Mosquito Bank (Key Largo)
Mosquito Bank is located in the upper Keys near Key Largo. It is just offshore of John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park.
The Mosquito Bank covers a relatively large area, and includes several sandbars and shallow areas. One part of the Mosquito Bank has a lighted navigational beacon.
Note: Please be careful not to damage seagrass or coral with your boat hull, motor or propeller. Many people don’t realize that seagrass is essential to the health of our marine ecosystem in Florida. It keeps our water clear and healthy, provides shelter for juvenile marine life, and many other important functions. We’re losing seagrass, and our oceans are suffering because of it. Even a single propeller strike can kill an entire seagrass bed, because it starts a chain reaction of erosion and death.
According to the Navionics:
“There is a navigational beacon at Mosquito Bank, the “Mosquito Bank Light 35” It flashes a green light with a 4-second period, with a recorded range of 5 miles. The light is marked with a green square top.”
There is also a daybeacon towards the northern range of the Mosquito Bank, with a white diamond on top.
Many boaters recommend accessing Mosquito Bank by navigating out of South Creek, or South Sound Creek Channel, and navigating towards the short navigational beacon tower towards the southeast.
The water at Mosquito Bank is absolutely crystal clear. It is stunningly beautiful, and feels like the Bahamas or somewhere in the Caribbean
Recorded depths on the sandbar range from 0 ft. to approximately 7 feet, depending on the depth.
Other areas of the sandbar are anywhere from 2-15 feet deep, and quickly drop into depths of approximately 20-25 feet.
The actual depth depends on local tide conditions and the location on the sandbar.
Some areas of Mosquito Bank are shallow enough that there are propeller damage scars in the seagrass, from where irresponsible boaters ran aground and caused environmental damage.
Crowds and Sandbar Parties
Mosquito Bank is a very popular spot boats to gather, and is one of the most popular sandbars in the Florida Keys.
It can become extremely crowded because it is relatively close to Miami and attracts boaters from across south Florida.
Mosquito Bank can be deeper than many other sandbars in the Keys, partly because it is located further out in open water.
Mosquito Bank is usually most crowded on warm holidays like the 4th of July, Memorial Day and on summer weekends.
It is usually least crowded on weekdays and during cooler weather.
There are numerous scuba diving sites in the region surrounding Mosquito Bank.
