Turtle Beach/Neville Preserve Kayak Trip

Sarasota, Florida: Today we decided to go kayaking on the south end of Siesta Key. We launched from the kayak launch at Turtle Beach and paddled south towards the Jim Neville Marine Preserve, with a beach stop along the way. This paddling trip was rated as one of the top 10 in our area and we were really looking forward to trying it.

Our journey began at the Turtle Beach ramp. Unlike the mass of vendors we experienced last week at South Lido, the crowd here at Turtle Beach wasn't bad. We unloaded the kayaks and began our trip. The ramp leads you through a large channel with condos and homes on each side before you reach the bay. From there we headed southwest and made a stop at the beach.

The beach was amazing. When we pulled our kayaks ashore, there were only a handful of people on this stretch of beach. Years ago, this was the Midnight Pass which separated Siesta Key from Casey Key. But over time, the pass closed and the county made no attempt at dredging the channel. So today we are left with a stretch of unspoiled beach now known as Palmer Point Park.

 We took a swim in the clear warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico. While in the water, we watched a manatee swim just a few feet offshore. After swimming for a while, the beach started to fill up as several boats and other kayakers and paddleboarders arrived.

When we headed back on the water we headed over to the Jim Neville Marine Preserve. This 35-acre island is a haven for wildlife. This is nesting grounds for various birds such as herons, egrets, osprey and more. While we didn't see much, it was still a great paddle around the island.

We did fight quite a bit of current throughout our trip. Leaving the Turtle Beach Lagoon, the current was strong but once we reached Little Sarasota Bay, it wasn't so bad. It didn't pick up again until the east side of Neville Preserve where we fought it and boat wake for much of the remainder of the paddle. While we might come back and try this trip again, I think we may shortcut the entire trip around the preserve. The east side was heavy with beach traffic and not much scenery/wildlife to enjoy. However, a paddle trip just to Palmer Point is a definite possibility.

Here is a look at our paddle trail for today's trip.  We paddled approximately four miles during this trip.

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