Leslie and David's Wanderings: 21 Feb 2020 Biscayne Bay and Coral Castles

This morning we headed for the national park on the other coast of Florida, Biscayne NP. We knew as we headed over that there would not be much we could do in the park. Over 95% of Biscayne NP is water. The majority of solid ground in the park is on the keys in the park. A key is different from an island. An island is formed by geological forces (volcanoes, uplifts) and keys are formed by biological means (coral, sea shells, etc). Without a boat there is not much you can do. With gale warnings up for the next several days, getting our kayaks out on the bay was not an option. We arrived at the visitor center and explored the exhibits, collected our 71^stpassport stamp, and strolled through the store (David bought his hat) and watched the park movie. Established in 1958 as a national monument to protect the bay from development, it was enlarged and turned into a national park in 1980. We talked with the ranger about hiking options and there was really not any on the mainland. There are a couple of trails on the keys, but without a boat they were not an option. There are commercial tour operators that take you out to one or another of the keys, but with gale warnings, we did not want to take that ride. There was a short trail by the visitor center along the waters edge and out onto a seawall which we walked before hustling back to the Behemoth as a rainstorm moved in. Since it was lunchtime, we looked up a local seafood restaurant since watching all the fish in the park movie made us hungry for sea food. The Black Point Ocean Grill was on the water and just down the road from Mount Trashmore (the garbage dump for Miami). As we walked in we notice two tables full of Miami-Dade county motorcycle cops, so we knew it was going to be good. It was Delicious!

After lunch, we went to the famous Coral Castle. Built by an immigrant from Latvia, Edward Leedskalnin, in the 1930s, he mined coral limestone in massive megalithic stones that he shaped and moved by himself. It is not clear how he lifted and moved the stones weighing up to 15 tons without any modern equipment (no hydraulics!). It was an interesting side trip.