Windley Key Fossil Reef Geological State Park, Islamorada, Florida

I've shared a couple of posts recently about places that we visited on our recent stay in the Florida Keys, and today I wanted to write about Windley Key Fossil Reef Geological State Park in Islamorada, a perfect place to stop and stretch your legs as you drive through the keys.

The park is really easy to find - it's on your right as you drive down the Overseas Highway and it's well signposted. There's a large car park, and on the day we visited there were only a couple of other visitors. Do check the opening times as it's currently only open Thursday-Monday. It costs just $2.50 per person to visit, there are toilets, a water fountain, a museum, and several short self-guided trails. There are also some guided tours available, check the website for details. 

We spent about an hour and a half here. We would have spent a little longer, but it started to rain quite heavily so we headed for the museum! We had plenty of time to walk all the trails at a leisurely pace and to spend time in the museum afterwards. There are picnic benches dotted all around, so it's a great place to stop for a packed lunch.

We started with the Hammock Trail which takes you through a tropical hardwood hammock. There are all sorts of interesting trees and plants to see, as well as various wildlife, like these huge spiders that greeted us at several corners!

 

You can borrow a guide book to take around with you if you are looking for detailed information, or else there are plenty of informational signs to explain the things that you are seeing. The trails were well marked and pretty easy to follow, the area covered by the park isn't that large so you are unlikely to get very lost.

As you walk along the paths you notice that they are lined with small rocks filled with fossils. This area was used as a quarry which was still active into the 1960s. The trains running through the Keys were used to transport the fossil covered stone back to the mainland. There are remnants of the quarrying equipment remaining across the site, and plenty of information to help you understand the quarrying process.

A couple of trails take you through the old quarry itself where you can see the vast walls of rocks, marked with lines from the drilling equipment. It's fascinating to wander past these rock faces which are covered in beautiful fossils. You can see stand among the fossil corals and realise that once all this was underwater.

After a quick rush through the downpour to the Visitor Center we spent some time in the museum. It's a mixture of the geological history about fossils found in the park, and the industrial history of the area including the quarry and the railway. Although small it's really well done with plenty of information.

If you are driving down through the keys then Windley Key Fossil Reef Geological State Park is a great place to stop for a break, and also a really good introduction to the history of the area.

If you are looking for other activities to do in the Florida Keys then you may also be interested in these posts:

The Old Seven Mile Bridge at Marathon Key

The Turtle Hospital at Marathon Key