Chop Chop Billy Goat

After we left Long Key, we went to Curry Hammock for two days, before we came back to Long Key for another two days.

Curry Hammock was awesome. Like Long Key, there were no waves. The sites weren’t right on the water, but the beach was totally awesome. When we first got there, I found a little pond and built canal to connect the pond to the ocean. My canal turned in to a river, and about half an hour later the pond was completely dry. We spent the rest of the afternoon hanging at the huge sandy beach.

While we were at Curry Hammock, we saw a huge marine iguana. It was so cool! Later we learned that the marine iguana is an invasive species and is harming the Keys environment. The iguanas first got there when pet owners released their pet iguanas.

Of course, the next day we spent at the beach. We were having a great time until I was wading along in the water and suddenly I felt a sting on my ankle. I looked down and saw a Portuguese Man of War with its tentacle attached to me. I freaked out, thrashing around until it came off. Then I started screaming and wading to shore, where Ma drove me to the ranger station. The ranger was very calm, probably because it happened a lot, and poured some ammonia on the sting. Soon, I started feeling better. I spent the rest of the afternoon inside the RV with a hot compress on my ankle.

Portuguese Man O’ War are not jellyfish, or even an animal, but they are a collection of organisms working together like one animal. On the Portuguese Man O’ War, there are three kinds of tentacles. One type is for reproduction, another type is for eating, and the last ones are long and stinging.

Our two days back at Long Key were good. I caught a few slow fish in my net, and found a piece of something called rose coral. Little Kid and I went swimming a few times. I tried to give Little Kid some swimming lessons, but he was pretty uncooperative. The two days went by super fast, and then we left on our trek to the Florida Panhandle, with a few one night stops.