A Visit to Crane Point

After a front moved through yesterday that resulted in some rain and a big temperature drop, we woke up today to another beautiful day, albeit, cooler.

After each doing some things in the morning, we decided to ride our bikes to Crane Point that we had read about.

In 1978, a group of concerned citizens formed the Florida Keys Land & Sea Trust to save the hardwood hammocks of the Keys. In 1989, the Trust purchased Crane Point, saving this 63-acre ecological treasure from being developed into private homes and shopping malls.







Here is the entrance into Crane Point.

Here is what is right across the street  - shopping malls, gas stations, etc. - all built on land where the hardwood hammocks were bulldozed down.

The tropical hardwood hammock is an ecosystem consisting of broad-leafed trees, shrubs, and vines, nearly all of which are native to the West Indies. Hardwood hammocks form a dense canopy with a tangle of shrubs and vines at the ground level and its outer edges.

Crane Point was a step back in time to when all of the Keys was undeveloped. We saw all kinds of folliage and trees and had the chance to walk on paths through the canopy of shrubs.

  Finally, we reached the point that provided a beautiful view of the ocean.

 

 After an afternoon at Crane Point, we rode back to the campground in a 20 mile per hour headwind!