I've just launched my kayak from the Grande Tours facility into Coral Creek on my way to the Woolverton Trail. Photo courtesy of Jennifer Huber, Charlotte Harbor & the Gulf Islands Visitors Bureau.
Posted by David McRee at BlogTheBeach.com
During my whirlwind tour of the Punta Gorda area a few months ago I had the opportunity to meet the folks over at Grande Tours Kayak Center. They have an awesome location right in the Charlotte Harbor Aquatic Preserve, close to Gasparilla Island (Boca Grande) and Palm Island / Don Pedro Island. They have one of the best kayaking facilities I’ve seen.
Grande Tours has an extensive inventory of kayaks for rent or for purchase.
Chris Warren of Grande Tours readies a kayak for launch while Jennifer Huber looks on.
The Grande Tours kayak launch area on Coral Creek.
Grande Tours is a full-service kayak sales/rental/education center that offers eco-tours, primitive island camping, fishing trips and kayak camps for kids during summer break. They even have a bunkhouse if you need to overnight for an early morning launch.
They also operate a shuttle service to Don Pedro Island State Park, which can only be reached by boat. Or take their narrated 2-hour Sunset Tour of Gasparilla Sound, or explore the estuary with a naturalist on a 2 1/2 hour learning adventure where you’ll collect and identify marine life with nets.
Grande Tours has so many different tours and classes that you could easily spend several days here. You can also bring your own kayak. There is a $6 launching fee, but with that you get a secure place to park your car, a map, and invaluable suggestions and direction from the experienced folks at Grande Tours.
Where: 12575 Placida Road, Placida, FL 33946
Reservations: 941-696-8825
Website: www.grandetours.com (they have a great website with lots of info and photos).
Inside the Grande Tours office/shop/sales center. They'll hook you up!
I love mangrove tunnels like this one on the Woolverton Trail, just a 30 minute paddle from the Grande Tours Kayak center.
Kayakers navigating a mangrove tunnel.
You don't have to spend all your time in a mangrove tunnel. There are plenty of open water areas in Charlotte Harbor.
You’ll see plenty of birds all year while kayaking on Charlotte Harbor, but during the winter months the white pelicans arrive. They are much larger than our year-round brown pelicans and they don’t dive for fish. They fish in groups, surrounding a school of fish to catch them.
Here is a great photo that shows the dramatic size difference between white pelicans and brown pelicans. Photo courtesy of Chris Warren of Grande Tours.
Brilliant pink roseate spoonbills (my favorite) sharing the mud with some white pelicans. Photo courtesy of Chris Warren of Grande Tours.
In case you haven’t seen it before, here’s a short video clip of my kayak journey through the mangrove tunnel on the Woolverton Trail:
FTC Disclosure of Material Connections: This trip was arranged by Charlotte Harbor & the Gulf Islands Visitors Bureau and was provided to me at no charge.
