By: Mike Hammond
Located on Sanibel Island, Tarpon Bay is one of the places I find myself most often recommending to tourist and locals. When approached for a reference, I’ll usually ask what they are most interested in experiencing and their skill level. For beginners, Tarpon Bay is hard to beat. While the bay is rather large, it offers good protection on windy days. If the wind in the open bay becomes too challenging, paddlers can hug the mangroves and paddle into the marked mangrove tunnel trail and relax.
Also, Tarpon Bay Explorers is onsite to help beginners get in and out of the water, give paddling tips and offers eco tours that are recommended for paddlers of all levels. For visitors who list wildlife viewing as a priority, Tarpon Bay is again the top destination on my list. You can never make guarantees with wildlife, but I usually feel confident recommending Tarpon Bay as a great place to view manatees. Also, Sanibel is world renown as a top birding destination. Watching the wading birds fly in and roost in the bay at sunset is an experience that should not be missed.
There are several mangrove tunnels along the Calusa Blueway, but many of them may not be recommended for everyone. That’s not the case at Tarpon Bay. Its Commodore Creek Kayak Trail is an open, well-marked path through the mangroves with a nice canopy and you can get the mangrove tunnel experience without feeling claustrophobic.
Tarpon Bay Explorers not only rents paddle craft and leads, fishing, eco and sunset tours, but it also runs a gift shop that has many of the things you might need for your paddle as well as souvenirs to remember your day. Tarpon Bay Explorers is a participant in the Calusa Blueway Challenge in which you can earn 100 points for visiting the site with an additional 300 points for renting a kayak or SUP.
The Calusa Blueway Challenge is a gamified passport that participants can play all year long. Setting up your passport is free and easy. Just go to www.visitfortmyers.com/CalusaBluewayChallenge to get started. When you open your passport, you will see a list of “Places To Go.” Checking in with your mobile phone at each place or experience will earn you points for chances to win prizes.
Tarpon Bay Explorers, including the launch, is open Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. It cost $7 per vessel to launch your own SUP or kayak; parking and use of the facilities are free.
Each visit to Sanibel shows visible progress and more businesses reopening after Hurricane Ian. For a complete list of places to eat after your paddle, check thesancapguide.com. They have status updates o restaurants, parks, hotels, shops. Tarpon Bay and Tarpon Bay Explorers were hit hard by Ian, but they are coming back. Head out for a great paddle and earn some Calusa Blueway Challenge points.
