Florida Keys
 

Who's biked the Florida Keys? How'd it go? Best time of year to do it? Any advice or recommendations?

Check out Seth formerly from Seth's bike hacks and his buddy.

Here is our journal. A bit dated

Finetastic Adventure Atlantic Coast 2012, by Marti Fine

Thanks, fellas! :thumb:

Didn't bike it yet but the best time to go visit the Keys is the week before Christmas. Everyone is visiting family and traffic is very light. The week after it starts getting bust.

I live about two hours north of Miami and organized a century ride from Key Largo to Key West for some friends and me in February 2018. We had a blast! I chose February because there aren't many organized rides I was interested in here in Florida in the dead of "winter." I also didn't want to do it between April- October when the heat would be hellacious. December is busy for the holidays and I'm busy January and March with professional obligations.

It went very well, but it was a few months after Hurricane Irma damaged the Keys. Overall, there was still some damage, but most of the infrastructure was back. We biked mostly on the street (and bike lanes), but we didn't use the bike paths too much-- at least I didn't seek out every one. There were bike paths we didn't use, considering we weren't touring. We were doing a one day century. One thing I remember was that Marathon Key seemed to be the most commercial but with no bike lanes. We had to ride the sidewalks with many side streets to cross. At the time, they were repaving the side streets, so it was rough. Thankfully that lasted only a few miles-- I think. The other thing that comes to mind is the Seven Mile Bridge. It's seven miles, with an adequate bike lane, a guardrail and then a far drop to the ocean. There will be trucks passing you at 50+ mph... I don't care what the speed limit is. Let's just say it was a butt-clenching experience. We met in Port St. Lucie at 4 AM and drove to Key Largo. After the ride, we showered at a public park and changed in the van, drove back to Key Largo where we ate dinner. Then we drove back to Port St. Lucie and arrived at about 3 or 4 AM. It was a LONG DAY but so much fun.

That being said, I would do it again and would ask my friends if we didn't have the COVID concerns with cramming in a van for three hours to get to Key Largo and four to five hours back home.

I rode Marathon to Key West this year on the Sunday of Martin Luther weekend. Traffic was light and the shoulder on the 7mile bridge was wider than I was prepared for. I was fortunate to have a cross/tail wind. Rode solo. If riding into a headwind it would have been tough. There's no protection most of the ride. Great Pizza place in Marathon and stayed at Coconut Cay resort. One of employees was an avid cyclist and took time to talk about ride. Need lock if stopping along route for any extended stops.

What time of the year is best for minimal wind? I believe someone told me either January or February some time ago, but I’m not sure.

one4smoke , have you checked out the Regional Discussion Forum's Southeast subforum?

I'm not sure what time of year has minimal wind, but I do remember that the wind is more commonly coming out of the east in February. We did have a little tailwind which was nice.

If you come down from the north in the winter, plan on a couple of days of acclimatizing to the heat. Point to point or out and backs on the main road gets a little monotonous, but sight seeing in the neighborhoods on the bay and ocean sides is fun. Rain storms can pop up quick and really come down.