Probably one of our favorite trips. The Ten Thousand Islands are the crazy maze of mangroves and islands which form where the everglades drains into the Gulf of Mexico. The islands south of Marco Island are a part of this, and sport some pretty phenomenal beaches covered in seashells as well as the remains of a few spirited attempts to put houses on Cape Romano. We did this trip July 24, 2015, patchy storms (no lightening) with 2ft waves on the gulf-side of the islands. Overall it was a great paddle, but we both wore our rain gear and sprayskirts. |
At the cape: The southernmost part of this paddle is the Cape itself. It consists of a broad sandy shore, with a few mangroves and a shallow lagoon inside. The must-see feature of this trip (and the reason we paddled all this way) is the abandoned dome homes of Cape Romano. These were originally meant to be a luxury getaway, made out of pretty weatherproof concrete. What the builders forgot is that even if your house is hurricane-proof, the sand underneath it isn't. The homes have been abandoned for over twenty years now, but still are largely intact. | Where to set in: Caxambas Park Marina is the closest marina with a Kayak Launch. When we did this trip in July 2015, the parking and launch fee was $5, so it's one of the cheaper places to launch as well. Once you launch, there can a lot of boats in the marina, so be careful! What will you see?: There are a number of bays and inlets as you paddle south. Some of these give you a sandy shore to pull your kayak up and walk around. If you need a break, pull up into one of these, the beaches on the gulf side are covered in beautiful seashells and are made of a soft white sand, a perfect spot for lunch! There are some sandy patches on the eastern side of the islands, but these can get very buggy; use these as emergency stops only. Navigating: Unless you have a guide who knows the area very well, this trip can be a bit of a maze. We were able to navigate pretty well using a GPS and a map, just be aware of where you are, and be careful crossing channels: they can get choppy and they have boats. Enjoy the beaches, and don't take all the shells! |