Miami Beach, Florida
South Pointe Park is one of the best green spaces in the Miami area, in my opinion.
It has stunning panoramic views of the shoreline, port, and downtown skyline, as well as Fisher Island, where the economic elite live and frolic. There’s a water playground for kids, walking trails, picnic and barbecue areas, benches, a café and an off-leash dog park. There’s also a steakhouse, Smith & Wollensky, which I actually don’t recommend. It’s been steadily declining in quality and service for years, but it is conveniently situated with unparalleled views. You can always have drinks and appetizers at the bar and enjoy a sunny day, but for food I’d trek over to Joe’s Take Away a few blocks away.
I was born and raised in Miami, but only discovered the snorkeling off South Pointe Pier in 2021. The pics below are from my outing in September of that year. We set up camp right on the beach and walked into the ocean, snorkeling along the rocks that delineate the pier. The pics are from my iPhone so they’re not great but you’ll get the idea.
This next creature was pretty cool to follow:
Musings of a Dragon 