Returned to Key Largo

Camping in Key Largo at Pennekamp State Park.

It is hot as hell here, humid too, and there is nowhere near as much shade as I would like. But having Iguanas come out of the mangroves behind your tent each afternoon to find food is pretty cool. Wish I could pet them!

Pennekamp's main attraction is its marine sanctuary which prohibits fishing and other harmful activities in the nearby waters. So for snorkelers, SCUBA divers and the like, this means more and bigger fish than normally found elsewhere in the keys. Three swimming areas offer a place for tourists to snorkel and for me this is a great place to try out aging dive gear. On my first night I realized my dive mask is faulty so I bought another one and returned to check that one out prior to dive the next day.

One thing I really love to do is swim at sunset. The crowds go away, the water is warm, the sun isn't as harsh and you can just... relax. On one evening in Pennekamp I swam in circles with a school of tarpon a couple feet below. Before that I found myself feeding creamed corn to the reef fish and had about fifty swimming all around me.

Sorry, no underwater camera means no underwater photos this trip.