Lovers Key and Big Hickory Island

We will circumnavigate both Lovers Key and Big Hickory Island. We are starting early to beat the boat and beach traffic. I'm shooting for an 8:30am launch.

The trip will be about 10 miles at a moderate pace (3 to 3.5 mph). If someone doesn't want to paddle all 10 miles, there is also an option of circumnavigating only Lovers Key and then going back to the car (about 5 miles total). Several miles of our paddling will be in the open Gulf waters, so a spray skirt is required for sit-inside kayaks. This trip is rated levels 3 (See "What we're about" for an explanation of the levels).

Bring a lunch, which we will eat on the beach. We will exercise caution when crossing boat channels - grouping close together as we cross.

We will launch ACROSS from Bonita Beach Dog Park at the base of the North side of the New Pass Bridge. There is limited parking, but you can unload and park across the street as well. So, as you head south on Estero Blvd, we will be on the LEFT side of the road, opposite Dog Beach. If for some reason this parking is not available, go to the parking on Big Hickory Island, just south of the New Pass Bridge (on the gulf side).

The leaders of Calusa Sea Kayakers are not professional guides or instructors. We are just peers who enjoy paddling together. Kayaking, like all water sports, involves risk of injury or death. A life jacket must be worn at all times on the water - no exceptions.