A Walk on the Bridge

The original 7 mile bridge was built in 1908-1912 as a railroad bridge. The railroad ran from Miami to Key West; there was no road down the Keys. The Labor Day hurricane of 1935 killed hundreds of people and destroyed the railroad including the 7 mile bridge. The bridge was rebuilt as part of the Overseas Highway and remained the longest bridge in the world until it was replaced by a new bridge that opened in 1982. Most of the bridge has been allowed to rust away but the first two miles has been preserved as a non vehicle exercise trail. The preserved portion runs out to Pigeon Key, a research and camp foundation. Its a good walk/run/bike trail. Some pictures: The first is a photo of the historic marker; the second was taken from the one mile marker toward Pigeon Key, off in the distance in the upper left corner can be seen the high rise portion of the new bridge. This is the last high rise bridge on the way to Key West by water. The last picture is taken from the one mile marker toward Marathon and catches a beautiful sunrise. The bridge is very popular and the parking lot is full every morning.