Sargassum at Calusa Beach, Bahia Honda State Park today
First bulletin for this beach lands with tomorrow morning’s update.
Calusa Beach sits at the western tip of Bahia Honda State Park, on the Gulf-facing side of Big Pine Key, beside the old railroad bridge. This page follows sargassum at Calusa Beach: what was recorded this morning, a rating from 0 to 5, and a map placing the beach among the Keys spots we track.
The report restarts every morning, so you get today's state along with the movement of the last few days. That is usually enough to choose between this sheltered cove and the ocean-side beach in the same park when an episode is running through the archipelago.
Calusa Beach (Bahia Honda) on the sargassum map
What to know about this beach
Calusa faces north-west, on the Gulf shore of the key. That puts it on the lee side: the easterly trades that carry most sargassum rafts into the Keys blow offshore here, from the land toward the water. In practice this cove often escapes arrivals that are landing on the ocean beach only a few hundred metres away.
The shelter is real but not absolute. The beach borders the deep Bahia Honda Channel, one of the passes where Atlantic and Gulf water exchange, and every tide moves water through it in one direction then the other. Weed can round the point that way rather than blow in. And because the cove is short and enclosed, the little that does enter tends to gather near the shoreline instead of spreading out.
Frequently asked questions
Is Calusa Beach protected from sargassum?
It faces the Gulf, on the lee side of the easterly winds that carry rafts into the Keys, so direct arrivals are much rarer. They are not impossible: tidal flow through Bahia Honda Channel moves water between the two shores.
How can I check this cove before visiting?
The FanGass map is updated every morning and gives Calusa Beach a rating from 0 to 5 plus the trend of previous days. You can compare it at a glance with the park's ocean-side beach.
How does it differ from Sandspur Beach in the same park?
Sandspur looks south-east and meets the prevailing wind head on, while Calusa looks the other way, toward the Gulf. On the same morning one shore can carry a wrack line and the other none.
Which season brings more weed to this shore?
Keys episodes cluster from spring through late summer. On this sheltered face they usually show up as scattered patches that work around the point with the tidal current rather than as a wind-driven landing.