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Palm Island (aka) Little Gasparilla (aka) Don Pedro Island

I shouldn't even tell you about Palm Island, Florida. It's one of the few islands left on the lower Gulf Coast where you can really get some quiet time and ignore the rest of the world. For me, the most beautiful thing about the island is that there are very few cars here, and very few roads. There is no bridge to the island. You have to take a ferry to the island, which 7 days a week from 6:30 am to 10pm (11pm on Friday and Saturday). Cars can ride the ferry (Palm Island Transit), but only people who live on Palm Island actually take their cars. You see, there are no parking lots or stores or other businesses on the island, so if you don't have a driveway, there is no place to put a car. Visitors to the island either walk, ride a bike, or use a golf cart. There are several resorts on Palm Island, the most well known is Palm Island Resort which pretty much takes up the whole north end of the island.

Palm Island is located about 9 miles south of Englewood, Florida, off the coast from Cape Haze. It is also known as Little Gasparilla Island, and is actually made up of 4 interconnected islands. Palm Island Resort is on the northern island (Palm Island). As of February 2006, there is now another ferry that serves the island: Grande Tours leaves the Fishery Dock for Don Pedro Island State Part at 10am,  Tuesday through Friday, and Saturday. The ferry returns to the dock at 3pm. In addition to the ferry, Grande Tours presents Eco-Tours, Kayaking, Fishing, Cruising Boca Grande, Florida and Charlotte Harbor Aquatic Preserve, and offers wilderness camping. Be sure to call before you come, as their schedule is subject to change. 941-697-8825.
 
   
   
Right: curious vacationers on Palm Island take a closer look at some crab traps that have washed ashore in the surf.
To get to Palm Island, you have to ride the ferry across. The ferry is provided by the Palm Island Transit Company. It's a two minute ride across a narrow bayou. In the photo, taken on the mainland side of the bayou, the cars you see are on the ferry, which is flying the US flag. It can only hold six cars or so, and sometimes cars are lined up waiting. Pedestrians or cyclists can ride across to Palm Island for $5.
Here's a typical street on Palm Island. Not much traffic. People are more likely to use a golf cart or bike or feet to get around. There really isn't anywhere to go on Palm Island anyway, except to visit friends or neighbors. People who live here have to do their shopping off-island. Hence the need for a car-ferry.
Here is beach access path #7, marked "private." I took a chance and used it to get to the beach, at the suggestion of a friendly island resident. This place is REALLY laid-back.
Ahh! the beach at last! After a long walk, not sure of where I was going (didn't have a good map of this place), I finally ended up on a huge beach. The sand isn't gleaming white. Like other beaches south of Siesta Key, the sand is light brown, or even dark grey down by the water. See next photo, below.
Lots of fossilized material in the sand causes the dark coloring.
Walking south toward Don Pedro Island State Park, there are quite a few beach houses. Many are for rent. If you want a quiet beach getaway, THIS IS THE PLACE!
How about renting this one?
This building belongs to Don Pedro Island State Park. It houses picnic tables and connects to showers and restroom facilities by boardwalks.
A view of the Gulf from the boardwalk at Don Pedro Island State Park.
Not much shade at Don Pedro State Park. Lots of low scrub, tall grasses and native cabbage palms. The areas where the houses are have much more lush and exotic vegetation. Many of the Florida islands were pretty scraggly places before people arrived with their exotic plants.
Here is the crowd on this beautiful November afternoon at Don Pedro State Park. All these people came by private boat. There is no one else on the beach as far as the eye can see in either direction (except me). You can see the tree line on Gasparilla Island (Boca Grande) in the distance.
BeachHunter takes a much needed break at the dock for Don Pedro on the backwater side of the island. I nearly went to sleep laying on the dock in the shade of the mangrove trees. No one here to bother me. Can't wait to come back here!

 
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