Today we were going to visit the Coral Castle. We had to be ready at 8:00. At 7:00 the decision was made to cancel that part of the trip. Everyone was too tired. It would have been cool to see, but the kids would not have enjoyed it. At $12 per person, our money could be used for something better.

We made our way to Key Largo . Our snorkeling trip was leaving from John Pennekamp State Park. We left with a half hour to spare. Traffic slowed us down. We barely made it before our reservations were going to be given to someone else.

We left on a "three-hour tour". I was concerned that the boat was called the SS Minnow. It took a half hour to make it to the reef. Today was the first day that they have had any real wind. It made the sea so choppy, so we were only allowed to swim at the closest reef. Since the reef was so shallow, we could only swim around it. We could not go over it for fear of damaging the coral and possibly scraping ourselves on the coral.

The reef was not really spectacular; however, there were some cool looking coral. Usually when we go to a reef, there are a lot of fish around. Here, it was difficult to see any fish. I took Mary and we went out away from where most of the people were going. She was struggling to keep up with me . She had a leakage problem with her mask and was having a hard time. I saw a barracuda swimming around us. I remembered at that point that you should not be swimming with jewelry. They are attracted to its shininess and will attack it. I looked at my wedding band and thought I was in trouble. It was the “first” time that I wished I wasn't married!   ; )

We had an hour and a half to snorkel. It went too quickly. The boat called us back. I thought we were only in for a half hour. From the pictures I saw on their website, the other reefs would have been a lot nicer.

We were supposed to snorkel with Jesus. They had a bronze statue of Jesus that was put on the reef floor. The seas were too rough to go there. It would have been one of the high points of the trip.

After the trip, we hung out at the picnic tables. There were several birds hanging around. They were begging for food . Gabby and I were throwing peanuts to them. We wanted them to get closer so they would take them out of our hands. Some came close to us, but none would get close enough to take the peanut out of our hand.

We ate at the Conch House for lunch. Well, it was supposed to be for appetizers, but it turned into a full meal. Beth and Rob had seen it on an episode of Man vs. Food and wanted to go there. Most people went with the conch for lunch. Kim chastised me for not trying the conch. I have a hard time eating something that looks like I just pulled it out of my nose.

We did one last check of the weather for our cruise. It is in the middle of hurricane season. The last thing we need is a hurricane at sea! It looks like we will be safe.