Trapped by a series of strong winter winds, the beginning of our extended 2018 journey took us only 12 miles west of our starting point of Burnt Store Marina in Charlotte Harbor.  We anchored in Pelican Bay just to the west of Cayo Costa State Park near Boca Grande Pass.  This bay is charted for shallow depths and even the cruising guides say that the entrance is 4 ft; we draw at least 5. Some local boaters however talked us into following them in and we had a few inches to spare.  There were roughly 30 boats over the weekend but they dwindled to about 10 by mid-week.

Once inside there is plenty of deep water and room for probably 50 boats.  To go ashore at the park dock costs $2/person/day.  It is mostly on the honor system but we were happy to pay it whenever we felt like getting off the boat…the island boasts beautiful, diverse native habitats, birds of all kinds, alligators, and great shore fishing.  It has an absolutely gorgeous and uncrowded  beach on the east side facing the Gulf of Mexico. It is known as a world-class shelling beach and many people visit just for that! As we explored the park, we could not believe there were not more people camping in their awesome tent sites or rustic cabins on the beach. It seems to be underutilized.  Most visitors reach the park by ferry boat and despite perfect Florida camping weather (winter), the vast majority of tent sites and cabins seemed uninhabited! The rangers and seasonal help were all friendly and there is a small store where you can buy ice.  They do have potable water on the island but I do not think they encourage boaters to fill up but we were not in need and we did not ask…also there are bath houses near the camp ground with cold water showers we took advantage of one afternoon.

There are miles of great hiking trails to stretch the legs and miles of empty beach and dunes to explore.  Not a bad place to get stuck for a week (and counting at this writing). We have decided to keep moving a bit and head south to Ft. Myers in hopes we will get a weather window to sail to the Keys sometime before next summer!  Tomorrow we plan to get out of Pelican Bay on the high tide and anchor on the east side of Useppa Island and then make our way to Ft. Myers the next day (about a 6 hour motor down the ICW). The weather forecast is for front after front for at least the next couple weeks…Boat Monkey is getting anxious to get moving!

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