2026 Florida Keys: Day 3

Bullis 7th graders in Florida Keys

Greetings Bullis community,

Wednesday greeted us in classic Florida Keys fashion—with a bright, cloudless sky overhead and crystal-blue waters all around us. Students experienced the Sea Turtle Hospital, more kayaking through brackish mangrove waters, and snorkeling off a dive boat during perfect conditions! We learned that the Florida Reef Tract is the third-largest barrier reef system in the world and the only living coral barrier reef in the continental United States. Please enjoy the day's recap from the 7th graders themselves below:

"When we first started our day, we walked in the warm air to breakfast. We ate a delicious breakfast with pancakes and bacon. Then we headed to the bus where our tour guide sang us a morning song that we do every morning. Next, we drove to John Pennekamp to go kayaking! Kayaking was super fun. We learned about the different mangroves and the colors of them which are red, black, and white. Then we pulled our kayaks into the water and started paddling. We went through some small tunnels in trees and some large open parts. There were a lot of boats and beautiful houses right on the water. I remember when two people flipped their kayak and got stung by the red mangroves, but they were soon fine. My partner on the kayak also jumped off to swim and almost flipped our boat trying to get back on, where she struggled while getting on because there was no good spot to jump onto the kayak. After a couple of minutes and many tries to get on, she finally did it! Me and some of my friends were splashing each other so the water began to feel warmer as we got used to it. We then kayaked back and pulled our boats up to the land. It was a long kayaking adventure. After that, we sat on the benches to dry off and have a snack. Then we went to Skippers for lunch! I had buttered pasta, which was super good, and my classmates had salads, burgers, pizzas, and chicken tenders. I sat at a table with my friends while we enjoyed our food. Our last activity of the day was snorkeling. We then walked to the boat from the hotel and got on. It was a fast thirty-minute ride with the wind and waves blowing on us. The ocean looked like Gatorade and was not warm but not cold. We got our masks and flippers, and we had the option for wetsuits. I didn’t get one. I swam with my two friends, and we saw stunning coral and a bunch of fish. Some water was getting into my mask, but I fixed it. Sometimes my friends and I would accidentally swallow a big gulp of water, so when we got back on the boat, I had mango, and I tried lychee for the first time. It was very sweet and had a weird texture. The fruits help with the salt water in your mouth. The boat was very rocky and I got nervous at some points. We had the chance to jump off the boat so I did. It was super fun, but the salt water stung in my eyes, and it went up my nose. It was worth it though! Then we headed back to land. It was a fast ride again and we saw many huge houses and many different boats. We ended the night with dinner and ice cream. Today was a very fun, eventful, and tiring day with the kayaking and snorkeling, I was ready to go to bed right when we got back to the room!" 

-Mallory D. '31

"We all had so much fun today. We all started our day off by listening to our daily song. Soon, we went kayaking. It was so fun and we learned many new facts. Our lunch was very good as we all got to choose our meal. Then we went snorkeling in the ocean. A few people also jumped off the boat. It was very fun. We then headed to dinner and ice cream. Overall, this was a very fun day, and we are looking forward to one more."

-Reef N. '31

Warmly,

The 7th Grade Team

 








 

Location: Key Largo, Florida, USA

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