Ten secluded Florida Keys State Parks throughout the 125-mile-long Florida Keys include the Keys’ most scenic wide-open spaces for social distancing, solitude and outdoor recreational activities such as hiking, swimming, snorkeling and paddling. Florida state parks offer some of the destination’s best and most secluded beaches, fishing, boating, scuba diving and kayaking. These parks are…
Enter Dry Tortugas National Park, one of just three designated national parks in Florida — and one of the most remote in the entire U.S. National Park System.Wide-open spaces are the name of the game in today’s pandemic-ravaged tourism landscape, which is why travelers all over the U.S. are flocking to national parks. But a national park…
Florida Keys residents headed to Harry Harris Park may be asked for address information beginning Saturday. A gatehouse at the entrance to the popular oceanfront park is expected to be staffed Oct. 5, with out-of-county residents charged for admission. Non-residents will be charged $5 per person. Boaters living outside the Keys will be charged $30 to…
As you head south to Key Largo, Dagny Johnson Hammock Botanical State Park sits along the east coast — boasting stunning jungle-like views and coastal sightlines; but if you venture to the right spots, you can find some cool abandoned buildings to explore. In order to explore some of these locations, you’ll have to acquire…
No live-aboards should be allowed to dock at the future redeveloped Rowell’s Waterfront Park, but a splash pad for children would be widely welcomed. Those were two main takeaways from a county-hosted public input meeting held last week. Neighboring residents asked Monroe County officials to implement the same ban on live-aboards accessing the park that…
The Research Natural Area (RNA) was designated as an area of special protection within Dry Tortugas National Park in 2007. The RNA was designed to work along with the two existing ecological reserves as a network to protect the shallow water habitats and reef fish species found in the Tortugas. Recent research shows that the…
Every day is full of natural wonders throughout the Florida Keys, known for their sweeping, scenic backdrops of earth, sea and sky. Throughout April, Keys visitors and residents can celebrate Florida Keys Earth Day with unique outdoor activities to be experienced only in the Florida Keys. This year’s Earth Day is Sunday, April 22. The Florida Keys & Key…
Bahia Honda State Park is making a graceful comeback following Hurricane Irma. The park was in the path of the dreadful northeast quadrant of the powerful Category 4 storm that devastated the Florida Keys in September 2017. Although much of the native vegetation perished in the storm, the trees and plants that survived are growing…
The Florida Keys Wildlife Society, a friends group for the Florida Keys National Wildlife Refuges Complex and the National Key Deer Refuge, kicks off this season’s full moon kayak excursions Monday, Jan. 29, departing at 4 p.m. from Big Pine Kayak Adventures on Bogey Road. The two-hour paddle traverses through the National Key Deer Refuge….
Nine Florida Keys State Parks remain closed, due to Hurricane Irma damage, until further notice, Florida Department of Environmental Protection officials said Monday. Those Monroe County parks are: • Bahia Honda • Curry Hammock • Dagny JohnsonKey Largo Hammock Botanical • Fort Zachary Taylor Historic • Indian Key Historic • John Pennekamp Coral Reef • Lignumvitae…
The Monroe County Parks & Recreation Advisory Board will meet at 6 p.m., Monday, Aug. 28, to discuss how the county is planning to move forward with the development of Rowell’s Waterfront Park. Park designers S&ME, formerly known as Little John Engineering, will be on hand to answer any questions the public may have. “This…
In the Middle and Lower Florida Keys State Parks — Long Key, Curry Hammock, Bahia Honda and Fort Zachary Taylor — are easy to explore and offer multiple opportunities for recreation. Long Key State Park Located on Long Key, just southwest of the town of Layton, this park was once the site of railroad magnate…
I have been in love with the Florida Keys most of my life. Having been born and raised in South Florida, the natural beauty of the area has captivated me since early childhood. The fortune of growing up in a boating family instilled me with an unending need to experience nature to it’s fullest. The…
These days, most merry-go-round horses are made from molded fiberglass and plastic. However, in the days when they were carved from wood, most of them were made from gumbo limbo, Bursera simaruba. Gumbo limbo is one of the most recognizable trees in the tropical hardwood hammock of the Florida Keys. Its red, peeling bark has…
Islamorada Mayor Jim Mooney said one of the governing board’s main focuses in 2017 will be tackling traffic issues, a recurring theme for much of Monroe County. U.S. 1 has long experienced lengthy delays due to holidays, community events and accidents, among other things. Mooney said the village is working on two solutions to alleviate…
Located a mile south of Indian Key Historic State Park is the San Pedro Underwater Archaeological Preserve State Park. This park holds the distinction as the only underwater archaeological state park in the Florida Park Service. The San Pedro, a 287-ton ship, was one of a fleet of 21 ships that left Havana in 1733…
A calm-weather weekend turns the Harry Harris Park Boat Ramp into one of the busiest spots in the Upper Keys. In a waterfront community with limited public access to open water, the two ramps at the Monroe County public park in Tavernier lead straight to the beckoning expanse of the Atlantic Ocean. “Monday through Friday,…
Monroe County last week completed a $33,828 project to repair the dock next to the boat ramp at Harry Harris Park. They stripped the dock down to the pylons. Removing and repairing the old decking and the support structure. A new structural plastic decking, which is slip resistant and low maintenance, was installed. More…
Kate Watts monitors vegetation in the pine rockland ecosystem on Big Pine Key. Watts serves as Lead Wildlife Biologist for the Florida Keys National Wildlife Refuges Complex, overseeing biologists, technicians and interns at the refuges in the lower Keys. “Although a scientist by trade, I find that it is extremely important to translate the technical…
