My Golden Retriever loves to travel. She rides shotgun and has her own seat cover. , you can be assured the sun is shining when Nola goes to Key West.
I stop every couple of hours to walk around a rest stop and let her relieve herself. Likewise, this tends to help me on long trips too, so it’s not a bad thing. I drive to Key West every year, except 2020, with Nola at my side. She has been to Key West 4 times, and we are looking forward to this February when we both will go again.
Some of the rest stops are quite pleasant. We see interesting things that are representative of the country we are traveling through. For example, this reminds me of the time we saw a cow across the back fence of a rest stop and Nola had rather amusing interactions with it.
Here is Nola at a rest stop looking around the area.
Nola arrives at our condo and poses for me. What a good girl.
Earnest Hemmingway
Key West is a town of music, restaurants, bars, and ocean pursuits. You can follow the steps of Earnest Hemmingway through Sloppy Joe’s, or the myriad of bars he frequented. You can even tour his home there, and it’s something one shouldn’t miss. Pick up Hemmingway’s Boxed Set of his most popular books right here.
Hemmingway had a home in Key West for years and he was a feature of the island during the 1930’s, before he went to Cuba.
Roosters
If you go to Key West with a dog, keep in mind 2 things. First, hundreds of people will want to pet your dog because they left their own at home and they miss their doggo. Second, they’re going to want to chase the roosters. The rooster population is quite large and most of them like to tease your pup.
We were taking a walk along US1. There was a nice path off to the side and a rooster considered this to be his territory. I still laugh about how the rooster teased Nola, who was on her leash at the time.
Schooner Wharf Bar
The Schooner Wharf Bar is a necessary stop on your Key West tour, especially if you have a dog with you. Dog’s are welcome there, and you can bring your dog for a drink and some delicious seafood. They have some very good musical acts and you’ll find Michael McCloud there most every day in the afternoon. McCloud wrote the Key West anthem about The Conch Republic when they succeeded form the union inn 1982.
The Schooner Wharf Bar is located along the Key West Bight. Many schooners dock here like the Western Union, and you can take the various schooners on a dinner cruise or a sunset cruise to enjoy the fabled Key West sunsets.
Key West Tropical Forest & Botanical Garden
The Key West Botanical Garden is one of the best kept secrets in Key West. There is a large pond with wild life including lots of turtles.
I’m afraid I didn’t get a lot of pictures of the Garden but here are a few. This one is of some of the various boats that were used to bring refugees to the US from storm torn islands in the Caribbean.
Traveling With Your Dog
I enjoy traveling with my dog Nola. She doesn’t complain when I miss a turn and have to get back to our route. Definitely a positive. You need to do a few things as to training and gear. You should acclimate your dog to traveling a bit at a time. Then, you’ll need to stop every hour or two at a rest area so she can relieve herself, burn off some energy, and enjoy the new smells.
As to gear, a travel bag is a big help. See the best dog travel bag organizer.
1 comment for “Nola Goes to Key West”