In 1877, Commodore Ralph Munroe, for whom the Miami Marine Stadium is named, sailed for the first time from Key West to Miami. His route: Biscayne Bay. The Bay was the community’s highway, north and south and from the Atlantic to the mainland.
Though our highways are now steel and concrete, Biscayne Bay remains an important corridor -- a critical link to our environmental heritage.
And Virginia Key is at the heart of that corridor, connecting North and South Biscayne Bay.
“The pivotal location of Virginia Key offers the opportunity to interpret and manifest the diverse natural and cultural heritage of Biscayne Bay through a network of aqualinks - an Aqua Necklace ....to connect the waterfront resources of Biscayne Bay.”
This was the recommendation of the Virginia Key Park Civil Rights Task Force to the City of Miami Commission in 2000.
The task force went on to enumerate the many ecological, historic and recreational sites along the Bay that would be linked - starting with Oleta State Recreation Area in the North to Biscayne National Park Convoy Point Visitor’s Center in the south. In between would be historic sites - the Miami Circle, The Barnacle, the Charles Deering Estate and trailheads and wildlife observation areas, including preserves and refuges.
“A string of pearls” they called this “aqualink” and Virginia Key would be the Aqua Pearl in the center.
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On Facebook: Friends of Virginia Key
How I love Biscayne Bay
ReplyDeleteI've spent many an afternoon fishing, kayaking, and snorkeling it.
And there is no better view of the Miami Skyline than from a sailboat
in the middle of it :)