Overseas Highway - The Most Scenic Drives in America: 120 Spectacular Road Trips - page 1107

7. National Key Deer Refuge
The key deer, found in the Florida Keys and nowhere else, is a subspecies of the larger,
morecommonVirginiawhite-taileddeer.Themaindifferencebetweenthetwoistheirsize;
an adult key buck stands only about 2 1/2 feet tall at the shoulder. After near extinction the
animals are slowly repopulating their 9,200-acre refuge.
The Great White Heron National Wildlife Refuge and Key West National Wildlife
Refuge also are located in the Lower Keys region. Although the shoals, reefs, and low-ly-
ing islands that make up these sprawling sanctuaries are reached mainly by boat, they re-
ward visitors with solitude and miles of pristine wilderness.
Only a short drive from Miami, Key West offers a tropical blend of azure waters and tropical foliage.
8. Key West
Onceahideawayforpirates,KeyWesttodayisacolorfulpatchworkofgardens,alleyways,
historic buildings, shops, museums, and lively marinas. The southernmost city in the
continental United States, it attracts a heady mix of fishermen, shopkeepers, navy per-
sonnel, Cuban refugees, artists, and assorted eccentrics with alternative lifestyles. Two
greats—Ernest Hemingway and John James Audubon—are among those who once chose
to live and work here, and you can visit Hemingway's home, today a museum celebrating
the writer's life and work.