Still Keyed Up

Yankee Freedom II
Captain Rick & Salty
Frigate birds
Clear Water

Fort Jefferson
Dr. Mudd's Cell

Snorkeling
Cuban Refugee Boats
Mallory Square Sunset

Yesterday we had another fantastic experience. We took the ferry, Yankee Freedom II, 70 miles into the Gulf of Mexico to Dry Tortugas National Park. The crew on the ferry was great including Captain Rick's dog, Salty. The park is the site of Fort Jefferson, the largest brick structure in the Western Hemisphere and a nature reserve for birds and coral reefs. The fort, built with 2000 arches, was constructed over a 20 year period to protect US shipping interests between the gulf and the Atlantic. It never received all of the 450 cannons it was designed for because new parrot cannons made it obsolete before it was fully armed. During the Civil War it remained in the hands of the North and was used for northern prisoners who were put to work completing the fort. It continued as a prison after the war and housed those charged in Lincoln's assassination including Dr. Samuel Mudd who had treated John Wilkes Booth's broken leg. Following the tour we went snorkeling and saw many fish and a variety of coral. We could not believe how clear the water was, you could easily see 15 or 20 feet down. This was the first time either of us had snorkeled and we both had a great time seeing this unique ecosystem. Recently Dry Tortugas has become a favorite landing spot for Cuban refugees escaping to freedom. US policy is that if they make it to dry land they are allowed to stay, but if they are captured at sea they are returned to Cuba. Since July over 1400 have made it safely to Dry Tortugas in small boats that are barely seaworthy. We ended the day watching the sunset from Mallory Square.