Things to do on Sanibel Island

For a great day on the water in southwest Florida, why don’t you consider heading over to Sanibel Island. The crabbing is phenomenal, and fishing off the coast is very productive as well for tarpon, grouper, snook, kingfish, and even the infamous blue marlin!

For those of you without boats, the J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel Island is a great place to go for both families and friends. There are lagoons and beaches to lay around on and there are larger lagoons to go crabbing in. They don’t allow traps or bait, but the crabs are so abundant that you don’t need anything but a net and the ability to wade out in the water to about your waist line. It’s incredibly fun for the entire family, and you can stay in relatively shallow water as well, so it’s safe for children, under parental supervision, of course.

For your blue crabbing adventures, vendors sell nets and bushel baskets in town and give advice on where they’ve been catching the most crabs recently. If the season is right, you may be able to crab for some stone crabs as well, and if you enjoy diving there are several areas off the coast where you can go scuba diving for spiny lobsters with a flashlight and a nylon bag – again, as long as they are in season.

If you’ve never gone diving for spiny lobsters, I would recommend doing so if you ever get the chance. You can purchase a spot on a charter scuba diving boat if you don’t have the gear yourself, and most of these charter boats cruise the coast for a bit as well. Also, most charters know where the ship wrecks are in the area, and they can be quite a lot of fun to explore for couples and groups of friends alike. Spiny lobsters tend to hang out around the areas with wrecks, so you can cruise around a ship wreck and explore while hunting for spiny lobster with a flashlight or even a spear, if you’re a bit more daring.

For the more adventurous types, there are many other charter activities, like parasailing, snorkeling, offshore sport fishing, and more. An offshore, deep sea sport fishing trip off the coast of south western Florida is one you will not forget. The fish are abundant and the captains of the charter boats off Sanibel Island are very knowledgeable of the area and can get you where you need to be to catch whatever fish you desire, be it kingfish, blue marlin or tuna. There are over night trips available as well out of the main harbor and tons of other water sport rentals and charters available for recreational use of water toys if you’re tired of fishing or trolling around the canals in your boat. Be sure to have your Florida fishing license with you.

If your big fishing trip doesn’t turn out to be productive, you can visit one of the many on the water restaurants that populate the area, and get a taste of the fresh seafood anyway. At the end of the day, you’ve got the option to get back to your vessel and take off into the sunset or you can stay in one of the hotels on the island and go at it again in the morning.

You would be doing yourself a favor to stay and watch the sun rise in the morning. If you’re lucky, you’ll see the dolphins swimming and jumping across the open ocean in the main harbor, or the flamingos feeding in the shallow lagoons behind the wildlife preserve. Either way, your boating adventure will be one that is not soon forgotten, by you or your family or friends that you bring along.

About the Author

Jane Warren is a water sports enthusiast who enjoys sailing, boating, scuba diving and swimming. Visit www.TowableTubesDirect.com for her reviews on water sports equipment from Sportsstuff and Airhead, including towable tubes, skis, wakeboards, kayaks and water trampolines.