Hi there!
You can go snorkeling at Fort Zachary Taylor State Park!
The Fort Zachary Taylor State Park beach is one of the Key West snorkeling beaches.
Yes, you can go snorkeling at Fort Zachary Taylor State Park!
You have a chance to see lots of fish while snorkeling from the Fort Zachary Taylor State Park beach on your own.
And, emphasis on CHANCE…!
The marine life is wild so they do what they want when they want and there’s no guarantee to see them!
As per my experience, you might have to look around for them when you go snorkeling in Key West!
The Florida Keys are not generally known for having good snorkeling from shore.
But if you get lucky and go when the fish are there… it can be a fun Florida Keys shore snorkeling experience in Key West!
That said, you do have a good chance to see lots of fish at Fort Zachary Taylor State Park… if you go snorkeling in the right spot!
I do think the best snorkeling in the Florida Keys is through a snorkeling tour to get on a boat that takes you to a reef.
But snorkeling at the Fort Zachary Taylor State Park beach can be a fun Florida Keys shore snorkeling experience in Key West!
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👆 Map of where Fort Zachary Taylor State Park is located in Florida. Along with snorkeling in Bahia Honda State Park, Fort Zachary Taylor State Park has one of the best snorkeling spots in the Florida Keys! Explore the Florida Keys tourist map. Explore more things to do in the Florida Keys!
You can snorkel from the beach in Fort Zachary Taylor State Park!
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So yes, you can go snorkeling from the beach in in Key West at Fort Zachary Taylor State Park!
It’s one of the state parks in the Florida Keys with the best beach snorkeling.
Fort Zachary Taylor State Park is a beginner-friendly snorkeling spot in Key West.
According to the Florida Park Service:
Fort Zachary Taylor provides some of the best snorkeling from the beach in the Florida Keys.
Good for beginners.
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Snorkeling in Key West near a historic fort
Officially, it’s Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park.
According to the Florida Park Service:
Take a stroll through the 1800s in our Civil War era fort.
Built to guard the harbor of Key West, Fort Taylor was used in the Civil War, Spanish American War, World Wars I and II, and the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Walk through a small fort before you go snorkeling! You will pass by it on your way to the snorkeling beach.
The beach is also referred to as simply Fort Zach.
So…
Where is the best shore snorkeling in Key West from the Fort Zachary Taylor State Park beach?
So now, where can you go swimming for the best chance to have good snorkeling at Fort Zachary Taylor State Park?!
In short, for the best chance of having a fun Key West shore snorkeling experience at Fort Zachary Taylor State Park, be sure to go swimming around any of the mounds of rocks you see!
You can see the rocks from shore, and there are several mounds.
I did have a fun Key West snorkeling experience at Fort Zachary State Park by swimming around the different groups of rocks.
People also swim out to these rocks and will climb up on them. If you want to do that, wear water shoes if you won’t be wearing snorkeling fins in case you step on a sharp rocky area!
👆 Add water shoes to your list of what to pack for snorkeling in the Florida Keys… if you won’t be wearing snorkeling fins!
The rocks can also serve as a bit of a rest from swimming so far from shore too since the water further out is not shallow enough to stand.
Or, you can swim with an open water swim buoy which can serve as your “resting spot” anywhere in the ocean!
What can you see snorkeling in Fort Zachary Taylor State Park and the Florida Keys?
👆 Key West fish identification guide that you can see when you arrive at the Fort Zachary Taylor State Park beach. You might see some of this marine life when snorkeling in Fort Zachary Taylor State Park! Stop by this board on your walk to the beach… and then stop by afterwards to count how many different types of these fish you saw! Be sure to look at both sides of the board!
👆 You may also see queen conch or starfish on the sandy bottom off the Fort Zachary Taylor State Park beach. If you do, just LOOK, don’t take!
Stingrays in Key West at Fort Zachary Taylor State Park
When I was in the water, one guy said he saw a stingray.
It sounds like it was in one spot for a pretty long time. He pointed in the area he saw it, so I went over to see if I could see a stingray, but no such luck.
This was in the sandy area between 2 of the groups of rocks.
Manatees in Key West at Fort Zachary Taylor State Park?!
Did I see a manatee?!
One moment it was there moving away from me, and the next moment it was gone!
I am not sure if it was a manatee?!?!
When I look at pictures of a tail of a manatee it sure looks like it could have been the tail of a manatee that I saw as it was swimming away…?!
It was huge and it scared me!!!
Afterwards I looked it up online and there was something that said manatees may be seen in Key West in winter.
I was snorkeling in Key West in May so winter was long gone.
But it’s still possible that the rare manatee will be swimming around Key West in spring, summer, and fall…?!
