5 /5 Sandy Moise: This island is actually Morningside Picnic Island. It is a Spoil Island owned by the city of Miami and operated as a park. It is open Sunrise to Sunset. It was recently closed for nearly two months by the City due to the amount of trash left behind by visitors to the island. The city has removed all trash cans and require that visitors take the trash home that they bring with them. This island is located in the Julia Tuttle Basin of Biscayne Bay. All of the Julia Tuttle Basin is a designated Manatee Protection Zone with a slow speed designation (except for the Meloy Channel adjacent to Miami Beach and a small section of the south end of the ICW for 6 months out of the year.) Visitors are kindly asked to follow the Citys Leave No Trace policy - take your trash with you, be respectful to wildlife, and be courteous to other visitors. The health of Biscayne Bay is in a critical state, and the bacteria load in this section of the Bay is often extremely high due to pollution and fertilizer runoff.
