Bay Oaks Seniors on the Go: KAYAKING FROM PORT SANIBEL MARINA

Kayaking from Port Sanibel Marina

On a beautiful day in February, Bay Oaks Social Seniors with their kayaks in tow took a trip to Port Sanibel Marina. The Marina is located one mile before the toll bridge leading to Sanibel Island in the southwestern tip of Lee County in Fort Myers, Florida. Personnel from Bay Oaks Recreation Campus accompanied the group to assist with unloading and then loading the kayaks back up on the trailer. Everyone helps get the kayaks from the trailer to the launch site. There are lovely homes along the waterway, but kayaks must share this route with power boats whose home base is the marina. Power boats are guided by red and green pylons along the way, so those in kayaks know where the boats will be passing by, and they must get out of the way. Some paddlers among the seniors are seasoned kayakers, but some aren’t. Justin, our trip leader, tries to pair up experienced with inexperienced kayakers. I’m no pro, but I’ve found paddling a kayak to be a relatively easy skill to learn, and it’s not physically challenging, either. What IS challenging is getting in and out of the kayak, but there are always people around to help you with that. Being in a kayak is a very calming experience. While you are afloat on the water, the only sound is the water lapping against your kayak and your oars. Whether you are sitting still or skimming along the surface of the water, you are in control of where you want to go and how fast you want to get there. If you want to stop and rest or stop and admire your surroundings or wildlife, you can do that at will. For myself, I stop and take photos, and it’s not always a calming experience for my kayak partner because I ask my partner to maneuver the kayak at just the right angle to get the shot I want. On this day, after we all got back to the marina, we went to the Lighthouse Restaurant for lunch. The restaurant is adjacent to the marina, and the grounds are beautifully landscaped. During lunch we had a dockside view of wildlife, lush tropical foliage, and million-dollar yachts. The food was good, too.

Port Sanibel Marina Welcome Sign

Our van arrives pulling a trailer loaded with kayaks.

Natasha and Sarah, Bay Oaks Personnel, unload kayaks.

Robert is vested up and ready to kayak.

Kayaks are lined up at the marina launch site.

Sarah and John carry a kayak from the trailer to the launch site.

Carmen has her oar and is ready to go as the kayaks are being launched.

John and Lu are awaiting their turn to get into their kayak.

Marlene and trip leader Justin will be kayak partners.

The kayaks are headed out onto the waterway with the marina in the background.

Carol and Mary Kay leaving the marina.

All of the kayaks are underway

The pink and magenta bougainvillea in the yard of this waterway home is stunning.

Power boats rule the waterway, and kayaks must get out of the way.

Judy and Natasha skim along the water in their kayak.

Everyone is out on the blue and planning to circle the small island in the background.

Margie and Carmen are headed toward my kayak instead of out to sea.

All is A-OK with Marlene and Justin, but who is doing the serious paddling here?

Irene and Mary sit back and enjoy the ride.

A beautiful home on the waterway, even if it IS pink. We see this home and others as we are making our way back to the marina.

Another beautiful home on the waterway.

Jan brought her own kayak and gets a hand from Margie to put it up on the car roof.

We had lunch at the Lighthouse Restaurant, which is adjacent to the marina. The front of the restaurant is very nicely landscaped, and the back overlooks the docks.