I will never know if it was a manatee… or maybe it was just all in my imagination. 😜
It was along the group of rocks that was to the far right of the Fort Zachary Taylor beach that I saw it. (facing the ocean)
Snorkeling around rocks or structures in Key West and the Florida Keys
Not only were the rocks where I saw the most fish at Fort Zachary Taylor State Park, rocks seem to be a good spot to try no matter where you are snorkeling from shore in the Florida Keys!
So when you are snorkeling in Key West and the rest of the Florida Keys, look for the rocks or fixed structures underwater!
It was around a fixed structure (aka old pier ruins) that I found good snorkeling at Higgs Beach for another Key West snorkeling spot too.
Even at Smathers Beach, although this is not really known as a Key West snorkeling beach, I saw little fishies swimming around rocks from above without even getting into the water.
It was also around rocks that I found good snorkeling at Bahia Honda State Park.
etc etc!!
Well actually there is really only one more notable spot that I snorkeled from the shore and saw lots of fish so I will mention it too. 😂 I also saw lots of fish at Horseshoe Beach around rocks! (map)
All that said, your best chance of seeing stingrays will be along the sandy bottom away from rocks! So you will want to be on the lookout as you are swimming across the sandy bottom too!
Seaweed at Fort Zachary Taylor State Park and the Florida Keys
It is common to see seaweed along the shoreline of the Florida Keys, and that includes Fort Zachary Taylor State Park.
Seaweed and sea grass are considered to be an important part of the coastal ecosystem, so most of the time it doesn’t get removed and it’s just a part of your Key West snorkeling experience!
The boring safety message for snorkeling in Fort Zachary Taylor State Park and any of the beaches in Key West
The ocean is powerful!
Rip currents exist! Know before you go!
Take care out there!
Look for the beach flag warnings… and take extra caution based on the color of those beach flags!
If you’re at a beach with beach flags, you will see a green flag, yellow flag, or red flag.
Once you are at the Fort Zachary Taylor State Park entry station, you can look for the beach flag.
You will also see a beach flag near the actual beach right by the cafe.
Even if the beach flag color indicates that there are “calm conditions,” it’s still the ocean, so take care!
Also be mindful of the Fort Zachary Taylor swimming area.
It’s a designated swimming area for a reason.
Beach facilities at Fort Zachary Taylor snorkeling spot
Yes there is food at the Fort Zachary Taylor beach!
There are also beach rentals including chairs, umbrellas, lockers, snorkeling gear, and bikes.
There’s also a shaded picnic area right near the beach.
Cost to go snorkeling at Fort Zachary Taylor State Park
The cost to go snorkeling in Fort Zachary Taylor State Park will be the cost of the state park entry.
This is around $7 a car for a one-day pass, but this depends on how many people are in your car. See current fees.
So the cost of Fort Zachary Taylor snorkeling is $7+ per group if you are arriving by car.
If you arrive by bike or foot, then the cost of Fort Zachary Taylor snorkeling is around $3 per person.
👆 The cost of Fort Zachary Taylor State Park entry starts at $4.50 if you are arriving by car.
If you plan to make this a year of going to a ton of Florida state parks, then there is also the Florida state parks annual pass.
What can you see snorkeling from shore in Fort Zachary Taylor State Park?
See the pictures below!
In short, you have the potential to see lots of fish!
My snorkeling trip to Key West and Fort Zachary Taylor State Park was in May 2022. Your experience may vary!
I started off on the far right side of the beach along the rocks there where I may or may not have seen a manatee.
And then I started swimming across towards the other groups of rocks, spending some time swimming around the rocks and seeing lots of fishies!
My underwater pictures were taken with my phone.
I put my phone in a cheap waterproof phone case.
This does have its annoyances, but if you don’t want to buy a real waterproof camera, then you might be happy with what it can do!
I have found that it’s easiest to take lots of video, and then if you want to make it into a picture, then take a screenshot from the video!
Most of the pictures above of snorkeling at Fort Zachary Taylor State Park are screenshots from video taken with my phone. And these pictures are also optimized for the web aka the quality is reduced.
Whether you get a cheap waterproof phone case or a proper waterproof camera, also get a camera float to attach to it!
Then, if you accidentally drop your phone or camera, it won’t sink to the bottom of the ocean!
See more: How a cheap waterproof phone case for snorkeling works
And that’s a bit about snorkeling in Fort Zachary Taylor State Park!
More snorkeling in the Florida Keys:
- What to pack for snorkeling in the Florida Keys
- Higgs Beach snorkeling in Key West Marine Park
- Bahia Honda State Park snorkeling
- Looe Key snorkeling
- John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park snorkeling
HAPPY SNORKELING IN KEY WEST AT FORT ZACH!
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