The Coral Castle.

Ohhh! Something close to home. This place is awesome and the mystery surrounding even better.

In truth, it is hard to say whether or not the history is 100% factual or simply exaggerated to help ticket sales.

I always wanted to go digging around the microfilm in Miami (I am in Ft. Lauderdale) to try and verify their claims.

Being somewhat skeptical, if it is true it is quite a feat.

I was just about to upload some better pictures...but others beat me to the punch...

http://flickr.com/search/?q=coral+castle

The photos on their website suck.

it's a good article, and looks pretty impressive! Where did the coral come from though?

Was it sustainable? what was the impact on what are some of the most endangered, precious and sensitive ecosystems in the world?

Surprisingly, at least one of the ridiculous claims on the website is actually true. On the front page, it says "Even rock star Billy Idol wrote his hit song, 'Sweet Sixteen' about Ed's lost love."

Here are some of the lyrics:

Gave my heart an engagement ring
She left everything
Everything I gave her
Sweet sixteen
Built a moon
For a rocking chair,
Never guessed it would
Rock her far from here
Oh, oh, oh

They even shot the video there.

Comparing it to Stonehenge and the Great Pyramids is a little much, but hey, without bullshit, it wouldn't be as fun!

The most amazing part of the coral castle is that Ed (supposedly) built the entire thing with no outside help and no motorized equipment. Some of the blocks weigh several tons. One neat detail I recall is that there is a swinging gate that weighs 9 tons, and pivoted on an old truck bearing.

Too bad old Ed wasn't more willing to share some of his secrets; we all could've learned something from him.