Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammock Botanical State Park could use better signage; we missed it on the first drive by, thanks also to an unhelpful location from Google Maps. It resides “on land bought up in 1982 after the financial demise of Port Bougainville, a project which would have included 15 hotels and over 2000 condos.” (wiki) Its entrance has a large archway fitting for a housing development, and visitors walk on pavement that is beginning to crumble and other bits of construction from that earlier intended use. Some interesting history of Key Largo, including the changing of hands and various land use, is recounted here.

The stones used here are made from keystone, a limestone thick with fossilized corals. (photo by quoderat)

Several signs, and more importantly tags on the actual trees, identify notable species along the trail. The tropical hammock here is very dense, with the trees often arching over even the two car-widths paths.

Trunk of a blolly tree (by quoderat)

Wild coffee (by zanna)

Where the tidal waters reach, the hammock turns to mangroves. We were there during high tide, and the outer loop of the trail was submerged. Quoderat found a millipede near here. (photo by zanna)

We saw a couple of grebes and many fish in an excavated channel in the middle of the loop trail. (by quoderat)

On our way back, we watched while a white ibis wrangled and snapped at and eventually ate a huge, wriggling and very unappetizing looking (to us) centipede. (by quoderat)