Biscayne National Park guide · 1 min read
Crossing Biscayne Bay by Kayak to the Keys
Biscayne Bay is shallow and clear, and most of Biscayne National Park is open water rather than land.
The keys, the islands scattered across the bay, can only be reached by boat, and paddling is one of the recreational activities the park lists. Though the park sits about 15 miles from Miami, it feels worlds apart.
Visitors with their own boats can reach the park from marinas at Homestead Bayfront, near the Dante Fascell Visitor Center, at Black Point, at Matheson Hammock, or at Crandon on Key Biscayne. One loop by boat starts at Homestead Bayfront, stops at Jones Lagoon for kayaking or paddleboarding, and then continues to Boca Chita Key. Adams Key, another of the park's keys, offers a sunrise view worth an early start.
Elliott Key is the park's largest island and the northernmost of the true Florida Keys. Visitors can camp there, eat at picnic tables, walk a short hiking trail with a one-mile loop, and fish. During a dispute over the island's future, a wide road seven miles long was carved down its length. Trees have since grown over much of that old route, which people still call Spite Highway.
Boca Chita Key is the park's most visited island, and boats are the only way to get there. A half-mile trail circles the island, and there is a small beach and picnic area. The ornamental lighthouse, 65 feet tall and built in the 1930s by Mark Honeywell, has an observation deck overlooking the bay and the Miami skyline. The campground has grills, but there is no drinking water, so bring your own. Carry out all trash, and bring sunblock and mosquito repellent, because mosquitoes are around all year.
