Back to the Florida Keys

We loved spending the winter in Florida’s State Parks so much last year that we decided to do it all over again this year. Right after Christmas, we beelined to Curry Hammock State Park in Marathon, where we had a waterfront campsite, and Michael was still on PTO.

Curry Hammock is a tiny state park with a tiny campground. There are almost no day visitors, so if you are staying there, it’s like your own private oasis in the otherwise very crowded Florida Keys. The weather was great, so we had a lot of beach time.

We also walked the Old 7-mile bridge every morning. The north side has a renovated multi-use path, and the south side has a fishing pier.

We made the obligatory day trip to Key West. We tried conch fritters for the first time at Kaya Island Eats, and had some Key Lime pie with mile-high meringue at Blue Heaven. You can’t go to Key West without watching the sunset, and we like Truman Park for that.

Next, we moved to John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park in Key Largo. A nice new boardwalk trail through the mangroves had opened since our last visit. We rented a tandem kayak at the park and paddled a mangrove trail.

We also went looking for a marina to spot some marine life. Robbie’s in Islamorada is by far the most popular, but we couldn’t get parking there. We were successful at the World Wide Sportsman’s Marina, and saw tarpon, several sharks, and several manatees.

Next, we saved the best for last and headed back south to Bahia Honda State Park near Big Pine Key. Bahia Honda is truly special and stands out amongst the large list of amazing places we’ve stayed. It’s not just a place to park while we explore an area. It’s the destination, the main event. It’s the hardest campground to get a reservation at that we’ve ever encountered, and everyone staying there is just so happy to be there. Even the park staff love their jobs, and give you a “welcome home” when you check in.

The waterfront sites in the Buttonwood loop have views of both the US1 bridge and the Old Bahia Honda RR bridge. The sunsets over the RR bridge are even better than Key West sunsets!

Bahia Honda also has some of the best beaches in the Keys. We usually go to Loggerhead because it’s within walking distance from our campsite and less crowded than Calusa.

We love that you can almost always find manatees at the marina.

Of course, our campsite and our timing weren’t perfect. Our electric hookup didn’t work, so we had to live off solar and batteries. Not really a problem for us, but it could be for others. Then, after one perfect weekend, it got so cold that the iguanas were falling out of the trees in the rest of Florida. Michael left for a work trip, while Cody and I stayed behind and dealt with high winds.

We still loved our time in one of our favorite places. Sadly, our 6 weeks in the Keys were over too fast, and we’re not really sure when we’ll be back. For now, our winter in Florida continues in the Everglades!