Rock Key

Fast Facts:

• Average Depth:  15 ft. / 5 m
• Max Depth: 35 ft. / 11 m

Features:

• Coral Reef
• Wreck Site
• Mooring Buoys
• Caves or Caverns
• Good Snorkeling
• Marine Preserve

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Rock Key is located one mile due east of Sand Key and marked by reef mooring buoys. With shallow depth, this site is particularly good for snorkeling. This site is home to some spectacular crevices and coral. Crevices on Rock Key reach as deep as 20 feet and allow space for one diver at a time. The reef is easily accessible from Key West.

Although this area began as a ship from Barcelona, Spain that ran aground on Rock Key, today the wreck is practically indistinguishable. A patient diver will be able to find brass fittings and some of the tiles the ship was carrying when it sank in the 1800s. There is also a second unidentified wreck at this location. Both ships contain cannon balls and spikes. There are large concrete beams as well as pebble ballast on top of the reef.

Rock key is a Sanctuary Preservation Area (SPA). The SPA is .1 square nautical miles and is part of the Marine sanctuary. No items may be removed from this area.