The Haulover Canal is a waterway north of Merritt Island near the former site of Allenhurst, that connects Mosquito Lagoon with the Indian River, and is part of the Intracoastal Waterway. In the early 1960’s there were plans to relocate the canal further north, near the junction of US1 and Courtenay Parkway, but by 1964 when the new Haulover Canal Bridge was constructed these plans had been shelved.

On the 19^th of December 1978, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. According to the state historical marker just before the bridge:  

Native Americans, explorers and settlers hauled or carried canoes and small boats over this narrow strip of land between Mosquito Lagoon and the Indian River. Eventually it became known as the “haulover.” Connecting both bodies of water had long challenged early settlers of this area. Spaniards visited as early as 1605 and slid boats over the ground covered with mulberry tree bark. Early settlers used rollers and skids to drag schooners across. Fort Ann was established nearby in 1837, during the 2nd Seminole War (1835-1842), to protect the haulover from Indians and carry military supplies from the lagoon to the river. In 1852, contractor G.E. Hawes dug the first canal using slave labor. It was 3 feet deep, 14 feet wide, and completed in time for the 3rd Seminole War (1856-1858). Steamboat and cargo ships used the passage until the railroad arrived in 1885. By 1887, the Florida Coast Line Canal and Transportation Company dug a new and deeper canal which is there today, a short distance from the original. The Intracoastal Waterway incorporated the Haulover Canal as a federal project in 1927 to be maintained by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Since then the channel has been dug wider and deeper, and a basin added for launching boats. 

We waved to the many people out enjoying their afternoon fishing along the canal, a very popular way to spend the weekend. We left the canal and bridge behind to cross the Indian River, our last enormous stretch before the marina. The tiny stick on the horizon is the usually open railway bridge that carries heavy loads now and again to the Space Centre. 

A fly past, a guard of honour and a full platoon

Nesting material inbound on a fixed allocation. We hope this lady doesn’t build a nest on the railway bridge. Sssh don’t tell anyone I’m here, keep it a secret.