Earth Day 2023

The sun wasn’t shining quite the way that I had hoped as we started the two and a half hour drive from mainland Florida to Key West. But I was in the Keys and the 80 degree breeze swirling around the car was already starting to thaw my frozen bones from the long cold North County winter. Staring out the window Florida Bay slowly came into view. I have been following groups like Captains for Clean Water for years now and I was finally getting a chance to see this very significant body of water for myself.

This bay is the end of the everglades. This is where one of the world's largest wetland ecosystems flows into the ocean. This spot is where the largest continuous mangrove ecosystem in the western hemisphere kisses the ocean. It was a very special moment for me as I was finally putting eyes on the end point of one of the largest environmental restoration projects most of us will see in our lifetime. For years the state of Florida has seen a huge increase in its human population. As more and more people moved to the sunshine state the need to move this natural waterway system out of the way to build housing and other human necessities had become more important than the ecosystem that surrounds them. This system had been pushed around to the point it was starting to collapse. But today federal, state, tribal, and local agencies are in the process of trying to fix the negative environmental issues we have created and heal this once 4000 square mile watershed that had been reduced to less than half its size. This was just one of the many natural wonders I would get to see while on this family vacation away from home. Once we checked into our hotel we decided to race down to Mallory Square to catch the world renowned Key West sunset.

We arrived just in time to watch the fireball in the sky fade away and turn the horizon into a pallet of oranges, reds, pinks, and blues. It was breathtaking. I had to admit it was almost as beautiful as a late August sunset over the St. Lawrence River. The next morning I was awakened by an odd sound. It took me a minute to realize what my ears were trying to interpret as I wiped the sleep from my eyes. It was a rooster crowing. Yes, in the middle of this tropical paradise I was hearing a rooster.

I climbed out of bed and headed out the door. I embraced the warm humid air as I walked down the stairs to the sidewalk. I stood there pondering the sight before me, a hen, her baby chicks, and a rooster were pecking away at the parking lot. An employee of the hotel chuckled as she watched the puzzled look on my face. She then explained to me that the island was full of wild chickens that wandered this salty piece of land at their own will. After breakfast we decided to explore some of the sites. First stop was the southernmost point in the continental USA. We took our place in line with all the other tourists. I was anxious to finally get a chance to touch this iconic monument.

As we waited in line the ocean mist sprayed over the break wall. I could taste the salty sea in my mouth. It was wonderful. Once we had our turn we decided to head over to the Fort Zachary Taylor State Park. The warm sand wrapped around my bare feet as we walked through the park to the beach. Sand and salt blasted picnic tables sat in the shade of the tropical trees around the park. Immediately I worked my way over to the ocean. The distinct marine odor tickled my nose as my feet finally got the chance to soak in the salty ocean.

“This right here is what I’ve been waiting for”, I thought to myself. It had been years since the South Florida waters touched my skin and I wasn’t going to take one second of it for granted. I decided to get my camera out and take pictures of the waves gently rolling over the rocks in front of me. After a while being lazy by the ocean it was time for lunch. Back at our hotel we ate a quick lunch and decided to spend the afternoon by the pool. Still a bit tired from the long drive, it was just what we needed.

We spent the next several hours relaxing in the hot Florida sunshine while watching iguanas and chickens scurry around the pool. As evening fell on our wonderful day we decided to go out for some waterfront dining. We found a great place called Hurricane Hole. We sat out on the deck of this small marina and watched a manatee occasionally rise to the surface as we ate our dinner. It was another one of those once in a lifetime experiences that will be talked about for years to come. On our last full day on the island we decided to do a few more touristy things. First thing we did was visit the Ernest Hemingway house.

This was a stop I had to make. Ernest may have not been the role model that you would want your son to mimic but he truly knew how to live the life of adventure. I think we should all try to have a little Ernest in our soul. From his trips to Cuba and Africa to his time spent in several wars, he certainly knew how to travel the world and write about it. Our next stop was to the Key West Garden Club's botanical garden. We spent quite a bit of time wandering around this old fort that was filled with stunning flowers and plants. The colors and floral aromas were absolutely stunning.

For our final evening we decided to walk Duval Street one last time. I got the chance to drink a margarita at the original Margaritaville, see mile marker 0 of US 1 and watch the sunset over the horizon one last time.

The next morning we were up early and on our way north to Jensen Beach for a day and a half of being beach bums. But there was one stop I had to make along the way in Islamorada. I watched miles of ocean pass by me on US 1 as we jumped from key to key. Finally the sign for Robbie’s Marina came into view. This marina is a rare gem in the keys. There aren’t too many places in the world where you can walk out onto the docks with a bucket of bait and feed the tarpon.

The water around the docks was swirling with action in the hot Florida sun. Pelicans waited very impatiently on the dock hoping for just one bite of bait as I carefully picked out which tarpon I wanted to feed. To my surprise there was also a nurse shark cruising around as well as a goliath grouper. After feeding these majestic creatures and taking hundreds of pictures it was time to head farther north. We made it to Jensen Beach late that afternoon and decided to go play in the ocean for a few minutes before we hit my favorite tiki bar for dinner, Shuckers. We sat on the deck overlooking the storm ravaged ocean. By the time my first rum runner hit the table a rainbow peaked out over the water.

As the day came to an end I couldn't wait for morning to come. I was up well before the sun’s rays peaked over the horizon.

I spent my morning sitting on the beach watching the sun rise as the waves crashed before me.

The rest of the day I was in full beach bum mode. Bouncing between the beach and the pool I didn’t want to waste one second of my last day there. Once the sun set and our bags were mostly packed my youngest son asked if we could head out to the beach one more time. How could I say no to that? We spent another hour jumping in the waves of the moonlit ocean. The next morning we were in the car at 5am and started the journey home. As much as we didn’t want to leave we all knew we had made some great memories that we would carry with us for a lifetime.

Why share this story:

I know, this is Northern NY Adventures but I had to share this adventure with you all. Now to get to the Earth Day message I wanted to share with everyone. Our planet is full of awe inspiring beauty. We are surrounded by landscapes ranging from snow covered mountain peaks

to sandy specs of land surrounded by ocean.

We have creatures so small they can’t be seen by the naked eye to mammals the size of school buses swimming in our waters. We have palm trees and pine trees that both sway in the breeze. As well as flowers that grow and give our planet the most vivid colors. I truly feel that we all must go out and see these things for ourselves to truly understand what the natural world has for us to discover. If we do not create a bond with these things they are very easy to destroy without putting too much thought into it. It may be true that we are the most advanced species on earth yet (in my opinion) we are also the most destructive species there is. We destroy habitat and landscapes for our own personal pleasure with very little regard for the other species that inhabit it. Believe it or not we have to share this planet with all living things, it isn’t just our planet.

We must all do our individual parts to keep this beautiful planet healthy, clean and safe for all living things. Let's enjoy this world while we cohabitate with all the critters that share it with us.

It’s ironic how we can see environmental issues of the past and say “boy it was crazy that we did that”, then turn around and continue to do things that we know (right now) are going to one day be major issues for mother earth. So this Earth Day please remember that it isn’t the bees, deer, alligators ,flowers, or the fish creating the planet's problems but us humans.

Please take a moment this Earth Day and think about one thing you can do to make your tiny slice of this planet a little better. So someday our great, great, great grandchildren can still enjoy a Northern NY Adventure like we can today.

Aaron Hardy

Northern NY Adventures

“Make Life an Adventure”

If you are interested in learning more about the Everglades restoration project I encourage you to visit https://www.evergladesrestoration.gov/

https://captainsforcleanwater.org/