Page 1 of 2 - The Two RV Gypsies: Full-Time RVers
The two RV Gypsies in the Florida Keys with friends
April 29, 2014 - May 1, 2014
(plus some photos taken in the Keys in previous years)
USA map showing location of Floridamap
Information about the Florida KeysHistory book clipart

The Florida Keys are in the southeast United States. They begin at the southeastern tip of the Florida peninsula, about 15 miles south of Miami, and extend in a gentle arc south-southwest and then westward to Key West. At the nearest point, the southern tip of Key West is just 90 miles from Cuba. More than 95 percent of the land area lies in Monroe County, but a small portion extends northeast into Miami-Dade County, such as Totten Key. The total land area is 137.3 square miles. Much of the population is concentrated in a few areas, such as the city of Key West, which has 32% of the entire population of the Keys.
Dolphin Research Center sign
large dolphin stautue

Below: Miniature deer roam around the neighborhoods on Big Pine Key which is 100-miles south of Miami and 30-miles north of Key West on Highway US-1. The National Key Deer Refuge was established in 1957 to protect and preserve Key deer and other wildlife resources in the Florida Keys. (The deer photos were taken by Karen Duquette in 1999.)
Key deer
Key deer
Key deer

Below: In July 1999, Karen Duquette and her friend Mary Alice Hoadley went to the "No Name Pub" on Big Pine Key.
sign for the No Name Pub
 Mary Alice Hoadley at The No Name Pub

Below: April 29, 2014 - The two RV Gypsies drove from Deerfield Beach, Florida to Cudjoe Key, Florida to meet friends, Sandy and George Brew, who were renting a mobile home at "Venture Out".
Venture Out sign
mobile home at Venure Out
view at Venture Out
view at Venture Out
Lee and George at Venture OUt
still life photography
pelican at Venture Out
pelican at Venture Out

Below: George Brew, Sandy Collins, and Karen Duquette (Good friends forever)
at Venture Out in Cudjoe Key
George Brew, Sandy Collins
George Brew, Sandy Collins, and Karen Duquette

Below: Time to cool off in the salt-water pool. It was 98 degrees outside. Lee Duquette did his Physical Therapy exercises in the pool. (He just had a knee replaced).
pool at Venture OUt
Lee Duquette
Sandy, George and Karen
Sandy, George and Karen

The photo below was taken while holding the camera halfway above the water and halfway below the water with a funny distorted and amazing result.
laughing clipart dudehalf and half photo
 outline photo

More half and half photos.
half and half photo
half and half photo
the two RV Gypsies and their freinds
Sandy, George, Karen

Below: Coconut palm trees - a sign of the Keys tropical climate
coconut palm trees

History of the Seven Mile BridgeThe Seven Mile Bridge is a famous bridge in the Florida Keys, in Monroe County, Florida. It connects Knight's Key in the Middle Keys to Little Duck Key in the Lower Keys. At the time of its completion in 1982, it was the longest continuous concrete segmental bridge in the world, and is currently one of the longest bridges in America. Seven Mile Bridge actually consist of two bridges in the same location. The older bridge, originally known as the Knights Key-Pigeon Key-Moser Channel-Pacet Channel Bridge, was constructed from 1909-1912 as part of the Overseas Railroad. After the railroad sustained considerable damage during the Labor Day Hurricane of 1935, the bridge was refurbished for automobile use only. Dismantled tracks were recycled, painted white, and used as guardrails. It had a swing span that opened to allow passage of boat traffic, near where the bridge crosses Pigeon Key - a small island that once served as the work camp for the Florida East Coast Railway. When Hurricane Donna in 1960 inflicted further damage, decision to construct a new bridge was made.
The Seven Mile Bridge
Look below

please ontinue on to photos taken in Key West FloridaPlease continue on to Key West. These photos were put on a separate page to allow the photos to load faster in case viewers have a slower computer or slower internet connection.