Growing up in the Sunshine State and having lived here almost my entire life, I can vouch for that claim; just along the southeastern coast of the state alone are many of the most magnificent stretches of sand known to mankind.Being a native Floridian, I can also be counted among the millions who have frequented the Florida Keys as a childhood vacation spot.My point is, I know a thing or two about the region, so when I saw more than a few posts this past holiday weekend on Facebook travel pages from northern tourists lamenting the lack of sugar-white shores in Key West, my mind immediately reverted to an old Florida standby:"You don't go to the Keys looking for great beaches."I don't say that as someone who doesn't like the Keys, by the way.BRITTANY ALDEAN WOWS IN VACATION STYLE DURING BAHAMAS GETAWAY WITH JASON ALDEANSeveral of my fondest memories from both my childhood and adolescence stem from spending lobster mini season at our own little slice of heaven, a resort called Lime Tree Bay on Long Key.It's my favorite place in the world, and if I had the choice, I would take my last breaths on Earth in one of their hammocks overlooking the Gulf as the evening storms rolled in off the horizon.I'll never have a bad thing to say about the Florida Keys, but I have to warn anyone making their first trip down to the southernmost portion of the continental United States, because the beaches down there are few and far between and leave much to be desired.TWO REGULAR JOES WILL COMPETE WITH PROS FOR $3.25M PURSE AT INAUGURAL 'THE CHAMPIONS' BASS FISHING TOURNAMENTI can't even count how many times I've seen angry travelers from the Midwest harping on the fact that Key Largo doesn't look like Clearwater Beach.That is through no fault of their own, mind you.It just has to do with a lack of understanding regarding what makes the Keys so special.Bradford Todd Picariello reportedly ran a self-owned business called Outlaw Fishing Charters in Marathon, Florida.
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