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Pines and Palms Resort: A Comfy Getaway in the Florida Keys By
George Medovoy, Editor (The first in a series) At the 1950's-era white Caribbean cottages of Islamorada's Pines and Palms Resort, I knew that we had made the right decision on where to stay on our first leg of a trip down the Florida Keys. Innkeeper
Jim Bernardin's charming cottages with colorful trims were as inviting as ever…and
as cozy and comfortable as you could wish for. "You can fish all year round," says Bernardin, "and never run out of something to catch." Like sailfish, mahi-mahi, and tarpon. (Here's a perfect spot to sit down with a good book)
Or, like me, you can sit on a blue lounging chair on the shore of the Atlantic…and read a good book.
Our classic cottage had a comfy bedroom, private bath, and kitchen area with convenient stove, microwave, refrigerator, coffee maker, and kitchenware, so that you could stay for an extended period, if you were so disposed. (A comfy bedroom with modern decor)
A step-down room had a small table, a couch, and a TV overlooking a waterside patio. The resort also has an oceanfront heated pool, as well as dockage and ramp. Everything inside was spotlessly clean. In the summer months, fishermen come for mahi-mahi, and the dock will have as many as 15 boats tied up at any one time. Bernardin also rents nearby two-bedroom 2 ½ bath condos and a one-bedroom conch cottage. The conch cottage, Bernardin says, "is like renting your friend's beach home." (How inviting -- a hammock suspended beneath the palms!)
A radio/TV advertising executive originally from Michigan, Bernardin would come down here to vacation and fish and eventually got hooked on the place. "Fishing and warm weather - that's what did it," he recalls. His recommendations on what to see and do in Islamorada are very good, like breakfast at Bob's Bunz, a small, irreverent sort of place famous for cinnamon buns with cream cheese frosting and where the waitress recommended the home fries with my scrambled eggs because "You can get hash browns anywhere." Islamorada's main street, the Overseas Highway, has clusters of shops and restaurants, like the Islamorada Fish Company, an actual working fish market, where we dined on fresh grouper and French fries, with a slice of traditional key lime pie for dessert all under a brilliant Keys sunset. (A stunning sunset at the Islamorada Fish Company)
At Worldwide Sportsman, the cavernous fishing gear store next door, I visited the sister ship to Hemingway's famous 38-foot fishing boat, "Pilar." The story is that after fishing from this one, Hemingway ordered another just like it to satisfy his yearning for Gulf Stream big fish. No surprise, the spacious vessel has several bare-chested-Hemingway fishing photos on display. We also enjoyed Islamorada's Theater of the Sea and Tropical Gardens -- small enough not to overwhelm -- and were captivated by the dolphin, sea lion and parrot shows. So Much to Do for the Whole Family There
is so much to do here for the entire family, including a supervised swim with
the playful California sea lions, getting up close to dolphins, and taking in
a fascinating parrot show. To
reach the Pines and Palms Resort,
call (800) 624-0964 or www.pinesandpalms.com.
Islamorada: Centerpiece of the "Purple Isles" Islamorada, the centerpiece of a group of islands called the "purple isles," was named by Spanish explorers who used the Spanish word "morada" (purple) either for the violet sea snail found on the seashore there, or for the purple bougainvillea flowers that flourish in the area. The Islamorada area includes Plantation, Windley and Upper and Lower Matecumbe keys, and Long Key. Known as the Sportfishing Capital of the World, Islamorada is heralded for its angling diversity and features the Keys' largest fleet of offshore charter boats and shallow-water backcountry boats. Scuba Diving, Too However,
there's more to do in the Islamorada area than fishing. "One by land and two by sea" describes how visitors can visit three state parks in Islamorada. On land, travelers can step inside an aboveground coral reef at the Windley Key Fossil Reef State Geological Site. Traveling by boat, visitors can explore Lignumvitae Key State Botanical Site, home to a virgin hardwood hammock untouched by modern development; and Indian Key State Historic Site, a once-bustling town that was the seat of the Dade County government from 1836 to 1866. Indian Key 's structures were burned to the ground during the Second Seminole War in 1840. Another state park, the Long Key State Recreation Area, offers camping, canoeing, nature trails, a small beach and picnic grounds. The Islamorada area also features eco-tours, water sports rentals, tennis facilities, bicycle trails, historic hikes, beautiful vistas of both the Atlantic Ocean and Florida Bay, opportunities to swim with dolphins and stingrays, and a more unusual recreational activity: feeding tarpon off the docks at Robbie's Marina, mile marker (MM) 77.5 bayside. Area beaches outside of the Long Key State Recreation Area include a family facility with picnic tables behind the Islamorada Public Library and Anne's Beach, where stretches of sand are linked by a nature trail.
(The colorful trim of the Caribbean cottages at the Pines and Palms Resort)
IF
YOU GO… Read Arnie Greenberg's story on Florida for Seniors by clicking here. General travel
information: www.fla-keys.com. WHAT TO DO AND SEE IN ISLAMORADA Windley Key Fossil Reef Geological State Park, located at Mile Marker (MM) 85 bayside, (305) 664-2540, www.dep.state.fl.us/parks/district5/windleykey/index.asp. An exposed coral reef, this park once served as a quarry for construction of Henry Flagler's Key West extension of the Florida East Coast Railway. Later, it was used to harvest decorative building stones. An environmental center documents park and regional history, and nature trails wind through mangrove hammocks. Theater of the Sea, MM 84.5 oceanside, (305) 664-2431, www.theaterofthesea.com. Visitors can swim with bottlenose dolphins and stingrays, peruse wild animal exhibits and participate in sea lion shows. Pioneer
Cemetery, MM 82 oceanside. Situated on the beach at Cheeca Lodge, this cemetery
is the final resting place of Islamorada area pioneers. The statue of an angel
located here was one of few structures left standing after the Great Labor Day
Hurricane of 1935. Islamorada
County Park, MM 81.5 bayside. Located behind Islamorada's Public Library,
this beach offers picnic facilities. Lignumvitae Key Botanical State Park, MM 78.5 bayside, (305) 664-4815, www.dep.state.fl.us/parks/district5/lignumvitaekey/index.asp. Accessible only by boat, the island features a virgin hardwood hammock, along with an early Florida Keys home and a stone wall believed to have been built by Native Americans. A boat runs to the island twice daily at 9:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., Thursday through Monday, from Robbie's Marina, MM 77.5 bayside in Islamorada, (305) 664-9814. Otherwise, access to the island is limited to private and charter boats. Tours are available Thursday through Monday at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., and a park ranger must be notified to meet the boat at the island's dock. Robbie's Marina, MM 77.5 bayside, (305) 664-9814, www.robbies.com. Visitors may purchase buckets of bait to feed tarpon from the marina dock. Islamorada Tennis Club, MM 76.8 bayside, (305) 664-5340. Lighted hard and clay courts are open to the public, an on-premises pro shop offers rentals. Anne's Beach, MM 73.5 oceanside. Situated along the roadside, Anne's Beach provides a popular spot for sunning and swimming. A boardwalk through mangroves links two sandy areas. Clean and spacious restrooms are available. Long
Key State Recreation Area, MM 67.5 oceanside, (305) 664-4815, www.dep.state.fl.us/parks/district5/longkey/index.asp.
Camping, canoeing and nature trails are offered here, along with a small beach
and picnic facilities. (Click below for more travel).
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