Date: Mon, 18 Jan 1999 20:46:37 -0500
From: brian hetrick 
Subject: [Paddlewise] vacation in April

Could anyone direct me to a cabin/cottage for weekly rental.  My wife,
dog and I are looking for a place to get away in April and would love
some help with our travel plans.  We want it to be on the water so that
we could launch our kayak without much hassle.  Thank you in advance for
any information.   We would be leaving New York and would like somewhere
a bit south for warmth.  B&C&M Hetrick



Date: Mon, 18 Jan 1999 23:07:30 -0600
From: "kayakbound" 
Subject: RE: [Paddlewise] vacation in April

Brian

If you're hunting for a remote, but not so austere on-the-water getaway,
look into spending some time at St. Joseph's Peninsula State Park just west
of Appalachicola FL.  It might be difficult to get cabin reservations for
April -- they stay booked especially around that time -- but there are some
great campsites as well.  Kayak behind the penisula in St. Joseph Bay or go
open Gulf.  Either way -- it's a beatiful place to spend a kayaking
vacation.  If you're interested, shoot an e-mail in my direction, and I'll
find the details amongst the chaos in my office.

Cheers!

Jim Tynan
Pike Road AL



Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 08:39:01 -0500
From: Bob Denton 
Subject: RE: [Paddlewise] vacation in April

April is a great month in Florida. It's usually dry and warm and sea
temperatures should be in the high 70s. If you want to stay at a hotel on
the beach where you can launch your boat, the Seagate in Delray Beach is
ideal. There is a rental operation on the beach that rents Sea kayaks, wind
surfers and surf boats. You can walk to into down where there's lots of
beach bars, boutiques and excellent restaurants.

You are also 20 minutes from the Loxahatchee reserve, a 5 mile canoe trail
in the Everglades and an hour or less from the Loxahatchee River, a Florida
river where 1/2 of the 9 mile run is through the canopy.

You are 2 hours from Everglades City and Ten Thousand Islands.

cya



Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 13:44:40 -0500
From: "Susan Watters" 
Subject: Re: [Paddlewise] vacation in April

I'll get this to the right person, yet!!


Another good area in Florida is on the southwest coast. I paddle in the
Charlotte Harbor Aquatic Preserve, consisting of miles of open bay, barrier
islands, mangroves and small islands.

One could stay at Boca Grande or Port Charlotte or Punta Gorda or even Ft.
Meyers and have easy access to Charlotte Harbor and the Gulf of Mexico. Cayo
Costa State Park is on a barrier island and has cabins and camp sites, and is
only accessible by boat. You could paddle down to Captiva and Sanibel Islands
near Ft. Meyers, as well. Take a look at a map of the area from Sarasota to Ft.
Meyers.

Also nearby, another great trip (did a 16 mile paddle here on Sunday) is the
Peace River. There are outfitters along the river - Canoe Outpost is a good one,
that will handle the shuttle for a small fee, and they have kayaks as well as
canoes for rent. The river is wonderful... large live oaks overhanging the
river; cypress trees with their knees resembling sculptures; alligators, and a
river flow that makes paddling easy.

Check out www.paddlefl.com for links to various Florida Outfitters. Check out
www.cyberseas.com/grandetours for a link to the Boca Grande/Charlotte Harbor
area. I sometimes lead short Eco-tour kayak trips into Lemon Bay and Charlotte
Harbor for Grande Tours, and it's a place you can launch a kayak or rent one for
day trips.

Susan