Cape Florida Lighthouse on Key Biscayne - Miami

The island of Key Biscayne is located east of the city Miami and is known worldwide for its tennis tournament in which the best tennis players every year participate. Outside the tennis season Key Biscayne is rather a small holiday island which is spared from the bustle of metropolitan Miami.

The island can be reached on the Rickenbacker Causeway - a toll road - and attracts especially on Sundays and public holidays many people for bathing, fishing and boat driving. The best time to come on these days to the island to enjoy the day is in the early morning hours. At that time there are no traffic jams.

On the island only one main road goes to the southern point and the Light House. This road leads along the marinas with its many boats waiting for their owners to make the next trip into the waters of Miami.

There are also many small beaches along the road to the Light House. The bathing folks can just stop and park their cars there at the beach. These beaches are often not very wide. Therefore it is better to drive to the end of the island where you can find one of the 10 top beaches nationwide with green, clear water for swimming.

For lovers of marine life a visit at the Miami Seaquarium is a good detour. On the road to the Lighthouse just passes the entrance of the park and you can stop there. Here is also an early visit recommended and gives you the opportunity for the best seats because the largest number of visitors on Sunday usually come after lunch.

And there is more to see on the way to the Lighthouse at Cape Florida. The road there goes through the Village of Key Biscayne. The place reminds the visitor of a small vacation location in Europe with its small shops and parks. Only the palm trees and the wider streets show the real location: Florida.

Shortly after leaving the Village of Key Biscayne there is the entrance to the Park “Cape Florida State Recreation Area". AT the entrance to the park you have to pay a fee for cars. Bicycles and pedestrians are free and can pass without stopping.

Within the park the visitor has different specified walking and cycling trails to explore nature. The fishing people have to go on until the very end of the island. There they find fixed piers and various wooden fishing platforms to perform their hobby.

For the visitors who do not want to fish first and eat later there are some covered picnic areas available. If these covered picnic area are take you can use the picnic areas direct at the Lighthouse.

This picnic area at the Lighthouse is not covered. There are wooden tables and benches established under trees and fixed barbecue stalls are available if you arrive on time. On Sundays this is a welcome place for family parties.

Just behind the dunes the bathing people find a beach paradise. At a white beach and clear green water every body is invited to take a swim. After the sun cooling down in the waves of the Atlantic Ocean is a welcome change. Just watch the flow which can easily take the bathers away and there are no life guards at the beach. Everyone has to be careful.

The visitor should not miss to climb up the lighthouse which is right next to the beach. In 1825 the lighthouse was built as a guide through the sandbars and coral reefs for the sailors and guarded the shores of Cape Florida for over 170 years.

Except for the hurricane in 1855 the lighthouse does its task without great harm. In 1971 this lighthouse was registered to the National Register of Historic Places and is managed by the Dade Heritage Trust. This company started its work in 1988 with the complete restoration of the lighthouse. Because of weather conditions on the island and its own age the lighthouse tower had suffered greater damages.

The installation of the lighthouse and the lighthouse keeper of the residential buildings are now restored to the historic environment of the year 1855. At the foot of the lighthouse is the home of the lighthouse keeper with a cistern for collecting rainwater - Freshwater and groundwater is limited to the offshore islands.

The house of the lighthouse keeper is a museum and shows the original equipment from the year 1855. In the living room there is a book where everyone can document his visit to this place. In addition there are information materials on the topic available.

The kitchen was located in a separate building to prevent the attack on the main building in case of a fire. Today in this kitchen building a film about the lighthouse, its history and the restoration is shown.

For physically trained people the rise of the 110 steps toward the lighting room is a must. The view across the island to the Biscayne Bay and Miami's skyline is stunning. You also have the possibility to look for the best spot on the below beach for swimming and sunbathing.

 

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