Lignumvitae Key

 

The next hike in our Florida Hiking Book is on an island, and since we don't have a boat in our backyard, the first order of business was figuring out how to get to Lignumvitae Key State Park. Fortunately, Robbie's Marina in Islamorada has a ferry service. It's actually just a regular 6-8 passenger boat, and it only runs on the weekends. So, we scheduled our trip for the last Friday in March. However, when we called to confirm our reservation the day before, they said it was going to be too windy to take the boat out and we needed to reschedule. (We were disappointed that we'd have to wait longer, but that also meant we didn't have to miss our regular Friday morning temple trip; the next available day was during its semi-annual closure.)

Because it's been a while since we've driven to the Keys, on the way down we stopped at Robert is Here. That's always a fun little field trip.

We arrive at Robbie's Marina with plenty of time to wander around and check out this very touristy place. Note that parking can be difficult to find, so if you go, allow time for that.

At 1:30 we met our fellow passengers (five total) and our captain, and we were off across the bay. It's actually only a mile or so away, but you have to follow the channels properly, so it takes about 15 minutes

Once on the island, we met our ranger guide. It's actually a good thing we went this route (we considered renting a canoe and paddling over ourselves), because you can only access the trail with a guide. (Note also that state park fee is including in the cost of the ferry; paying online ahead of time is a waste of money.)

We trekked through the typical hammock forest to the other side of the island, and spent quite a bit of time admiring the coral wall, built by some unknown people. The rusted machinery left by other people was also quite fascinating.

After our "hike" was complete, we had some time to explore the old caretaker's house.

Our guide said we weren't using the self-guiding tour pamphlet, but I took a picture of it anyway. I think we covered all the main points listed. 

Then it was time for our return trip on the boat, and an early dinner at the Hungry Tarpon, before driving home. What a fun day!

The next hike will be on the "ocean" side of Islamorada Key, at Indian Key State Park. That's also an island, but we know now that it's possible to get ourselves over there. We know where to rent the kayaks. And we know to bring our snorkeling gear!