70 miles west of Key West, Florida lies a group of 7 islands called the Dry Tortugas. These islands were first named Las Tortugas (The Turtles) in 1513, by Spanish explorer Ponce de Leon. Sailors soon started calling them the the Dry Tortugas, because they lacked fresh water. The Dry Tortugas sat at the crossroads of strategic shipping lanes and were surrounded by coral shoals. The islands could be very dangerous for ships, so a lighthouse was built upon Garden Key in 1825 to warn the mariners of the shoals.
In 1829 the United States knew it could control navigation to the Gulf of Mexico and protect the river trade along the Mississippi River by fortifying the Dry Tortugas. In December 1846 construction of Fort Jefferson started on Garden Key, the second largest key in Dry Tortugas. It is the largest brick masonry structure in the Americas, consisting of over 16 million bricks. Since the Dry Tortugas lacked fresh water, an innovative system of cisterns to filter the rain water were built. Unfortunately the cisterns were faulty and the water was not fit to drink, they could only use it for cooking and washing. To obtain fresh water they assembled 2 steam condensers that distilled 7,000 gallons of sea water per day. Construction of Fort Jefferson lasted for 30 years, but was never finished and the army abandoned the fort in 1874.
During the Civil War, the North recognized Fort Jefferson as a strategic military outpost to control the Gulf of Mexico. The fort was used as a military prison by the Union, and the first prisoners arrived in September 1861. On July 24th 1865, at the end of the war, 4 civilian prisoners arrived. All 4 men were convicted of complicity in President Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. Dr. Samuel Mudd was the most famous of the 4 men. Mudd was a surgeon and tobacco farmer in Maryland. The man who shot President Lincoln in Ford’s Theatre, John Wilkes Booth, arrived at Mudd’s house, as he was trying to escape, seeking medical care. Mudd set Booth’s broken leg and sent him on his way. Although he proclaimed his innocence, he was sentenced to life in prison for his actions. Mudd provided medical care to the inhabitants of Fort Jefferson during a yellow fever epidemic that killed many on the island. Due to the medical care he provided and recommendations of several officers he saved at Fort Jefferson, he was pardoned March 11, 1869
The area became a wildlife bird refuge in 1908, a National Monument in 1935 and Dry Tortugas National Park in 1992.
The only way to get to Dry Tortugas National Park is by boat or seaplane. Yankee Freedom, a high speed catamaran is the official ferry to the National Park, http://Drytortugas.com. This is the mode of transportation we took. The ferry leaves from the dock at 100 Grinnell Street in Key West. There is a parking garage across the street from the dock, and I would recommend getting there early because it fills up quickly. Tickets were $200 per adult age 17-61 and $190 for seniors and students. Children under 2 are free. If you have a National Park Pass it is $185/$175 respectively. Park entrance, breakfast and a box lunch are included in your ticket. Our breakfast consisted of a bagel and cream cheese and lunch was a Jersey Mikes sandwich, chips, cookie and a drink. Check in time was 7a, boarding 7:30a and departure at 8a. During our ride to Dry Tortugas our guide gave us information on the island and Fort Jefferson. We did see some sea turtles on our trip and also some Cuban refugees in a boat headed to the United Stated.
Upon arrival at the Fort, we disembarked and took a 45 min tour. Our guide was very enthusiastic and made the tour interesting. After the tour we explored the fort and then headed to the beach to snorkel around the Fort. We had brought our own snorkeling gear, but snorkeling gear is complimentary with your ticket on the ferry. We were able to see a lot of fish, some rather big. Snorkeling around the moat was fantastic, it has holes in the wall and the the marine life like to congregate there. We also saw numerous fish around an old sunken anchor. After snorkeling we were able to shower off with clean water on the deck of the boat and change into dry clothes in the restrooms. We ate our box lunches on our trip back to Key West. We departed Garden Key at 3p and arrived back in Key West around 5:30p.
I would suggest bringing with you on the ferry: Bathing suit (we wore ours on the boat with a cover up). Camera. Sunscreen, sunglasses and hat. Towel. Change of clothes. Cash for the gift shop (they do not take credit/debit cards). National Park Pass
We did see several seaplanes arriving to Garden Key. Key West Seaplane Charters, keywestseaplanecharters.com is the only company allowed to land at Garden Key. For a half day trip the price is $451 for adult and $361 for a child. For a full day charter the cost is $792 and $634 respectively.
You can take a personal watercraft to Dry Tortugas. You must file for a free boat permit and stop in Garden Key to pay the National Park Fee. Space is extremely limited due to damage from Hurricane Ian, so plan accordingly.
