Few places combine such natural beauty and historic significance. The island that now houses a few dozen a night was then a city of 1,500. Here are details on kayaking from the park service. Dry Tortugas is notoriously known as one of the best places to camp in the United States. I recommend you save it until your last day, when you’ve used up most of your supplies. Plan the ultimate Dry Tortugas Camping trip!

While at the Dry Tortugas, you need to pay to park your car at the nearby Key West city parking garage. They are located very close to the beach, but don’t have an actual view of the water( 20′ walk). We traveled on a windy day and I was concerned about seasickness. Hope that helps. Learn how your comment data is processed. I asked if I might acquire two hot coals and the friendly souls took pity. Fishing can be very good, both from the dock after the ferry leaves ( saw a 5′ Barracuda and 4 large Goliath grouper periodically there, as well as fishing from a kayak. You wrote the best article, Thankyou!

Fish directly from the dock or in designated areas by kayak. Required fields are marked *.

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Most campsites have some shade, so I would not bother with an additional shade structure unless you are going with a group that would share it. (The ferry is $175 to $195, though prices vary seasonally). Camping here is a test of packing skills. Rent fishing gear from West Marine in Key West for $50 Walking the Moat in Dry Tortugas Lesson for you: Buy high quality self-igniting charcoal, don’t rely on matches alone and bring a can of Sterno as a backup. Camping in Dry Tortugas offered on Garden Key in the shadow of the 19th century Fort Jefferson and on a white sand beach with access to incredible snorkeling. Hello, when was this article written? You must bring everything, but you also have to keep your belongings condensed in tote bags or bins and you must be able to load it on and off of the ferry yourself. Or looking up at night at the black night sky to see the Milky Way – stars I last saw as a child. Regarding the campsites; most have shade under the Buttonwood trees, some do not. Copyright © 2020 — Florida Rambler. Feed will not update. It departs again at 2:30 p.m. Oh, the color of water is nothing short of magical.

The 3 generators are still there, but the noise is not loud at all, only 1 runs at a time. I didn’t count the matches, but I estimate we tried 300 times, using them all up.

The two-and-a-half hour ferry ride starts with views of Key West and neighboring islands and then continues over open water that can get choppy.

In this case, the original story was written in 2012, mostly about our daytime visits to the fort. Unless you camp, the ferry or seaplane give you only a few hours on the island to tour the historic fort and snorkel in its dazzling clear Caribbean waters. Our stories are constantly updated, revised or rewritten, but we leave comments of value to readers. Only three kayaks are allowed on the ferry per trip. Indeed, many will attest that the magic of staying on the Dry Tortugas has a lasting effect.

Their articles appear monthly in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel (you can see a few here), and they also have been published in the Miami Herald, the Orlando Sentinel, The Guardian and Visit Florida. Even with their butane campfire lighter, those “self igniting” Publix briquettes refused to ignite.

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Unless you have your own boat, campers have only once choice: the Yankee Freedom ferry, which leaves from the Key West Seaport. You do need to see it for yourself.

Snorkel gear can be provided to campers by the Yankee Freedom, or you may bring your own. I took all the advice: A Dramamine before leaving and I stationed myself on deck staring at the horizon the whole way. Any photographs on beardandcurly.com cannot be used without our permission. It’s great to be on the island when there are so few people present. We brought enough for our one-night stay, but departing campers often donate their surplus to those arriving. Today the fort is huge, falling apart and has one of the world’s best collections of Civil War cannons. Camping is limited to three days if you arrive via the ferry. The other remarkable element of the Dry Tortugas is the natural environment. This, finally, started our campfire.

You can pay Yankee Freedom $20 to transport a kayak if you arrange ahead. Here’s a previous story about the Dry Tortugas from Florida Rambler with some good background.

Learn how your comment data is processed. update= 15.00 per night to camp now. The Dry Tortugas, 70 miles west of Key West, can only be reached by ferry or seaplane, making it perhaps the hardest to reach of all national parks. All Rights Reserved. Photo Gallery About Us Contact Us Cookies & Privacy Policy. Notify me of follow-up comments by email.
(Those who stay more than one night have the option of upgrading their site when departing campers pack up for the day.) Carts are available at Fort Jefferson’s dockhouse for transporting your gear to the campground.

Reservations are limited for campers because there are only 11 campsites on the island, so you must reserve early. Adult campers pay $175-$195 round-trip (prices vary seasonally). ), Coming by ferry, you are provided with one lunch on board (deli type sandwiches) and you can designate which day it will be. What you will see and hear are hordes of, Do not miss the snorkeling, especially along the pilings that are the ruins of the coal docks. Thankfully, our fellow campers also brought Sterno, which they slathered on our coals with a stick. The island was named Tortuga – Spanish for turtle – by explorer Ponce de Leon. Your information will NEVER be shared or sold to a 3rd party.

What’s louder are the nesting birds over on Bush key. This is the situation that left my husband and I feeling like characters in “The Stupids Go Camping.”. With every update, we go through the entire story to see if anything is out of date or needs to be corrected. The waters around the islands are filled with shipwrecks dating back to the 1600s. Thank you. Your email address will not be published. Camping at Dry Tortugas National Park: The harbor light was built in 1876. The ferry leaves around 8 a.m. and arrives on the island around 10:30 a.m. Enter your email address to subscribe to FloridaRambler and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Figuring we’d just eat our chili cold, my husband and I took wine to the beach to watch the sunset. These affiliate advertising programs provide a means for us to earn fees and we appreciate any purchases made through these links! I bought a fresh bag of Publix self-igniting charcoal and an ample supply of matchbooks and wooden kitchen matches. ), Camp stoves and lighter fluid are not allowed. Kayaking here is for experienced paddlers, as most destinations are over open water.

If once you have slept on an Island, You’ll never be quite the same; You may look as you looked And go by the same old name You may hustle about in street and shop You may sit at home and sew, But you’ll see blue water and wheeling gulls Wherever your feet may go. But you must be prepared to camp in this remote location. This is the ultimate guide for securing your camping reservations and planning your overnight trip to Dry Tortugas National Park. I was able to take the tour of the island and loved it. Great article, only missing one thing: information about the campsites themselves.

(Photo: Bonnie Gross) The Dry Tortugas, 70 miles west of Key West, can only be reached by ferry or seaplane, making it … Sign up for our monthly newsletter... it's FREE! The ship, at 100 feet long and 60 feet wide, is quite stable.). The challenges: There’s a two-and-a-half-hour ferry ride. Camping at Dry Tortugas National Park off the Florida Keys takes some time, money and effort, but, wow, does it pay off. Dry Tortugas is one of the most remote U.S. National Parks - on an island 70 miles from Key West! Located far from land and its runoff, the water is aquarium clear with a profusion of coral and sea life visible right from the beach.

Please obtain a new Access Token on the plugin's Settings page.If you continue to have an issue with your Access Token then please see this FAQ for more information. Camping at Garden Key is an incredible experience with amazing star gazing, snorkeling, sunsets, and more! We found our experience on the Dry Tortugas to be as memorable as we had hoped. In 2016, it was completely rewritten when we actually camped there, and it has been updated three times since 2017 with new information.

The snorkeling was phenomenal.

(I made black-bean chili and froze it. I LOVE your comments.

Loggerhead Key has great beaches and snorkeling, but it takes several hours to paddle the three miles to it. After  wandering the moody and evocative Fort Jefferson alone in the late afternoon after the ferry had left, we went back the next day for the daily guided tour. Bring $3 per person exact change for the camping fee. Perhaps we should do a better job of communicating that to readers.

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