FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 25, 2005
CONTACT:  Dee Ann Miller, (850) 245-2112

Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park Selected One of America's Top Ten Beaches

--Four Previous #1 Beaches Were Florida State Parks--

KEY BISCAYNE — Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park was named one of the top ten beaches in America in the 2005 “Best Beaches” survey authored by coastal geologist Dr. Stephen Leatherman (“Dr. Beach”) of Florida International University. This year’s list was unveiled today during an interview filmed at Bill Baggs Cape Florida with Dr. Leatherman for the Today Show. Caladesi Island State Park was also ranked as one of the nation’s best.

Leatherman, who is Professor and Director of FIU’s International Hurricane Center, first published the respected and widely quoted “Best Beaches” survey in 1991 when he was with the University of Maryland. His evaluation of beach quality covers 50 different factors, including water color and temperature, sand color and softness, public access and area wildlife and vegetation.

“Florida is home to some of the nation’s most pristine and well-managed coastal parks,” said Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Colleen M. Castille. “Florida’s parks provide beautiful, scenic beaches and educational and recreational opportunities while preserving Florida’s natural and cultural resources.”

Named after the late Miami newspaper editor who championed the area for a state park, Cape Florida is part of a large barrier island ecosystem. Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park received the official designation of as a national Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Site earlier this year and welcomed more than 860,000 visitors in 2004. Cape Florida is the home of an historic lighthouse built in 1825 and reconstructed in 1846, the oldest standing structure in Miami-Dade County. Visitors to the park enjoy sunbathing, swimming and picnicking on more than a mile of sandy Atlantic beachfront, or fish from the seawall along Biscayne Bay for some of the best shoreline fishing in the region. Biking, kayaking and guided tours of the lighthouse and lighthouse keeper’s cottage are also popular activities.

Florida state park beaches have consistently scored high in Leatherman’s surveys, with four parks ranked as #1: Bahia Honda State Park in the Florida Keys, selected as America’s best beach in 1992; Grayton Beach State Park in Northwest Florida, ranked top in 1994; St. Andrews State Park, Panama City, chosen #1 in 1995; and St. Joseph Peninsula State Park, Port St. Joe, topped the list in 2002.

Along with the four top-ranked beach parks, Leatherman’s surveys have ranked seven other Florida state park beaches in the nation’s top 10: Caladesi Island State Park, Dunedin; Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park on Key Biscayne near Miami; St. George Island State Park in the Florida Panhandle near Apalachicola; Perdido Key State Park, Pensacola; Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Park, Naples; Ft. Pierce Inlet State Park, Ft. Pierce and Lovers Key State Park in Ft. Myers.

“These world-class state parks and their exceptional beaches are yet another reason Florida’s state park system welcomed a record 19.1 million visitors from throughout the world last year,” said Florida State Parks Director Mike Bullock.

Florida’s state park system is one of the largest in the country with 159 parks spanning more than 730,000 acres and more than 100 miles of sandy white beach. From swimming and diving in rivers and springs to birding and fishing or hiking and riding on natural scenic trails, Florida’s state parks offer year-around outdoor activities for all ages. Battle reenactments and Native American festivals celebrate Florida’s unique history, while art shows, museums and lighthouses offer a window into Florida’s cultural heritage.