, to a degree, "old Keys feeling".

When I drove down, there were still hitch hikers, hippies, and a lot of macramé.

Fast food chains were far and few between.

Big time fishing had not yet made the front pages of today.

Things such as eco tours were only known to those who were more "University" minded.

Upscale amenities were only know to a very few. 

In the mid 70’s Florida Keys Travel..........

The Vietnam War was past.

Hitch hiking, hippies, and macramé was either gone or mostly dissolved into the backround

An enlightened small group started thinking of the Keys as more and more a destination point, rather than just a bunch of "Conch Heads" who lived down there.

Hotels and resorts got the message.

Visitor amenities began to increase

Ideas for activities visitors could do, or would want to do, evolved more and more in the local consciousness.Out siders began seeing the initial potential.

Key West was becoming “mature” to these new things

The rest of the Keys were still lazily growing

In the mid 70’s I was traveling from baseball camp to baseball camp in florida trying to make it as a walk on pitcher. Almost made it with Montreal. They called to the front office to sign me but was told they had just signed a lefty kid from Vancouver, spot gone. I moved on. Had a pitching stint in a game against a college team. Struck out six, walked two, picked them both off first. I was feeling pretty good as I walked off the field. Manager said leave your uniform in the club house, thank you very much. That was the last time I pitched a baseball. It was time for a Florida Keys Vacation to sort things out. While down there I got a call from a couple of buddies up in Ft. Lauderdale. They had a construction job and said come on up, we’re living in a tent in the middle of Lauderdale at a camping park. I jumped and went.

Ended up living in that tent for 2 years. We took, easily, a couple dozen weekend trips down into the Keys. A few were longer.

One time a lady friend from University came down and we went camping in Bahia Honda and did an assortrment of things, one of which was fishing, an older couple was hauling a small boat behind their RV. We befriended them and they asked us to go out fishing. We’re in about 30 ft of water where you can see bottom and the fish swimming around. You could practically move the fishing line right in front of the fishes’ nose to get him to bite on it. Well, he did and we all went back and I cleaned and grilled those grouper over a charcoal fire pit back at camp.

We continued on that trip down to Key West to show her. Stayed at the Casa Marina Resort.

My brother came down one time and we went to Key West and did some camping on Ohio Key at Sunshine just below the seven mile bridge. In Key West, while at Sloppy Joe’s one afternoon, befriended some Haitian shrimpers. Horten Portee was the captain. Large scar across his chest. He said hey, "we’ve got some fresh shrimp in our hold, want some"? So he and I got into my car, I left my brother with the rest of them at Sloppy’s, went to the shrimp docks over on the northwest side of the island. Went to the boat and got on. Went with him down into the hold. Never seen one before. He scoops up fist fulls of shrimp and puts them in a bag with some ice. I suddenly recognize a smell that one finds at concerts. I ask and he shows me another hold. Time to get out of here!  Drove back and picked up my Bro, bought a cooking pot and charcoal, went to a local beach park and cooked up some outrageously good fresh shrimp.

Now that’s sic!

After these two years in Lauderdale, went back up north. Time to grow up and use my University degree.