Posted on by Ken Steinhoff

Hypoluxo Island Mailboxes

Anne and I decided we’d ride south instead of north for a change the other day and ended up on Hypoluxo Island, which runs north and south from East Ocean Ave. and sticks out into the Intracoastal Waterway.

Map of North Hypoluxo Island


View North Hypoluxo Island in a larger map
I like it because there’s very little traffic and it’s slow-moving. The homes are a curious mix of the 50s, 60s and 70s, with a growing number of high-ticket McMansions popping up.

A place of unique mailboxes

One of my first PalmBeachBikeTours posts was about a neighborhood in Lake Worth, Fl., that had fancy mailboxes. This stretch of North Atlantic Dr. goes beyond that.

Starburst (Clerodendrum (Clerodendron) Quadriloculare)

Anne was particularly impressed with flowering shrub. When she asked me what it was, I had to admit that I didn’t have a clue. When Osa joined us on this weekend’s ride, we were lucky enough to spot the owner out in the front yard. He couldn’t remember the name either, so he took off on a run to ask his gardener.

I couldn’t make out the real name, but “Starburst” gave me enough of a clue that I could Google it.

Insisted on taking our picture

The nice man wouldn’t let us leave until he had taken our picture with my camera. Note how Anne and Osa are smiling. I, on the other hand, am remembering what happened to a photographer I dispatched to a riot. He radioed in that he was arriving at the scene, but then we didn’t hear anything from him. After about an hour, just before I was getting ready to send him backup, he walked in with a sheepish look.

“What the bleep happened to you? We were getting worried.”

“Well, I got there and made some pictures. Then, while I was standing around waiting to see if anything else was going to happen, this kid about about six years old walked up and said, ‘My daddy’s a policeman and he carries a radio just like your radio. Can I see it?’ The next thing all I see is a-hole and elbows as he boogied out of there. I got in a car with a couple of cops and we cruised around trying to find him, but he was long gone.”

Professional photographer advice

“OK, kid, I’m going to give you two pieces of professional advice: (1) NEVER let your equipment out of your grasp and (2), if you do, start out the story with ‘There I was, surrounded by these four thugs that had to be 6’4″ and carrying knives bigger than that….’ NOWHERE should the phrase, ‘six-year-old kid’ come in.”

I felt much better after the nice man handed me my camera back.

Copper or bronze?

This box looked like it might be copper or bronze.

Gators are a popular theme

Gallery of Hypoluxo Island mailboxes

Click on any image to make it larger, then click on the left or right side of the photo to move through the gallery.

14 Replies to “Hypoluxo Island Mailboxes”

  1. Hey, Ken – Can I publish some of these photos? I was thinking about doing this exact same photo package sometime this summer… Mary Kate

  3. When I was a kid, one of my best friends lived on Hypoluxo Island. There weren’t any mailboxes like these around at the time. The island was a sort of bohemian place then — I think people were fairly well off, but it wasn’t at all obvious. My friend Mike and I used to have contests to see who could walk on the blacktop barefoot longest before having to run for the shade. We fished off his dock for toadfish, which his sister knew how to prepare without breaking the poison gland. Good memories — thanks, Ken.

    1. A lot of the older homes have been torn down for huge estates, but it’s still a lot less pretentious than Palm Beach or Jupiter Island.

      Even the folks in the big houses would wave and speak. There are toys, bikes and basketball hoops in the yards, which indicates that there are a lot of families living there.

      What I really like is that it’s not a cookie cutter subdivision where everything looks alike. All the homes are different and the landscaping has a variety not seen in more homogeneous places where there are homeowner associations.

  4. Hello Ken,

    Do not want to be picky,but; the Sailfish mailbox is actually a Marlin. Nice work I enjoy reading your stuff and I really like the work you did for the LOST route.

    Have a great year.

  5. The guy on the right of that first gallery photo does look a lot more tensed up and ready for action than those two women with him. Probably best for the guy with the camera not to make any sudden moves.

  8. Didn’t realize that one side of the street could be sooooo much colder than the other. Your riding companions were lucky to have picked the warm side and you certainly dressed for the shady side. How far down the temperature scale did it go….60 degrees?

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