A1A is a grand scenic drive that goes from the Northern Atlantic coast of Florida all the way to Key West, Fl. It has been declared by many of the pundits as one of best drives in the United States. When I was a child, we commonly visited my aunt, uncle and cousins in the Melbourne Beach area so I was somewhat aware of A1A but I had not driven much of it.
As the destination is supposed to be the journey, I was anxious to give it a try. I knew it would be slower and it was but it didn’t turn out to be a gas guzzler. It actually improved my gas mileage and since my time is my own, I decided to take advantage of the opportunity.
I worked my way from Hilton Head SC to northern Florida at Talbot State Park . There I picked up A1A and drove many miles with large trees and high shrubs on both sides of the road. Occasionally you could see a peek of the beach. Occasionally you would mount a very high bridge at a very steep angle to go over the very narrow inlet of either the Indian River, the Banana River or the St John’s River. There were a number of preserves and public beaches along the way but there were just about no views.
I followed the route almost all the way to the Keys. Until I hit Homestead, south of Miami, I was amazed and confused that this road was considered to be so beautiful. Frankly, it was straight out boring. It was supposed to be so beautiful that I was curious. I took to the internet to determine why the views have been completely cut off by vegetation.
The answer was erosion control and Environmental Protection Agency. In an attempt to protect the birds, the turtles, and the crabs providing a vegetative barrier between the road and the street seems to protect the wildlife from crossing the road and getting run over. Providing vegetation along the ocean side of the road controls the runoff from the road that helps to improve erosion control as well as helping to cleanse the runoff from the road before it can infiltrate the sand and the beach.
At my core I am an environmentalist. It goes way back to the teaching from Girl Scout days. In my heart I’m a photographer and I wanted my destination to be my Journey down A1A from the beginning to the end. So I was disappointed because it was not what is was billed to be. I absolutely understand the environmental reasonings for the decisions.
That said, then the answer is not to call A1A a scenic by-way. It is not. I would contend that those are of a day a bygone era when tourism was more important than environmental protection. My personal belief is that that is a push pull. I miss the view, but I applaud the protection. So, my best choice is to ask is that there to be truth in advertising. It is no longer a Scenic byway!
