BEST UNDERAPPRECIATED PARK 2003 | A.D. Barnes Park | Best Restaurants, Bars, Clubs, Music and Stores in Miami | Miami New Times
Navigation
Support Us
Search

BEST UNDERAPPRECIATED PARK

A.D. Barnes Park

At 62 acres it is much more than just a neighborhood park, but not enough people outside the immediate vicinity make the effort to seek out A.D. Barnes. Their loss. Besides the amenities you'd expect at a park this size (swimming pool, basketball courts, barbecue huts, picnic pavilions), Barnes can boast two attractions that distinguish it: elaborate accommodations for the handicapped (including a wheelchair-accessible tree house) and an "urban nature preserve." Located in the northeastern section of the park, the preserve is a thickly wooded slice of untamed nature in the middle of suburbia. A network of cleverly designed hiking trails lead you through the forest primeval and among the many creatures that inhabit it. Keep your eyes open for everything from raccoons and nesting birds to colorful insects and spiders.

BEST POWERBOAT RENTAL

Club Nautico

Miami Beach Marina

In Miami anything can be arranged -- for a price. For example, if you have an uncontrollable urge to race over the ocean in an ear-splitting, teeth-rattling go-fast boat, the folks at Club Nautico on Miami Beach could make it happen. Of course, owing to steep insurance costs and the need for an experienced skipper, you'll have to put up your firstborn and your house as collateral. Instead the Club Nautico agents suggest their 29-foot Bowrider, a sleek little wave skimmer that will get your adrenaline pumping at speeds up to 45 miles per hour. Also available -- and highly recommended -- is their larger and more luxurious 450 Sundancer, a speedy yacht with two spiffy staterooms and space for six cruisers. More than a dozen boats are on hand at Nautico for half-day or full-day charters at prices ranging from $300 to $3500. To hire a captain, add roughly $100 per four-hour rental period.

BEST PLACE TO GO FLY A KITE

Crandon Park

Photo by Chris Garcia / Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau
It's spacious (no throngs of sunbathing tourists) and it's always windy as hell. What else does a kite-flying enthusiast need? Sure, there are wide-open spaces in barren parts of Miami-Dade, but we don't want to send you to the middle of nowhere. Crandon Park is easily accessible, and provides beautiful scenery when you're not looking up. But we also don't recommend taking your eyes off your kite for too long. Wouldn't want to hit a little kid or something. The grassy athletic field between the north and south parking areas is an ideal spot to catch the prevailing southeasterly wind and unspool a few thousand yards of string.

BEST BOWLING ALLEY

Cloverleaf Lanes

Rave bowling? That's right. If you like your ten-pin experience on the freaky side, Cloverleaf offers its version of rave bowling on Friday and Saturday nights from 9:30 p.m. till 3:00 a.m., during which time the place transforms into a veritable South Beach nightclub, complete with blaring dance music and black lights that make the balls and pins glow in the dark. Beyond that, Cloverleaf boasts a wide range of attractions for everyone from novices to pros: 50 fully automated lanes, which happen to be made of synthetic wood instead of the traditional maple (it has as much to do with the environment as it does cost, says one employee); leagues for different skill levels and competitiveness; and a "Monday Night Mixer" party, where it's not how good you bowl but rather how good you look while bowling that counts. For the truly accomplished there is the Cloverrollers league, whose participants' average scores hover around 200. For the pros, there is the prestigious Lee Evans Tournament of the Americas, which Cloverleaf will host this July for the 39th year.

BEST GUERRILLA SKATEBOARDING

Florida International University

University Park Campus

Guerrilla skaters here regularly used to be escorted out by campus security, but today, thanks to Gov. Jeb Bush, a thrasher can ride for hours without being snagged. Simple reason. According to administrators, state funding cuts (the Bush connection) have forced a reduction in the campus security force of about twenty percent. Bad for late-night student stragglers trekking to their car in a distant parking lot. Good for thrashers. FIU's smooth concrete meanders throughout the center of the campus, with an angled descent into a central patio. The rest of the sprawling university is loaded with rails, small steps for wicked Ollies and McTwists, and plenty of handicap ramps. The courtyard area's smooth finish is perfect for smaller freestyle wheels and trucks, but if you want to go retro like a Z-boy, gleam the cube with an old-school, single-dip Vision or Santa Cruz board. Just don't eat it without a helmet. The health-and-wellness center is understaffed too. Thanks, Jeb!

