From One State Park to Another

The winds that have been slowing my pace lately continued to be strong this morning and from a direction not particularly to my liking. As such, I’ve decided to keep my riding distances through the Keys short rather than trying to race my way to Miami. Even with the short days, I anticipate arriving in Miami on Sunday. For some reason I thought Miami was further from Key West than it actually is.

As a follow up to last night’s stay at Bahia Honda State Park, I’m spending tonight in another State Park – this one being about 50 km down the road from Bahia Honda. Tonight’s park is the Long Key State Park. The main gate and office at the park is exactly like it was at Bahia Honda. The campsites offered are the same too – except they also have “primitive” sites. I don’t think I’ve officially stayed at a primitive site before but some of my wild camping experiences earlier in this trip would certainly prepare me for however primitive the sites may be. Or so I thought. As the park ranger explained, there is no power at the primitive sites. There are cold “wash off” showers available and washrooms somewhat nearby. As you would expect, pretty basic stuff. But at $8.13/night it sounded good to me. Sure, I wouldn’t be able to recharge my various devices but I just don’t think a power outlet is worth an extra $35/night. For me, the big question was, “How remote were these sites going to be?”

I left the main gate and headed for the boardwalk that would lead me to the primitive sites. The fact that there was a boardwalk leading to the sites made me wonder how primitive they could really be. Spoiler Alert: Not very primitive at all. There are six primitive sites available along the boardwalk. All of them are built into the boardwalk, are fully covered, and include a picnic table. As far as I’m concerned, this was a huge upgrade over last night’s site. Plus, it’s surrounded by trees so I’m all but completely sheltered from the wind that is still howling. Conclusion: primitive = no power outlet.

It turns out the biggest concern for the night would be food. I arrived at the campground around 2:00 and I may have sort of overlooked the fact that the campground itself is pretty isolated. A quick check on my GPS revealed there to be nothing nearby in terms of food for at least 10 km (6 miles). On the upside, I had eaten lunch relatively recently and it wasn’t a particularly exhausting day so it’s not like I was ravaged with hunger. On the downside, it was only 2:00.

Fortunately, my concerns didn’t last long. Upon reading some of the paperwork given to me at the park office, I learned there was a “Quik-Mart” about 0.5 miles up the road. The selection would be limited and the prices inflated, but I’d be able to get something to eat. “Disaster” averted.

In terms of getting to Long Key State Park, the ride was slow but manageable. The biggest challenge of the day came early when I finally came face to face (actually, face to bridge) with the Seven Mile Bridge. This was a long time in coming. I first heard of the Seven Mile Bridge when I was talking to someone on my way to Atlantic City. According to his description, I could expect a lot of fast traffic, crazy drivers, and no shoulder whatsoever. This seemed somewhat improbable but he had clearly been there and I had not. Since then, I’ve heard a lot about the Seven Mile Bridge. Whenever the topic of cycling to or from Key West came up, the first thing that was frequently mentioned was the bridge.

Much of the talk would lead one to believe the bridge is pretty much the last place on earth you’d want to be on bicycle. And “earth” might be too limiting. However, I also heard reports that it wasn’t all bad. Busy? Yes. But no worse than a lot of highway riding. It was time for me to find out for myself.

It really didn’t take long for me to formulate an opinion of the Seven Mile Bridge. It certainly wasn’t the most fun I’ve ever had on a bicycle but it wasn’t something out of Revelations either. In reality, the bridge itself really wasn’t bad. At the time I crossed, the traffic wasn’t too heavy and I encountered no crazy drivers. Plus, the shoulder was plenty wide for my liking. The challenge was the wind. Again. Being on a bridge than spans seven miles really leaves you exposed to the elements. And when one of those elements is a fierce headwind there’s nothing you can do but put your head down and pedal through it. I crawled along at a lowly pace of between 11 and 13 km/h (less than 8 mph) for nearly 40 minutes before successfully reaching the other side.

Yes, the bridge crossing was the toughest part of today’s ride but it certainly wasn’t the dreaded obstacle that some folks would have you believe. And if I’d had a tailwind, I probably wouldn’t be commenting on the bridge at all.

All things considered (ie. the wind), today was another good day on the bike. The sun even made an appearance for the last half of the ride. That was nice to see. I’m not sure how far I’ll get tomorrow but it will likely be another short ride as the high winds seems determined to stick around for the entire week.

Today’s totals:
Distance travelled: 59.43 km
Time on bike: 3:33:21
Maximum speed: 25.56 km/h
Average speed: 16.71 km/h