Coconut Grove

We had  heard and read about some places near Miami in Coconut Grove.  We decided to try out a mooring in Dinner Key.  Looking back, we should have gone to the local yacht club where we have reciprocals.  The weather made the field very rolly but we spent enough time ashore that it was bearable.  Hindsight is always 20/20, I suppose.  The Grove is a popular place to visit we're told but that seems to mostly be for the restaurants and clubs which we're not really into.  The skyline is full of tall condos either built or under construction.  This area was once the playground of millionaires and seems to be returning to that now.  While we were there, we visited once of the mansions, Vizcaya.  What put it on my list was the gardens attached.  They were the first formal gardens designed by a professional landscape architect in this part of the country.  There are only 50 of the original 180 acres left but that was just right for a day trip.  We walked the 2.5 miles there so we could get a look at the area then took a car ride back.  That was interesting as our driver spoke little English and we speak only little Spanish.  Around here, English is rarely heard.  We wanted to go to lunch and carefully followed the app directions only to find buildings under construction blocking the way.  After many false steps we finally found the place and gratefully sat down for a meal.  It was an interesting stop but without a car, once is enough.

The grove skyline of condos.

I wonder how old this house is.  It is built of coral stone cut from the bay.
Taking of such stone has been banned for a while.

A quieter stretch of the main drag.  Sometimes we had sidewalks and sometimes
we walked on the edge of the road.

This was the largest expanse of lawn we saw.  The house looked amazing and stately.

A unique color from this seed head caught my eye.

The Coral Reef Yacht Club.  They were closed the day we were there
but the gate guard let us see around.  This club is only a few years younger
than our own.

The marina was large but had sustained damage from the hurricane.
This lone tree stood sentinel over the boat ramp.

Several gullies along the street seem to go a long way down.  Fascinating
to see all the plant and birds along it's sides.

Our last day at Dinner Key was clear enough for a picture of the Miami skyline.
I think I prefer to see it from a distance.