Key West - A ride out to Sunset Key for lunch

Three huge liners were in port today, we passed under one to exit the dock where the shuttle was at

One place we always make time for is lunch at Latitudes on Sunset Key. Part of the attraction is the ride out to the Key. When you make a reservations for lunch at Latitudes, you automatically have a spot on the launch out to the island. The ride is part of the fun of eating at Latitudes. You get a good view of Key West from the water and a view of all the boats at anchor north of the island. The shuttle runs every 30 minutes so you just call to make a reservation and show up at the Westin dock to meet the shuttle. There is no charge for the shuttle if you have reservations at Latitudes.

In the background is the "water play area" for all the charter boats

The Key is a private resort community but the restaurant is public and spotlessly maintained. We always go for lunch since dinner is much more expensive. The restaurant faces the bay where all the charter boats go for their day sail with customers so there's always something going on out front. Better yet, just sit back and enjoy the warm weather and the view of the sand and water. Ann had the seared Tuna salad which consisted of strips of fresh tuna lightly seared with greens, avocado, mandarin oranges, cucumber and tomatoes. Ann loved it. I had the fresh grouper sandwich with key lime tartar sauce, great. If you're ever in Key West, don't miss Latitudes.

Orchids everywhere, this one was right by the entrance to the restaurant

We are watching the weather charts every couple of hours now, preparing for our trip east. The winds are generally out of the east so you would like a day when they are out of the west, ideally. It looks like Thursday might be that day, so far. These forecasts change every 6 hours so you never know. The one for 24 hours in advance is usually pretty accurate but beyond that it's like rolling the dice. We still hear that Marathon is full so we'll call first and duck into Newfound Harbor before getting to Marathon if all the moorings are gone. We've also been tracking John Kwak and he's now in Ft Pierce city marina, he's been going north for the last few days.