John Pennykamp Coral Reef State Park

Yesterday, we motored wonderfully down the ICW that runs on the Florida Bay side of the keys through "skinny" water (i.e., water with depths of 4.5 - 5 feet). Our boat has a 4.5 foot keel so we were just an inch or so from hitting bottom. The day was gorgeous and along the way, we stopped for fuel at Plantation Yacht Harbor City Marina. We experienced beautiful blue-green water as we went close to "Extremely Sensitive Environmental Areas" near Pigeon Point. Our friends explained to us that many of the power boaters' propellers have damaged sea grass in these areas. We even saw "pink mud" at one pass and enjoyed the entrance called Grouper Creek in Tarpon Cove. We had a restful evening at anchor and then awoke to another beautiful day in paradise near Key Largo.

We moved the boat a few miles into Blackwater

Sound so that we could then dinghy through the Marvin D. Adams Waterway into Largo Sound and enter the John Pennykamp Coral Reef State Park. The waterway was cut through solid coral. The park extends 3 miles into the Atlantic and is the first undersea park in the U.S. We snorked off of Canon Beach, which has old canons and anchors of an old Spanish Sailing Ship. Some of the canons are on the beach and others have been sunk 150 yards off the beach near the coral reefs. We saw colorful fish (angelfish, parot fish, etc.) On the way out, we even spotted an iguna sunbathing on the rocks. See picture. Tomorrow we are off to Elliott Key and other cool adventures!