key largo adventures

my days in key largo were vastly different than my days in miami...and for that i am grateful. i arrived in key largo midday and immediately boarded a dive boat and enjoyed some time underwater checking out the local reefs. life always seems less complicated underwater. i was back on the boat the next morning for a deep dive on the US coast guard cutter duane (intentionally sank as an artificial reef in 1987) and a drift dive along another section of the reef. the dives that morning delivered some big beauties - an eagle ray and several goliath groupers. very cool! 

this isn't my photo, but just to give you a sense of
the magic on the USCG cutter duane (the crow's nest)

after i got back onshore, i visited a wild bird rehabilitation center. the birds on display have permanent disabilities, but the center releases around 400 birds a year that they have nursed back to health. the most common birds they treat include hawks, owls, pelicans, and turkey vultures. at the edge of the facility, wild birds congregate...at one point there were six different species of birds in one 10 foot x 10 foot space. 

 an egret showing off its plumage

 the curious peregrine falcon

the menagerie of wild birds - ibises, cattle egrets,
great egrets, pelicans, gulls, and turkey vultures

amazing spikey spider!

my last stop of the day way the dagny johnson botanic garden. it is the largest contiguous track of tropical hardwood hammock in the US. i was ill prepared, however, and did not bring any bug spray so i was swarmed by mosquitoes the second i stopped moving. i also made the mistake of taking the unpaved nature trail at one point...which was mosquito heaven. i think i killed five mosquitoes at once with a single slap of my hand. ugh. pete usually attracts them all so this was a new experience for me! i managed one photo of the giant spiders that were dangling between the trees before the mosquitoes got the better of me...

sadly, this photo doesn't do this spider justice. the body is about two inches long by three-quarters of an inch wide. the longest legs were close to three inches...these things overall were at least as big as my whole hand!