Eco Pond Trailhead — Attraction in Key Largo

[Feb 2018] I don't like giving this rating at all but unfortunately Eco Pond has become a wasteland due to the effects of Hurricane Irma in 2017. Salt water storm surges washed over the southernmost parts of the park, including Eco Pond, killing off much of the freshwater vegetation and changing the chemistry of the pond water. When we went, it looked like a black and white photo rather than the fresh green look of 99% of the rest of the park. All we saw were some turkey vultures (or another large bird) and flies.

Over time nature will help mend it. But right now it is a stark reminder of how fragile the Everglades are and the threats facing it as sea...

The views on this trail and the overall quality didn't compare ti the boardwalks and trails earlier along the road in the park. Seeing the pond was only possible from one platform - from where we did see a pink spoon bill!! But when we were there, the mosquitoes were incredibly bad- I've never experienced anything like this before (despite strong bug spray and head nets). I assume in the winter it's less mosquitoes and more birds- so that might be a...

We applied a lot of bug spray onto clothing and wore long pants and long sleeve shirts (although they were thin because the temperature was 100F). As soon as we got to the pond we were swarmed by mosquitos. They didn’t care about the bug spray and pierced through our clothing. We retreated after a couple of minutes and each of us got 5-10 bites during this short time. Maybe we came at the...