Another Camping Trip

[Eva Elisabeth]

Well, meanwhile I'm back from my spring break camping trip, too. Contrary to Dave's, mine was almost completely unprepared (yes, these Germans are crazy). The entire idea and decision to realize this trip hit me the weekend after returning from the Surratt conference.

First of all I had in mind to camp one night at Dry Tortugas. The way Tom Bogar had described it in "Backstage at the Lincoln Assassination" fascinated me. Also I love the sea, tropic climate and heat, such kind of adventure, and as a biologist I am interested in the birds. Dave Taylor once posted the idea and possibility to camp there, and I thought if he's going to do his Booth experiment, I'll try this. Although in the end it didn't work out to camp there, still it was fantastic. It almost didn't work out to go there at all, because I hadn't booked the ferry in advance. Dave, please think of this!! (But you will sure plan more carefully.) The only thing I had really organized was booking a last-minute flight+car package, and getting a street map with camping sites from the ADAC (our AAA). Well, there wasn't much time for planning details.

Despite Dry Tortugas, I only knew I wanted to see the Gamble Plantation, Powell's grave, the Dali Museum, the Ringling Museum, J. Lennon's cars in the Classic Car Museum in Sarasota, the Hemingway House, the Everglades (I had already visited some of these places in 1990), and at least one aquarium. (And to do a lot of birdwatching and swimming in the sea.) Some of these places are linked with Lincoln and the CW, so I would like to share some photos, info, and experiencs, also in case someone will one day visit the area (hope there's any interest in this). Like Dave, I won't make this all at once, but one by one, and will start now with Dry Tortugas.

As for the DT ferry, I was told to come back very early the next morning. One (single) person didn't show up in time that day, and I was the lucky one to go instead (there were others waiting, too), but had to return the same day.

Included was a guided tour. Despite that the guide only gave basic info on Dr. Mudd and didn't seem to know much about the other conspirators, he told a lot of interesting facts about the history of the Fort, and about life there. E.g that you can see which parts have been built during the CW because the bricks then came from the north and were darker than the ones used before. Or how the cannon balls were heated before usage. Or about the drinking water supply, which I have already posted here:
http://rogerjnorton.com/LincolnDiscussio...age-2.html
There's a nice little exhibition and a bookstore (where I bought "The Escape and Capture of JWB", another excellent book by Ed Steers).

None of the other visitors' motivation seemed to have been a particular interest in the conspirators, rather a general interest in historic sites, in snorkeling, in making an exciting boat trip, and in birds - and the bird watchers were the campers. Dave, I'm afraid even after the seaplanes and ferries have left you will have to share the little island with roughly ten tents and 20 fellow tourists. The Fort itself is closed from dusk to dawn. Still camping there must be a touching experience and worth it.
Here are some photos:
   
   
   
   
   

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Dr. Mudd's cell as determined through the letters he wrote to his wife. The two compartements adjoin.
   
   
Before the Fort was built, there was only sand on the island.
   
See the darker northern bricks at the top:
   
A magnificent fregatebird:
   

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Pelicans are everywhere:
   
The first lighthouse was established at the Fort (thus on Garden Key) in 1825. This one was built later (if I rember correctly in the 1840ies):
   
   
On the grass in the court one can still see where the first lighthouse stood.

A new lighthouse was constructed on Loggerhead Key between 1856-58, which you can see in the distance. It is still in operation.
   
These two were the only lighthouses on the Gulf coast that stayed in full operation throughout the CW.

First, DT (Garden Key) was chosen as good location for a lighthouse to guide ships around the area's reefs and islands, then it was fortified as an "advance post" for a defense of the Gulf Coast (but construction was never finished). In the CW it became a prison. The peak population was ~2000 persons. As you might know, it never saw any military action.
"Tortugas" ("turtles") refers to 170 sea turtles taken there by the Spanish explorer Ponce de León who discovered the islands in 1513. And you can imagine what "Dry" refers to...I, too, discovered a wildlife sea turtle at the Gulf coast (but not at DT):
   

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...forgot the exhibition: