I decided to follow up my first hike with another hike right away. So over the past weekend I headed out to Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park on Key Biscayne, an island off the coast of Miami. There’s a bridge from the mainland, so I just hopped in my car and drove over to the very end tip of Key Biscayne where the park is located.
First Impressions
It costs a couple of dollars (or a State Park pass) to get in. There is a large, wooded parking area. It appeared to me on the map I had seen that there were some trails around the Lighthouse, so I headed generally in that direction to start out.
The Lighthouse
The Lighthouse itself has quite a history, and in the area around it are posted placards that recount a bit of it, as well as the history of the park as a whole.
Basically, the Lighthouse was built in the 1800s, was burned down, and had to be built again. But… I’ll leave the details for you to discover there. 😉 Then, in the 1960s, the area was slated for luxury development, but the local newspaper editor Bill Baggs rallied a movement to turn it into a public park that all could continue to enjoy.
. . . for simple pleasures, to relax, to picnic, to watch the trees and water.
Bill Baggs
There is a lighthouse tour at 10 am, which fills you in a bit more about the history. You also get a chance to go up to the top of the lighthouse to see the view and take pictures. I happily waited my turn and then started up several rounds of the spiral staircase until I remembered that me and heights (especially in buildings) are not friends. 😂 There was no way I was going to make it all the way to the top of that very tall, spiral, open-step staircase and still be enjoying myself, so I skipped out of that….
Walking Paths
And I continued down the paths near the lighthouse in search of a good (short) hiking trail, but honestly I didn’t find much. There were a few pleasant walking paths along the water which I did enjoy, but there was nothing clearly marked for hiking through the wooded area, that I could see. I may need to come back another day with a better map—I was just assuming that the hiking trails, if they indeed exist, would be apparent—to further explore the inland area.
Related post: Miami
The Cafe
I headed back to the Lighthouse Café to get some breakfast. This restaurant is located near the lighthouse and quite close to the water, but you can’t actually see the water from its deck. There are dunes and a stand of supporting shrubs between the cafe and the water, which obscures the view. Even so, my french toast was tasty, even if it did come with a plastic pack of corn syrup that rather lowered the class factor. 😬 I did enjoy my meal, but it was different than I expected.
The Beach
Finally, I headed out to the beach just beyond the Lighthouse Café. There are really nice views from the beach, and there’s plenty of space to set up an umbrella and a chair. Or just sit down on your backside, as I did. It was a picturesque spot for a bit of relaxation before finally heading home.
