| Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Recreation Area | |
|---|---|
IUCN category IV (habitat/species management area) | |
 | |
   | |
| Location | 1200 South Crandon Boulevard Miami-Dade County, Florida,U.S. |
| Nearest city | Key Biscayne, Florida |
| Coordinates | 25°40′25″N80°09′34″W / 25.673611°N 80.159444°W /25.673611; -80.159444 |
| Area | 400 acres (160 ha) |
| Established | 1967 |
| Visitors | 850,000 (in 2004) |
| Governing body | Florida Department of Environmental Protection |
Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Recreation Area occupies approximately the southern third of the island ofKey Biscayne, at coordinates25°40′25″N80°09′34″W / 25.67361°N 80.15944°W /25.67361; -80.15944. This park includes theCape Florida Light, the oldest standing structure inGreater Miami.[1] In 2005, it was ranked as having the 8th best beach in the country,[2][3] and in 2013Forbes ranked it at 7th.[4]
The park was named in honor ofBill Baggs, editor ofThe Miami News from 1957 until his death in 1969. He worked to protect the land from development and to preserve some of the key in its natural state.
In 2004 a large historical marker was erected at the site to mark it as part of the NationalUnderground Railroad Network to Freedom Trail, as hundreds ofBlack Seminoles, many fugitive slaves, escaped from here to freedom in theBahamas, settling mostly onAndros Island. In the early 1820s, some 300 American slaves reached the Bahamas, aboard 27 sloops and many canoes.[5] The US National Park Service is working with the Bahamas, particularly the African Bahamanian Museum and Research Center (ABAC) in Nassau, to develop interpretive programs at Red Bays, Andros.[6]
The park has more than a mile of sandyAtlantic beachfront, wheresnorkeling andswimming is possible. Besides the beach and tours of the lighthouse and keeper's quarters, activities includeboating,canoeing,kayaking andfishing from the seawall alongBiscayne Bay,bicycling,hiking andwildlife viewing. The park has such amenities aspicnicking areas and youthcamping. It also has avisitor center, amuseum with interpretive exhibits andconcessions.No Name Harbor, a natural harbor in the park, is used for anchorage.
More than 260 bird species, includingpiping plovers andperegrine falcons, have been seen in the park.[7] There are also over 50 species of butterflies, including thestatira butterfly. In summer, the beach provides a nesting site forloggerhead sea turtles.Florida manatees,green andleatherback sea turtles forage offshore inseagrass meadows, andAmerican crocodiles also are known to find refuge in this coastal park.[8]
In 1992,Hurricane Andrew destroyed many of the invasiveAustralian pines that had established themselves in the park, allowing for further restoration of native flora in habitats such as marine hammocks and mangrove forests.[9][10] Multiple species plants identified by as imperiled are protected by the park, includingbeach jacquemontia,Biscayne prickly-ash and Atlantic Coast Florida lantana (Lantana depressa var. floridana).[11]
The park is home to the Cape FloridaBanding Station (CFBS), which was established in 2002 to monitor how the restored habitat supports migrating songbirds and regionalmigration patterns.[12] In 2021, the station banded its 40,000th bird[13] and in September 2025, reached the 50,000th.[14]
Florida state parks are open between 8 a.m. and sundown every day of the year (including holidays).
