Fossils & Trees

We decided to look for coral fossils, so there’s no better place than Windley Key, just a short distance from the campground. Windley Key was formed from “Key Largo Limestone” over 125,000 years ago. Overtime the seas rose and fell.  At times the water level was 25 feet higher than today. At other times the ocean level dropped by 300 feet revealing the entire Florida Plateau. Finally 5,000 years ago the water levels stabilized. The ancient coral reef that remained exposed formed the islands now called the Florida Keys.

In 1908 Windley Key was sold to the Florida East Coast Railway. Quarries along the tract supplied tons of fill for the railbed and bridge approaches. After the railroad was completed in 1921 the fossilized coral or limestone was sliced and polished for use as decorative pieces. The channeling machine worked by chiseling two parallel groves into the coral. This would be repeated several times until each channel was 8 to 10 feet deep. Each slab weighed up to 10 tons.

Channeling Machine

Note the drill holes and ripple surface
of the wall

Windley Quarry

The quarry remained active until 1960. Today the clean cuts by the quarry machine have revealed evidence of perfectly preserved fossilized coral animals.

The park also offers 5 different self-guided interconnecting trails ranging from a short 1/8 mile to a ½ mile long. There are over 40 kinds of trees found along the trails whose fruits, nuts, and berries provide food for several endangered species in the area. Before commencing our outing the park ranger gave us his BEWARE of the poisonwood tree. Brushing up against this tree can cause a contact dermatitis. Poisonwood is 10x stronger than poison ivy. Not going near those trees, just keep your hands inside your pockets and you will be safe. NOT! Standing under the leaves during rain or heavy dew can cause skin irritation. Great!

Poisonwood Tree - sap turns black when exposed
to air

As we walked along the trail we were amazed at the different species of trees and how the park has used signs to identify them.

Uprooted tree

After a few hours of fossil hunting and trail walking we were hungry. Asking the park ranger the best place to eat was rewarding. He gave us Lorelei’s. So away we go. As soon as we drove in we knew this was the place. Nestled on the sandy beach was a quaint restaurant with an amazing view.

This was our view

I ordered their World Famous Fish Sandwich. Every restaurant has a famous sandwich, don’t they? We were hoping the food would be as good as the view. Can you imagine what the sunsets are like? Thank goodness for the umbrellas cause it was definitely hot out.

After a short wait we were served up our food, had our sodas topped up, and left to enjoy the view and surroundings. And that we did.

Susan's Fish Tacos

My Mahi Mahi Sandwich with Sweet
Potato Fries

A short one and a half hours later we had to leave, not because they asked us, nor because we were still eating but because we were starting to get tired from the long hike, full bellies, and hot sun. I wanted to sit in those beach chairs sipping a cool drink but knew I would be toast if I did so. So away we go but not before we saw some of the local boat traffic.

Another fun day in paradise.