On our last full day of our trip we had planned to head about 70 miles off shore to visit the Dry Tortugas National Park. We went here a few years ago and just loved all the history. The weather was looking a little iffy and we didn't want to chance being caught out in a storm in the middle of the ocean so we waited a while until we were sure it was going to clear up.
It's a long boat ride out there, but totally worth it in our opinion. The park holds Fort Jefferson and the Dry Tortugas islands. Surrounding the islands are beautiful crystal clear waters, tons of sea life, coral reefs and even shipwrecks!
The massive fort is the largest brick masonry structure in the Western Hemisphere and is made up of over 16 million bricks, which is really hard to imagine since it was built in the 1800's. It was used as a coastal fortress and later a prison and today it is part of the National Park services holding tons of history.
The moat that surrounds the fort is so interesting and the waters and beaches beyond that are some of the most beautiful I've ever seen.
After exploring the fort a while we hopped back on the boat and made our way over so those who wanted could snorkel the shipwreck and then we anchored at a nearby island.
We swam, walked on the beach, explored around the light house and just enjoyed what a beautiful day it had turned out to be.
We were so happy to have spent our last day at such a picturesque spot and it was certainly the best way to wrap up our trip!
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