14. Biscayne

Biscayne! I’ve been excited to dig more into this park that’s 95% water making a boat pretty much a necessity for adventures. Established June 28, 1980 one of the park’s most important responsibilities is managing a piece of the last living coral reef in the continental United States. The Florida reef is the third-largest barrier reef on the planet. One of the cool things about barrier reefs is they do as the name states and act as a barrier against waves and storms, minimizing the waves energy when it reaches shore and in turn that keeps back flood waters. So not only are reefs helpful that way, they also provide homes to the most biodiverse ecosystems on earth. Over 6,000 species find refuge in the florida reef. sharks, turtles and invertebrates to the tiny pygmy seahorse measuring at just 1”. Pictures of the Man o war caught my eye during research and led me on a trail of their own. These creatures are so strange, floating on top of the water looking like a balloon but down below venomous tentacles that ensnare their prey can hang and reach up to 165 feet though average around 30 feet which is like 6 of me standing on top of each other! While not usually fatal to humans the sting is extremely painful. So avoid those guys. But also look them up their crazy!

Biscayne National Park is made up of four separate ecosystems, the coral reef), the islands in North Florida keys section, a portion of Biscayne bay, and the mangrove forest along the main shoreline where the longest stretch of wild mangrove grows in Florida. Mangrove forests are such an important component to ecosystems. Their complex root systems help stabilize the shoreline and filter pollutants while also providing shelter and foraging opportunities for juvenile reef fish, birds and other marine life like the American alligator but we’ll dig into those more with Everglades.

The lighthouse Boca Chita Light was built in the late 1930s. Usually lighthouses are sanctioned and built for navigation but I learned Boca Chita Key was a private island owned by  Mark C. Honeywell and he built the lighthouse to lead guests to his parties. Shortly after The U.S. Coast Guard ordered the lighthouse to be turned off because it had not been authorized as an official navigation aid and was considered a hazard. So while it was never a heroic beacon to ships it’s a piece of history that’s close to 100 years old weathering the Florida storms. Speaking of ships and lighthouses the historic Foweys rock lighthouse was built in 1878 and while no longer open to the public being partly submerged is a popular diving and snorkeling spot on a trail of shipwrecks. The trail features 6 of the 50 wrecks within the national park.

I would love get over my fear of sharks and well… man o wars and snorkel here. Alas someday! Have you been to Biscayne? Tell me about it in the comments.

Photos, My own NPS,Special thanks to  NPS Photos by Heriberto Irizarry, Matt Johnson, and Pete Wintersteen