![\"One](\"https:\/\/www.kokomoman.com\/wordpress1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/712-1024x682.jpg\")
One of the best places for sunset dining in the world. You can also go for the Mexican, fishing, or diving, but it’s the sunsets and seafood that bring me there.<\/p><\/div>\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.kokomoman.com\/wordpress1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/InsideMrsMacs.jpg\")
A table inside Mrs. Macs.<\/p><\/div>\n
Mrs. Mac’s\u00a0is my favorite place. I never go to the Keys without eating dinner there at least once. Mrs. Macs now has two places\u2026 the original that\u2019s been there forever and a new one about another 1\/3 mile down the road. I always eat at the original because I just walk there from where I stay. It\u2019s kind of a \u201chole in the wall\u201d place. I call the d\u00e9cor \u201cearly American trailer trash — funk\u201d. The walls are covered with license places from all over the country and the lamp shades are made from bent-up license plates.But don\u2019t let any of that fool you. It is clean and the food may be the best in the Keys. They have been voted \u201cThe Best\u201d in the \u201cPeoples Awards\u201d year after year. By the crowds that are always there during the tourist season, all the food must be good. I say it that way because I have only ever had one thing to eat every time I\u2019ve been there\u2026 Mahi- Mahi. It is the best I\u2019ve eaten anywhere. I also get the black-beans, cole-slaw, and top it all off with Key Lime Pie. I ate there this trip and as usual it was mmmmmm-mmmmmm good.<\/p>\n
![\"Mrs](\"https:\/\/www.kokomoman.com\/wordpress1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/704-1024x682.jpg\")
Mrs Mac’s Kitchen… Original location.<\/p><\/div>\n
The next morning\u2019s dive was to a ship-wreck. A US Coast Guard cutter, the Duane, was sunk as an artificial reef. Diving on the Duane is one of my favorites. I think I like it as much because of its history as for anything else. She served the country for nearly fifty years. During World War II she escorted convoys in the Atlantic. During the Vietnam War she participated in interdiction and fire support missions off the coast of South \u00a0 Vietnam (1967 & 1968). She has a long list of citations including a \u201cPresidential Unit Citation.\u201dTwo of the Duane\u2019s sister ships are also in Florida\u2026 the Bibb and the Ingham. The Bibb was sunk near-by as an artificial reef and I have been SCUBA diving on her. The Ingham is a floating museum in Key West. Like the Duane, the Bibb and Ingham were convoy escorts during World War II and served off the coast of Vietnam.<\/p>\n
Diving on the Duane is for those with advanced certification because of its depth. There is usually a swift current so that often makes diving there quite challenging. This time was no different. The current was at about the max that we could dive in. The good news is that with that kind of current the \u201cviz\u201d is great. There were lots of large barracuda patrolling all around the ship. We discovered another giant grouper hiding inside the ship. Man\u2026 those are big fish.<\/p>\n
After the Duane we moved back to Molasses reef\u2026 \u201cmo.\u201d The current was still high so we did a \u201cdrift dive\u201d. I love \u201cdrift dives\u201d. The dive boat just drops the group of divers in the water and \u201cdrifts\u201d along with them a short distance away. The divers descend (this time to about 45 ft) and then let the current carry them along. It\u2019s really \u201cneat\u201d\u2026 you just sort of hover near the bottom and as the current carries you, you watch the underwater world go by. On this dive we saw stingrays, a giant eagle ray, a huge sea turtle and we captured two lion fish.<\/p>\n
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![\"This](\"https:\/\/www.kokomoman.com\/wordpress1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/PICT0011-1024x690.jpg\")
<\/dt>\n- This friendly sea turtle just swam by and didn’t seem to care anything about us.<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n
The dive sites around Key Largo are protected, \u201cno take\u201d places. That means that you can\u2019t take anything you find with you nor can you take any fish. (No fishing is allowed in those areas either.) However, the Lion Fish is the exception. They are not natural to these waters and have no predators in the region. They are a danger to the other fish so it is allowed to capture them.<\/p>\n
![\"Lion](\"https:\/\/www.kokomoman.com\/wordpress1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/231-1024x680.jpg\")
<\/p>\nAll in all, the morning dives were very good. The water temperature was 82 degrees and was just what I was hoping for. That said, the night before I had a change of heart\u2026 I decided after the morning dives I would go to Key West; Cayo Hueso\u2026 BoneIsland. After all\u2026 this is summer\u2019s last gasp and I couldn\u2019t get this close and not go there.<\/p>\n
I suppose I should explain about the nicknames; \u201cCayo Hueso\u201d and \u201cBoneIsland\u201d. Actually, that\u2019s not a nickname. The Spanish originally named the island \u201cCayo Hueso\u201d which translates to \u201cBoneIsland\u201d. It was named that because of the bones the Spanish found all over the island\u2026 human bones. It had been an Indian burial ground. The world Hueso is pronounced \u201cWeso\u201d. So when the Yankees heard the name they thought it was Cayo Westo\u2026 hence Key West.<\/p>\n
Anyway\u2026 instead of diving a couple more days, I decided to spend the time in Key Weird (another of the nicknames). I checked out of the motel before going on the the dives. Then, after changing into some dry clothes, I put the top down and headed to Key West.
![\"KM_KeyWest\"](\"https:\/\/www.kokomoman.com\/wordpress1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/KM_KeyWest-237x300.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"I have been remiss in getting these out. Considering that most of the country is in the deep-freeze today, I hope as you are hunkering down this will bring you back a bit of summer. Before I talk about my … Continue reading