The island is shifting into its best season, and the calendar is filling up.

FANTASY FEST: Key West's biggest party runs October 16-25 this year. Ten days of parades, costumes, and general mayhem from the Conch Republic. If you are going, book the room now - the island sells out weeks ahead.

STONE CRAB: season opens October 15. The first pulls of the year are the sweetest, and the docks in Key West and Marathon will be busy. Half the fun is cracking them at a waterside table with mustard sauce and a cold drink.

FALL RUN: this is the drive-down season. Summer heat breaks, the water stays warm, and the Overseas Highway at sunset is worth the trip by itself. Mallory Square still puts on the best free show in Florida every evening.

The lifestyle we talk about in this newsletter is not a brochure - it is a Tuesday afternoon decision. The Keys are three hours from your dock.

See you at the sunset,

Richard