Key West-bound island hoppers aside, there are few visitors to the Lower Keys, and that’s the way I like it. Just get off the Overseas Highway and find your lost paradise.
You can snorkel here. Anywhere. Whether it’s the Looe Key Reef off Big Pine Key or in the backcountry that wraps around the cluster of scenic islands that make up the Lower Keys.
Paddling opportunities are endless, and so are the fishing hot spots. Largely undeveloped, there are back roads on the islands of the Lower Keys that take you to undisturbed places, wilderness boat launches and idyllic locales that few but the locals know.
Kayaking in the Lower Keys
One of the beauties of paddling in the Lower Keys is the accessibility. Aside from multiple boat ramps, there are numerous causeways and bridges where you can pull off the road and slide your kayak into the water. Back-country roads take you to even more launch points.
No Name Key: This island is off Big Pine Key, off Key Deer Boulevard on Watson Boulevard. Just past the No Name Pub are the Old Wooden Bridge Cabins, where Keys kayak guru Bill Keogh sets up shop. He’ll guide you on eco-tours or ferry you into the back country. The more adventurous follow Watson to its end on No Name.
Summerland Key: This one is a little tricky, but well worth it. Make the first right onto Horace Street from the Overseas Highway, the second right onto Northside Drive, then left onto Niles Road. At the end of Niles Road, park and launch your kayak or small boat into a beautiful bay with islands waiting to be explored.
Saddlebunch Keys: As you hop from island to causeway to bridge back to island and causeway a few times, there are dozens of places to pull over and launch. This may be the most scenic and accessible part of the Keys.
Snorkeling and Diving
Looe Key Reef is home to abundant reef fish and spectacular underwater views, making it a top destination for snorkelers and divers. The shallow depth of the reef, ranging from 6 inches to 30 feet, make it especially attractive to snorkelers.
Just west of Looe Key is a sunken freighter, the 210-foot Adolphus Busch, which was scuttled as an artificial reef in 1998. Wreck diving requires Advanced Open Water Certification.
Here are a few ways to get out to the reef and the wreck:
Bahia Honda State Park, at Mile Marker 36.8. The park concession offers snorkeling tours to the Looe Key Marine Sanctuary. Call 305-872-3210 or online at bahiahondapark.com.
Strike Zone Charters, Big Pine Key at MM 29.5. Charters and tour boats take divers and snorkelers out to Looe Key or the wreck. Call 305-872-9863 or online at strikezonecharter.com.
Looe Key Resort and Dive Center, Ramrod Key at MM 27. Full-day dive and snorkel trips. Call 877-816-3483 or online at looekeydivecenter.com.
Bahia Honda State Park
Bahia Honda State Park is a scenic introduction to the Lower Keys with some of the best beaches to be found anywhere in Florida.
Here you will also find the most spectacular of the historic railroad bridges that Henry Flagler built to open the Keys to tourism, and the narrow roadway precariously perched atop the bridge spans. Having crossed that narrow bridge many years ago, I can personally attest to the nail-biting crossing, holding my breath as cars whizzed past in the opposite direction, just inches away, squeezed by the low rail without a shoulder.
Bahia Honda is a launching pad for spectacular fishing, kayaking and snorkeling near shore, or taking a dive boat out to Looe Key Reef.
The cabins and campground offer many waterfront vistas, and the absolute best campsites are set aside exclusively for tents along the most beautiful beach in the Florida Keys, Sandspur Beach.
Visit online at floridastateparks.org/park/Bahia-Honda
National Key Deer Wildlife Refuge
Pint-size Key deer can only be found on Big Pine and No Name keys. The 84,000-acre refuge is home to 22 threatened or endangered species, including Key deer and the Lower Keys marsh rabbit. Dozens of offshore islands are nesting grounds for migratory birds.
Although isolated residential areas are evident, most of Big Pine Key is preserved as pine forest, imperiled tropical hardwood hammocks, freshwater wetlands, salt marsh and mangrove.
Unique to Big Pine are fresh water marshes and pools, which are big draws for wildlife. You can visit one pool at Blue Hole, two miles north of U.S. 1 on Key Deer Boulevard. There are also trails for hiking and off-road bicycling.
The preserve’s visitor center is in the Big Pine Shopping Plaza, but it is not always open. Find maps and information online at fws.gov/refuge/National_Key_Deer_Refuge
Sugarloaf Key Bat Tower
This curiosity of the early 20th Century at Mile Marker 17 is testament to early mosquito control.
Fishing lodge owner Richter Clyde Perky built the tower in 1929 to house bats, intending to wipe out or at least curb the mosquito population, but it was a grand failure.
When bats were introduced to the tower, they immediately flew away and disappeared, never to be seen again.
The tower remains.
Cabins and cottages
Bahia Honda State Park. These six cabins are duplexes on a lagoon that opens up to Florida Bay. Each of the six units accommodates up to six people, except Cabin No. 2, which is wheelchair accessible and sleeps four. Reservations by calling 800-326-3521 or online floridastateparks.org/park/Bahia-Honda.
Old Wooden Bridge Guest Cottages. Off the beaten path on Big Pine Key, just before the bridge to No Name Key. There are 14 rental units ranging in size and price. Excellent jumping off point for kayaking. Call 305-872-2241 for reservations or online at oldwoodenbridge.com.
Parmers Resort. Cottages and motel rooms in a quiet, well-groomed and very tropical resort on Little Torch Key, about a half-mile north of U.S. 1 on Barry Avenue (MM 28). The resort has a swimming pool, boat slips and ramp. Call 305-872-2157 or online at parmersresort.com.
Camping in the Lower Keys
Sunshine Key RV Resort and Marina: At MM 38.8. Sunshine Key is on its own 75-acre island. Call 800-852-0348 or online at rvonthego.com/florida/sunshine-key-rv-resort-marina
Bahia Honda State Park: At MM 36.8. There are three campgrounds, including one exclusively for tents on the beach. For reservations, call 800-326-3521 or online at floridastateparks.org/park/Bahia-Honda
Big Pine Fishing Lodge and Campground: At MM 33. Very Keys-y with sparse shade. Many RV sites have dockage, and some sites are on a canal. Large primitive camping area for tents. Call 305-872-2351 or online at bpkfl.com
Sugarloaf Key KOA: At MM 20. This resort-style campground has all the amenities. There are 200 gravel sites for RVs and a shady primitive camping area for tents. Call 305-745-3549 or online at koa.com/campgrounds/sugarloaf-key.
Boyd’s Key West Campground: On Stock Island (MM 5). A tropical feel with coconut palms, a swimming beach and waterfront vistas. Call 305-294-1465 or online at boydscampground.com.
