Cedar Key moves at slow, easy pace
CEDAR KEY, Fla. -- "I came here 24 years ago on a vacation," said the manager of the co-op art gallery, "and I knew then it was the only place for me."
It takes a particular type of person to be happy on Cedar Key. If you wouldn't miss fast food or cineplexes, if you like the smell of an ebb tide, and if your idea of a great Saturday night is all-you-can-eat crab at a waterfront restaurant, then Cedar Key might be the place for you, too.
It's a long way from Disney World, and Cedar Key is genuine Old Florida.
Located at the end of a stubby peninsula that juts into the Gulf of Mexico west of Gainesville, the isolated community was once described by naturalist John Muir as "many gems of tiny islets called keys."
Description: The town of Cedar Key spreads over several inner islands connected by causeways and bridges. The outer islands, inhabited until a 19th-century storm swept them clean, are now part of the Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuge, accessible only by boat.
Other protected areas on the Nature Coast include the Waccasassa Bay State Preserve, popular with fishermen and photographers; the Cedar Key Scrub State Reserve; the Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge; Manatee Springs State Park; and Shell Mound Park, which boasts a prehistoric Indian mound.
"Days in Cedar Key," states one tourist promo, "don't belong to clocks or newspapers." That's true of the business owners as well as the tourists.
On a sunny Thursday morning, a tourist on the boardwalk is likely to encounter signs like these on shop doors: "Back in 10 minutes," "Just out for a haircut," and "10 a.m. to 5 p.m., more or less." Even when they're open, they sometimes forget to unlock the front doors.
When you can find them, though, the shop owners are friendly and talkative, enthusiastic about their town and its slow-paced ambience.
The town proper is just small enough to walk around comfortably. The City Dock anchors the center, with shops, galleries and restaurants spreading out from there.
With the help of a bicycle or golf cart, one can explore the whole island complex, venturing into residential neighborhoods or along Piney Point to the airport.
History: The Cedar Key State Museum and the Cedar Key Historical Society Museum welcome browsers interested in Indian folklore and island history. Islanders are proud to remember that Cedar Key is where John Muir finished his famous 1,000-mile walk.
A thriving artists' colony keeps the local galleries filled with pottery, textiles and seascapes. Commercial fishermen keep the restaurants filled with shrimp, sushi and the famous local smoked mullet.
Birders, hikers, history buffs and sport fishermen are the usual tourists, and they're content with small mom-and-pop motels and cottages. There are also half a dozen condominium complexes on the island, a few bed-and-breakfast inns, and three RV parks, but you won't see any chain motels or high-end hotels.
Prices are modest on Cedar Key.
At Pirate's Cove we stayed in an old but clean efficiency cottage with a fine view of a bay for $54 a night. Included in the price were a pair of bicycles, fishing gear, the offer of a canoe, a gas grill and a small book and video library.
No one gets in a hurry on Cedar Key, and there are few cell phones in evidence.
Island time, which residents of Cedar Key say is the best time of all, is just the right time for a relaxing vacation.