What makes the coral reefs of the Florida Keys so special? Well, for starters, the Florida Keys Reef Tract is the only living coral barrier reef in North America, and is the 3rd largest coral barrier reef in the world (after the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and the Meso-American Reef in Belieze). The reef runs roughly 221 miles down the south-eastern coast of Florida, paralleling the Florida Keys from Key Biscayne off Miami down to the Dry Tortugas, 70 miles west of Key West, from 1 mile to 8 miles offshore. The proximity of the reef (just a half-hour boat ride from land); the warm, clear water from the Gulf Stream just offshore; and the fantastic richness of life found here makes the reefs of the Florida Keys one of the most uniquely beautiful and accessible.

As you can tell I did not write this but I did visit the park. It was a Labor Day trip, close to home.