Cabbage Key and Cayo Costa State Park

When my best friend decided to come visit, I wanted to plan something fun and something beachy to do but most of all something relaxing.  She works hard at her full time job, goes to school, has the most adorable 3 year old and is married so she is very deserving of a little time off.  I booked a trip on Tropical Star out to Cabbage Key and Cayo Costa State Park, both small islands that are only accessible by boat, one that is inhabited and one that only campers with reservations can stay the night and the rest of us are just day trippers.

We drove out to Bokeelia on Pine Island to catch the boat at 9 am and just barely got out into the bay before we saw our first dolphin!  There were several of them diving fiercely into the water and the guide said it was because they were feeding.  I'd never seen dolphins in an almost aggressive motion so it was fun to watch.  We saw several more dolphins along the way, surfing by the boat and gliding through the water. 

After dropping off the all day Cayo Costa passengers we made our way over to Cabbage Key.  It's a small island north of Captiva that has houses and an Inn and a little restaurant on it that is great for an escape from life to enjoy a cheeseburger and a cold beverage (pina colada...yum!).  When we pulled up to the dock, it looks like a small house on a very small hill (the highest point in SW FL as it was built on an old Native American mound) but when you walk into the restaurant you can see there are several room that go to the back.  We sat in the front room with a view of the docks and the water but the back two rooms are filled with character including dollar bills hanging from the ceiling and walls that people leave to buy their next drink on their return. 

 Wall of money

 Who doesn't love a pina colada in paradise?

The restaurant on Cabbage Key

After lunch we boarded the boat to go back to Cayo Costa and spend the afternoon lounging on the beach and looking for shells.  We were tipped by a nice guy to turn left and walk 15 minutes down the beach to find large and fancy shells.  The farther we walked, the more remote we found the beach until it felt like we were the only people on the beach, and the bigger and fancier the shells became.  The water was a beautiful light green shade and it was so peaceful that I could have spent all day there.  It is definitely worth the trip for a visit out to the park.  It has the classic beauty of old Florida with it's remoteness and a peaceful vibe that sets you at ease the second you step onto the island.

The perfect place to take it easy and spend the day listening to nature.