Bahia Honda State Park

After leaving Dana’s we hauled it down to the Keys. It was a pleasant yet expensive trip: $15.60 in tolls. Ouch. We’re staying in Bahia Honda State Park, which is about two-thirds of the way to Key West, after Seven Mile Bridge. It’s a beautiful place. Once again we were guided here by Rich and Eleanor who have been on the road with their daughter Emma in an Airstream Safari for about two years. Their blog has been invaluable to us from the beginning.



It’s hard to get a spot in Bahia Honda. We made a reservation for two nights back in early August. After that we were going to head up to John Pennekamp State Park, but once we got in the water for a late afternoon swim we decided to try and stay here till Friday. We got lucky and they had an opening today a few sites away. So we packed everything up, hitched up, and moved about a hundred feet.



The park has a nice little nature center and the volunteer on duty was a fellow Virginian (from Williamsburg) who gave us tons of information and advice. We plan to go snorkeling at least one day. The rest of the time we plan to relax, swim, and explore. All of us are awed by the color of the water here: deep blues and creamy greens.



We took a walk this afternoon on a segment of bridge that used to be part of the Overseas Railway. Paid for by oil magnate, Henry Flagler, this railroad was often referred to as “Flagler’s Folly”. Started in 1905, it was completed in 1912. In 1935 a hurricane wiped enough of the railroad out to make it unusable. It was paved over and used as a road until the Overseas Highway (Route 1) was built. Now, part of it you can walk on and part of it you can just look at!

I’m trying to keep on top of our Google map. Click here for our updated Google Map. Using the map is fun. If you view the satellite or hybrid map, you can see exactly where our trailer was parked.