The Florida Keys Scenic Highway is like no other highway in America. A marvel of engineering completed in 1938, it ventures across a water wonderland of tropical turquoise, spanning 42 bridges to connect a 107-mile-long string of keys linking mainland Florida and Key West. Popularly known as the Overseas Highway and officially designated U.S. Route 1, the motorway largely overlies oil and rail magnate Henry Flagler’s ill- fated Overseas Railroad, destroyed by a hurricane in 1935. It was designated an All-American Road in 2009. Be forewarned that this heavily trav- eled two-laner often moves like molasses, and passing opportunities are few and far between. So go slowly and do as Carol Shaughnessy, director of the Florida Keys and Key West Visitors Bureau, suggests: “Take pleasure in the ever-changing land and seascapes.” Emerging from the mainland, you’ll first come upon Key Largo, largest of the Florida Keys, and home to John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. The
park was the first underwater preserve in the country and boasts the only coral reef in the continental United States. Visitors can join glass-bottomed boat tours or go snorkeling and diving. If you are at all eco-oriented, drop by the Turtle Hospital in Marathon where they care for ill and injured sea turtles, or just up the highway stop at the Dolphin Research Center on Grassy Key, where experts study and train Atlantic bottle- nose dolphins. For a small fee, you can engage in some up-close interaction with the cavorting creatures. Just beyond Marathon on tiny Pigeon Key, you’ll find one of the Keys’ most notable historical sites, a well-preserved work camp built by the Florida East Coast Railway in the early 1900s to house hun- dreds of men engaged in bridge construc- tion. Nearby you’ll see the remains of their major project, the old Seven Mile Bridge, which still stands beside the impressive new highway bridge and is open to the public for fishing and strolling. Bahia Honda State Park is next and,
as home to the best beaches anywhere along the highway, it merits a stop. It’s an exceptional park where you can fish, kayak, snorkel or just lie on the beach. Amenities include boating facilities, a food concession, rental cabins and tent and RV camping. Key West is the highway’s termi- nus and its star attraction. As America’s southernmost city, Key West is steeped in the colorful cultures and customs of nearby neighbors Cuba and the Bahamas and, like the highway leading to it, it’s one-of-a-kind. While Key West might be best known for its funkiness, carnival- like sunset celebrations and boisterous nightlife, its cobbled streets are lined with chic shops, fine restaurants and classy B&Bs. Hedonism finds balance too in the town’s many cultural and historical attractions, including the John Audubon House, Ernest Hemingway House and Harry S. Truman Little White House. Some have dubbed it KeyWeird; locals call it Paradise. No doubt, the truth lies somewhere in between.
14 COAST TO COAST spring 2014
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