Route #35 South Dade Trail – Coral Castle

This route runs through the southern end of Miami-Dade County along the South Dade Trail, a corridor that crosses a landscape shaped by agriculture, drainage canals, and the planned expansion of the territory during the twentieth century. The itinerary moves through a Florida rarely associated with the tourist imagination, where open space and horizontality dominate the surroundings.

The South Dade Trail follows former hydraulic infrastructures created to control wetlands and enable agricultural development in the southern part of the county. Along the route, plantations, farms, and remnants of an economic model based on the intensive transformation of the landscape can be observed, closely linked to the growth of Miami and the exploitation of the land following the drainage of the Everglades.

The final destination of the route is Coral Castle, one of the most enigmatic constructions in the state. Built in the first half of the twentieth century by Edward Leedskalnin, the complex of massive coral stone blocks continues to raise questions about its construction methods and meaning. The contrast between the agricultural vastness of the journey and the almost mystical singularity of Coral Castle adds a unique historical and cultural dimension to the route.

The complete route and its historical context are part of Discovering Florida – Volume 2.