Last Updated: May 2026
From Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park, we made the hour-long drive southwest of Gainesville to Cedar Key — a cluster of islands on the Gulf of Mexico named after the eastern red cedar that once blanketed the surrounding coast. The population is only about 700, though on weekends the numbers swell considerably with tourists, motorcyclists in particular. Cedar Key runs on two things: tourism and aquaculture. Farm-raised clams and oysters are a thriving multimillion-dollar industry here, and the waterfront is genuinely charming. The town is compact and easy to explore on foot or by bicycle — and we found ourselves staying longer than planned.
Cedar Key
The town has layers of history most visitors don’t expect. Cedar Key was once a bustling commercial hub built on the eastern red cedar forests that gave it its name. The cedar was milled here and shipped north by train — primarily to make pencils. The industry consumed the forests so efficiently that most of the old-growth cedars are now gone, and the industry with them.
Civil War Salt
Cedar Key was an important source of salt for the Confederacy during the Civil War. Salt was essential for preserving food — pork, fish, and beef were all packed in salt to prevent spoiling, and with no refrigeration, armies ran on it. The process here was simple and industrial: seawater was boiled in large iron kettles until only salt remained. At peak production, Cedar Key had sixty kettles capable of producing 150 bushels of salt per day.
In October 1862, a Union naval raid destroyed all sixty kettles and dealt a serious blow to Confederate supply lines. Old salt kettles are still on display in town today — a quiet reminder of how strategically important this small island once was.
John Muir’s Final Steps
Early in his career as a naturalist, John Muir walked 1,000 miles from Louisville, Kentucky to Cedar Key in just two months — completing the journey in 1867. It was one of the defining experiences of his life, and he later recorded his impressions in his memoir A Thousand-Mile Walk to the Gulf. The walk ended badly: Muir contracted malaria while working in a Cedar Key sawmill and spent weeks recovering in the home of the mill’s superintendent. He recovered just enough to sail from Cedar Key to Cuba in January 1868, and from there to California — where his true life’s work, and his famous advocacy for Yosemite and the American wilderness, would begin.
There’s something quietly significant about the fact that one of America’s greatest naturalists ended his famous walk here in this small island town, sick and feverish, staring at the Gulf of Mexico and wondering what came next.
Cedar Key T-Shirts
Sandy wanted to browse the shops, and Cedar Key’s t-shirt selection did not disappoint. The town has clearly embraced its eccentric, laid-back reputation and committed fully to printing it on cotton.
Lo-Key Hideaway
We stayed at Lo-Key Hideaway — a 3-site RV park and 5-room motel right on the water at Cedar Key. Mo and Frank had bought it about a year and a half before our visit, and the place reflects their personalities completely: eclectic, artistic, personable, and deeply invested in making sure every guest has a good time. They had been hit hard just months before our arrival — a hurricane brought an 11-foot tidal surge and mud into every motel room in September 2016. They’d done quite the cleanup. The place was back in operation and didn’t show the scars.
The property only has three RV sites — they were working on permits to add six more — but the site quality more than compensates. We faced the RV directly toward the water, something the other nearby RV park wouldn’t allow. The competitor park had a café that served breakfast, and the people we met there were extremely friendly (many came to Lo-Key’s tiki bar in the evenings anyway). But their sites were tight — slides nearly touching the neighbors — and you couldn’t face the water. No contest.
The property itself is best described as a bohemian, random-but-organized collection of bicycles, glass bottles, flip flops, and nautical artifacts. Every corner has something worth looking at — beer caps and corks pressed into surfaces, a wall of glass bottles catching the light, a propane tank painted as a pig standing next to a row of bowling pins, retired sandals hanging from the dock, a parking situation with its own signage philosophy. You could spend an afternoon just looking at the place.
Lo-Key is known for its sunsets and rustic tiki bar. There is a steady stream of patrons from early afternoon right through to last light, and musicians apparently stop by and play for fun. It’s the kind of place where you go for one drink and look up two hours later.
Osprey
Cedar Key has a healthy osprey population, and Lo-Key Hideaway is right in the middle of their territory. Just before sunrise one morning, an osprey came in low over the water in front of the RV, hit the surface, and came up with a mullet. It landed on a nearby post and had breakfast while we watched — completely unbothered, fully committed to the fish, and making the whole thing look very easy.
Throughout the day they were frequently overhead, riding thermals over the water. Osprey are purpose-built fishing machines — reversible outer toes for gripping slippery fish, nostrils that close on impact, and vision adapted to see through water surface glare. They catch fish on roughly one in every four dives, which is a remarkably high success rate for any predator.
Birding
Cedar Key is excellent birding territory in general. The mix of open water, tidal flats, marsh, and hammock forest attracts a wide variety of species year-round, and the low human density means wildlife behaves relatively naturally. White ibis worked the shallow flats in groups, great egrets stalked the edges alone, and boat-tailed grackles were everywhere — bold, glossy, iridescent birds with long wedge-shaped tails, and they have no problem making themselves the center of attention.
Shell Mound Archaeological Site
About 8 miles north of Cedar Key, Shell Mound is the largest remaining shell mound on the central Gulf Coast — 5 acres in footprint and rising 28 feet above sea level. It was built over 3,500 years, from roughly 2500 B.C. to A.D. 1000, by several early unnamed shell cultures as a base camp and elevated refuge from storms and tidal surges. The mound is composed almost entirely of the remains of countless meals: oyster shells, whelks, fish bones, turtle remains, and deer bones, compacted over millennia with household debris into a structure substantial enough to still stand 6,000 years later.
The elevation offered a reliable summer breeze off the Gulf — which, given that it was built on top of the decomposing remains of thousands of seafood dinners, would have been a significant quality-of-life consideration. The views from the top are genuinely spectacular. The site is part of the Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge and accessible via a short trail through the forest.
Low Tide with Jake
At low tide, the flats in front of Lo-Key exposed a wide stretch of shallow water and mudflat, and the wading birds moved in immediately. Jake stationed himself at the water’s edge and watched a Great Egret work the shallows for what felt like a very long time — neither of them moving, both entirely absorbed in the situation.
Visitor Information
Cedar Key is located at the end of State Road 24, about 50 miles west of Gainesville and roughly 2 hours north of Tampa. The town is compact and walkable, with most restaurants, shops, and waterfront access concentrated near Dock Street and 2nd Street. Lo-Key Hideaway is located at 705 Dock St., Cedar Key, FL 32625 — call ahead, as RV sites are very limited (only 3 at time of writing). Shell Mound Archaeological Site is located about 8 miles north via County Road 347, within the Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge; it’s free and open year-round. Cedar Key National Wildlife Refuge encompasses a group of offshore islands accessible by private boat or kayak.
Practical Tips
If you’re a clam or oyster fan, Cedar Key is the place — the farm-raised seafood is extraordinarily fresh and the local restaurants take full advantage of it. Book RV sites at Lo-Key Hideaway well in advance; with only three sites, it fills fast, especially on weekends. The tiki bar draws a crowd from late afternoon onward, making it an excellent place to meet interesting people whether you’re staying there or just wandering through. For birding, early morning and low tide are the optimal combination — the mudflats attract wading birds in numbers. The Shell Mound trail is short (under half a mile each way) but involves some root-covered terrain, so sturdy footwear helps. Cedar Key is a genuinely unhurried place — budget an extra day if you can, because the pace of the town has a way of convincing you there’s no reason to leave quickly.
