Key Largo

Key Largo is a long island in Florida. It sits in a group of islands called the Keys.

The island is near a big park with coral reefs. These reefs live in the sea. They help keep the land safe from big waves.

It is a very sunny place. The weather is hot and wet in summer. It is warm in the winter.

Many people go there to dive in the water. They like to see the coral. It is a beautiful place to visit.

Key Largo is a large island in Florida. It is part of a group called the Florida Keys.

It sits near Everglades National Park. It is also near John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. This park is the first underwater park in the United States.

The island is made of old coral reefs. You can see fossilized corals on the ground. The island has a rocky shoreline. It does not have natural sand beaches. The land has small holes from rainwater. These are called solution holes.

Key Largo is a very sunny place. It gets nearly 3,000 hours of sun each year. The weather is tropical. Summers are hot and wet. Winters are warm and dry. It never gets frost here.

Many people visit the island. It is called the "Diving Capital of the World." People go there to dive and fish. They love to see the living coral reefs offshore. These reefs help protect the land. They stop most of the force from big waves during storms. This keeps the land safe from flooding.

Key Largo is a large island in the Florida Keys. It is the biggest part of this island chain.

It sits in Monroe County in the state of Florida. The island is near Everglades National Park to the northwest. To the east lies John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. This park was the first underwater park in the United States. The island is connected to the mainland by two main roads. One is the Overseas Highway, which is part of U.S. Highway 1. The other is Card Sound Road. Both roads start at Florida City on the mainland.

The island was made in a very special way. It is a fossilized part of an old coral reef. Long ago, the sea level was much higher. Later, an ice age happened and the land was uncovered. Today, the ground is made of Key Largo Limestone. You can see fossilized corals on the surface in many places. The land has a high ridge that acts like a spine. There are also small holes in the ground called solution holes. These are made when acidic rain dissolves the limestone.

People have known about this place for a long time. In the 1500s, Europeans arrived in the area. Indigenous peoples like the Calusa and Tequesta lived there. A man named Hernando de Escalante Fontaneda lived with the Calusa. A Dutch map from 1639 called the island Caio des 12 Leguas. Later, Spanish explorers named it Cayo Largo. This name means "long islet" in Spanish. By 1858, the United States government controlled the area. A post office opened in the Rock Harbor area in 1870.

Key Largo is a very popular place for many visitors. It is known as the "Diving Capital of the World." This is because of the living coral reefs offshore. Thousands of divers and fishers visit every year. The reefs are very important for the coast. They can stop 97% of wave force from big storms. This protects the land from flooding. The reef provides over $675 million in storm protection every year. The island has three main areas where people live. These are North Key Largo, Key Largo, and Tavernier. In 2020, about 16,408 people lived in these areas.

The weather on the island is very warm. It has a tropical monsoon climate. The summers are hot and wet. The winters are warm and mostly dry. It is a very sunny place with 3,000 hours of sun each year. It is so warm that frost has never been recorded there. The island has many different plants and trees. They grow in soil made from old leaves. The shoreline is often rocky and made of a gray clay called marl. There are no natural sand beaches on the island.

Key Largo is a large island located in the lower Florida Keys archipelago. It is the largest section of the keys by length. The island sits within Monroe County in the state of Florida. It is one of the northernmost islands in this chain. It also serves as the northernmost part of the keys connected by U.S. Highway 1, also known as the Overseas Highway.

There are three main census-designated places on the island. These areas are North Key Largo, Key Largo, and Tavernier. North Key Largo is located near the Card Sound Bridge. The area known as Key Largo begins near the southernmost point of the island. Tavernier sits at the southern end of the island. As of 2020, these three areas had a combined population of 16,408 people. The island is not an incorporated municipality. Instead, it is governed locally by Monroe County.

Visitors can reach the island from the mainland in Miami-Dade County using two specific routes. Both routes originate at Florida City. The first is the Overseas Highway, which is the southernmost part of U.S. Highway 1. This road enters the island at Jewfish Creek and then turns southwest. The second route is Card Sound Road. This road connects to the northern end of Key Largo. It runs southeast to meet County Road 905, which eventually joins U.S. 1 at mile marker 106.

Geologically, Key Largo is a unique fossilized remnant of an ancient coral reef. This reef formed during a period when sea levels were much higher. During a later ice age, the land was uncovered and eroded. Today, the island's substrate consists of Key Largo Limestone. In many locations, you can see fossilized corals on the surface. A slight ridge forms the spine of the island and represents its highest elevation. The land also features solution holes. These are shallow depressions created when acidic rainwater dissolves the limestone.

The island's environment is quite distinct from typical sandy beaches. There are no natural sand beaches on Key Largo. The natural shoreline is generally rocky. Near the shore, the soil is a slippery, gray, limestone-based clay called marl. Further inland, the soil is a rich, acidic humus made from decomposed vegetation. This soil can be up to 6 inches thick and is topped by leaf litter. This environment supports a variety of woody shrubs, hardwood trees, and herbaceous plants.

Key Largo is famous for its proximity to significant natural wonders. It sits between Everglades National Park to the northwest and John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park to the east. This state park was the first underwater park in the United States. It protects part of the Florida Reef, which is the only living coral barrier reef in the continental United States. The reef is vital for coastal protection. It can dissipate up to 97% of the wave forces from hurricanes and tropical storms. Because of this, the reef provides over $675 million in storm surge protection every year.

Because of these reefs, Key Largo is called the "Diving Capital of the World." Thousands of scuba divers, scientific researchers, and sport-fishing enthusiasts visit every year. The island also serves as a starting point for ecotourists and kayakers due to its closeness to the Everglades. The climate is a tropical monsoon climate, known as Am. This means the summers are hot and wet, while the winters are warm and moderately dry. The island is very sunny, receiving nearly 3,000 hours of sunshine annually. It is so warm that frost has never been recorded there.

The history of the island involves many different cultures and names. In the 16th century, Europeans arrived to find indigenous peoples like the Calusa and Tequesta. A shipwreck survivor named Hernando de Escalante Fontaneda lived with the Calusa from 1549 to 1566. A Dutch map from 1639 called the island Caio des 12 Leguas. Later, Spanish explorers named it Cayo Largo, which means "long islet." In 1870, a post office opened at Rock Harbor. After the 1948 film *Key Largo* became successful, the name of the northern post office was changed to Key Largo in 1952. This ensured residents north of Tavernier had a Key Largo address.