BEST YOGA STUDIO

Miami Yogashala

This is not just a place for supermodels to sweat off water weight or body builders to stretch out their quads. What distinguishes Yogashala from the plethora of yoga studios and gym yoga classes in Miami is owner, director, and instructor Fred Busch. His positive attitude and serious attention to correct form and proper breathing not only enable people from all walks of life to get into yoga, he allows yoga to get into people from all walks of life. The studio offers classes in Ashtanga yoga, a branch of Hatha yoga. Nicknamed "Marine yoga" because of its vigorous nature, Ashtanga is a sequence of postures that synchronize movement and breath to create a moving meditation. It has become a favorite with one-word stars such as Sting and Madonna, but Yogashala is no temple for the body perfect. It's a sanctuary for those who want to calm the mind as well as strengthen the body. The space is minimalist in design, leaving room for Busch's soothing, almost liturgical voice to reverberate between its walls as practitioners of varying levels twist, turn, sweat, and om toward flexibility, strength, and serenity. Like any other yoga space, Yogashala on any given morning or evening heats up with sweating bodies, but it also radiates with something you won't find in a gym yoga class -- inspiration.

BEST SNORKELING SPOT

Government Cut jetty

For offshore reef snorkeling we highly recommend Biscayne National Park (reservations: 305-230-1100). But for viewing sea creatures, and for convenience and price, nothing beats the rock jetty that demarcates the northern edge of Government Cut. You don't need an inflatable life vest. It's great to have a quality snorkel and swim fins, of course, but in truth all you need is a mask. The only other thing you'll pay for is parking in the lot at South Pointe Park, where Washington Avenue ends at Government Cut. Head out on the north (Miami Beach) side of the jetty. The farther you go, the deeper the water and the bigger the fish. You'll encounter virtually all the species you'd find out on the reefs further south, including grunts, butterflies, angels, parrots, eels, barracuda, and more.

Readers Choice: John Pennekamp Coral Reef and State Park

BEST PICNIC SPOT

Greynolds Park

So close yet so far from the commercial frenzy of upper Biscayne Boulevard and Aventura, Greynolds Park is an oasis of green and calm from the minute you turn off West Dixie Highway. Designated picnicking areas, some with barbecues, abound. For a quieter, more contemplative time, consider a shady spot near the West Lake or one of the tables tucked away in clearings, the latter of which makes for an idyllic setting for sun-dappled, winter-afternoon nuptials. Should you need to burn off the eats, the park is crossed with paths, open fields beckon Frisbee players and kite flyers, and playgrounds are on hand for the smaller fry. And of course, duffers in the crowd can hit the links at the golf course. Operating hours at this county park are 8:00 a.m. to sundown. Admission is free on weekdays and just four dollars per car on weekends and holidays.

Readers Choice: Crandon Park

BEST PLACE TO HIKE

Everglades National Park

Rodney Cammauf / National Park Service
Over the years we've recommended nearly all the viable hiking trails accessible from the park's southern entrance. The Long Pine Key trail network and especially its unnamed but gorgeous offshoot just beyond Pine Glades Lake (details from the main visitors' center). The five-mile round-trip Rowdy Bend trail just north of Flamingo (don't bother with the nearby but monotonous Snake Bight trail). The Christian Point trail (four miles round trip) also near Flamingo. The Coastal Prairie trail (thirteen miles round trip) that begins at the western end of the Flamingo camping area and features an array of landscapes. Each trail has its charms and challenges, depending on the season and time of day. But here's something new. The park recently reopened its Mahogany Hammock trail, which wanders through one of the most lovely hardwood hammocks you'll ever see. But the boardwalk loop is only a half-mile long. So we suggest you park your car at the Mahogany Hammock turnoff from the park's main road and walk from there. Your passage will carry you into the vast sawgrass savannah, whose subtle wonders are impossible to appreciate from a car. Traffic on your asphalt trail will run from very light (weekdays) to moderate (weekends). Your reward at the end is the new boardwalk loop and the inviting coolness of the hammock. A round trip hike from the main road and through the loop is just under five miles.

BEST PLACE TO WATCH MANATEES

Black Point Marina

Manatee-watching may not be as consistently rewarding as birding. Often the only sign of the massive creatures are the concentric circles of water swelling upward from their underwater path. But if you keep an eye on the canal leading from Black Point Marina to Biscayne Bay, you'll see a snout poking above the water to snuffle in some of that fragrant Mt. Trashmore air before going back under. Occasionally a manatee's entire bulk will be visible, a sight worth whatever wait it takes.

Best Of Miami®

Best Of Miami®

Use of this website constitutes acceptance of our terms of use, our cookies policy, and our privacy policy The Miami New Times may earn a portion of sales from products & services purchased through links on our site from our affiliate partners. ©2024 Miami New Times, LLC. All rights reserved.
Do Not Sell or Share My Information
Powered By Foundation