In the Florida Keys, where the day-to-day business of living is easy, extraordinary creativity thrives. You'll find scores of freethinking spirits who, in the island chain’s nurturing atmosphere, indulge their talent for crafting wares as individualistic as they are.
A comprehensive photo shoot that's wrapping up in Key West captures images of members of the local LGBT community — real people, not professional models — enjoying life in the subtropical island paradise.
Journalist Robert Silk has a great love for the Florida Keys’ natural world. Recently his outdoor outlook inspired him to write “An Eco-Tourist’s Guide to the Everglades & the Florida Keys,” and here he offers insights into his favorite activities and places in the region’s fascinating natural environment.
If one man’s junk is another man’s treasure, then the late Key Largo resident Stanley Papio was a treasure hunter extraordinaire. And ultimately, he became a treasure creator — crafting some of the edgiest and most eclectic metal sculptures of his generation.
High heels instead of high octane powered the 12 contestants in Key West’s Great Conch Republic Drag Race, a madcap marathon for female impersonators that took place April 23.
The United States’ National Park Service celebrates its 100th birthday in 2016. And if you’re visiting the Florida Keys, you have a great opportunity to learn, discover and be inspired by two national parks that can be reached from the island chain.
While some runners push themselves to race long and grueling distances, participants in one recent Florida Keys challenge did the exact opposite. About 1,400 “athletes” who didn’t want to break a sweat romped, strolled and ambled across the Florida Keys’ shortest bridge (spanning mere feet!) during April’s Cow Key Channel Bridge Run.
In Key West, festivals are staged every month, celebrating everything from mouthwatering Key lime pie and succulent Florida lobster to Gay Pride. And one event, the campaign for Fantasy Fest king and queen, is a fundraiser that's important to the entire community.
Ben Daughtry’s passion for creating educational experiences in marine conservation led him to open Florida Keys Aquarium Encounters — where visitors can enjoy immersive experiences with reef fish, invertebrates, stingrays and even sharks without entering the ocean.
Loaves of stale Cuban bread, a governmental border checkpoint, and a request for a billion dollars in foreign aid played major roles in the Florida Keys’ secession from the United States and the formation of the independent Conch Republic.