Seven Mile Bridge - My Favorite Sunset Location

What's so special about a sunset? A good sunset is a chance to slow down, stop for a little while and appreciate how beautiful things can be. No admission fee required, no special gear, just show up, calm down, and enjoy it for what it is.

My favorite place for a sunset so far is Seven Mile Bridge in the Florida Keys. This is the old, original railroad bridge that is now closed to vehicles and open to pedestrians visiting Pigeon Key, a tiny little island on the route of Seven Mile Bridge.

Watching a sunset on Seven Mile Beach places you on a small platform raised about a hundred feet above the water. You can spin around and experience open space in every direction. Look down and you'll see the endless stream of plant life floating in the water hurriedly from the Gulf of Mexico on the west to the Atlantic ocean on your east. These two are separated at the location immediately below your feet. The splashes you'll hear are tarpon fish feeding on small fishes as they race near the surface towards the Atlantic to make their escape. Wait patiently and you'll see a few large grey pelicans fly by ten or twenty feet in front of you, gliding in the air.

As the light fades, the colors of everything change from the sky and the clouds to the iron work of the bridge and the new highway bridge a thousand feet to your west. Shadows develop and give objects a perspective they didn't have at noon. Finally, the spectrum of the light changes and the clouds above and behind you turn a brilliant pink color.

The visual is amazing and the sound compliments it. A subtle hush of cars on the highway to the west and waves crashing the supports of the bridge below you ad a natural, unscripted calming effect on the environment.

You'll never want it to end. Click on the pictures for a full screen version and enjoy.