The wind was usually above 10 knots during our stay at Pelican Bay making longer dinghy trips through moderate chop a little long and wettish. So, we tended to hang out in our general vicinity more often. As our trash bags started to pile up and dinghy gas started to dwindle, though, we decided to make a trek over to Pineland Marina on Pine Island to refill our gas cans and drop off the trash (the state park doesn’t allow trash drop). We also threw in our 6 gallon water tank to take the opportunity to add a little to our water tanks.
On the way over we went right by beautiful and private Useppa Island. So, that was cool to see. It took us about an hour to get to Pine Island, and the ride wasn’t too bad. Pineland Marina was straight forward and had what we needed but literally had nothing else around it. Pine Island is a really natural island with only a few “Old Florida” cities. Since we didn’t get any kind of restaurant, site seeing, or shopping fix, we decided to detour around the south side of Useppa on the way back and stop for lunch at Cabbage Key. The following day was my birthday, and we wanted to scout out the restaurant and the dinghy ride back to make sure that’s where we wanted to go. Cabbage Key turned out awesome. The restaurant was neat, the food was good, there was a water tower you could climb, a hiking trail, and lot’s of gopher tortoises.
Only accessible by boat, Cabbage Key has cottages for rent also and a very interesting history. We talked to the people working at the restaurant, and they even live on the island in staff housing. What a cool job! The dinghy ride back wasn’t bad, and we decided it would be an awesome place for a birthday dinner. We went there the following night for my birthday. For dinner the decor is changed to a “nicer” restaurant, and the dinner menu is also more “fancy”. We both had triple tail, and it was delicious! Highly recommended if you are in the area, and it turns out the ferry service leaves there from Pineland Marina where we got gas. We had an awesome time at Cabbage Key on our first real trip into any kind of civilization so far!
Sally
November 2, 2016 at 12:33 pmSo glad you posted the map. I’ve been wondering where you are.
Mary Wey Duncan
November 2, 2016 at 9:05 pmCabbage Key looks really pretty. I like the maps you show also. I’m thinking a desalination set up might be worth the investment so you can have all the water you want. And, if you start catching a lot of fish, you can start selling them and use the money for a desalination set up. Or, instead of a food truck, you could have a food boat and sell fish sandwiches and crab soup. I’m just being silly.