Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
vice to most of the Keys ($70/80/90 to the Upper and Middle Keys/Lower Keys/Key
West). Reserve at least a day in advance.
UPPER KEYS
No, really, you're in the islands!
It is a bit hard to tell when you first arrive, though. The huge, rooty blanket of mangrove
forest that forms the South Florida coastline spreads like a woody morass into Key Largo;
little differentiates the island from Florida proper. Keep heading south and the scenery be-
comes more archipelagically pleasant as the mangroves give way to wider stretches of
road and ocean, until - bam - you're in Islamorada and the water is everywhere. If you
want to avoid traffic on US 1, you can try the less trafficked FL 997 and Card Sound Rd to
FL 905 (toll $1), which passes
Alabama Jack's
.
Key Largo & Tavernier
We ain't gonna lie: Key Largo (both the name of the town and the island it's on) is slightly
underwhelming at a glance. 'Under' is the key word, as its main sights are under the water,
rather than above. As you drive onto the islands, Key Largo resembles a long line of low-
lying hammock and strip development. But that's just from the highway: head down a side
road and duck into this warm little bar, or that converted Keys plantation house, and the is-
land idiosyncrasies become more pronounced.
The 33-mile-long Largo, which starts at MM 106, is the longest island in the Keys, and
those 33 miles have attracted a lot of marine life, all accessible from the biggest concentra-
tion of dive sites in the islands. The town of Tavernier (MM 93) is just south of the town
of Key Largo.
If you approach Key Largo from FL 905, you'll be driving through
Crocodile Lake
last wild sanctuaries for the threatened American crocodile, indigo snake and Key Largo
woodrat - the latter is an enterprising fellow who likes to build 4ft by 6ft homes out of
forest debris. That said, the wildlife areas are closed to the public, and your chances of see-
ing the species we've mentioned from the road are negligible.
