Fort DeSoto and Eggmont Key
What a GREAT time we had this past Sunday 8/20 at Ft. DeSoto/Eggmont Key on our island/snorkeling adventure!
The weather, though very HOT, worked out favorably as we had no showers and some cloud cover that kept us from sunburning.
We wish to thank Krista Rosado, Hubbard Marine’s marketing rep, for initiating and putting our trip together; Cory Hubbard and her family for making it all possible; and Capt. Jeff & First Mate ‘Zip’ for making it fun and for supplying us with waters, M&Ms & munchies. Krista is offering us a Concierge Referral Program and we have given her your contact via this email to be in-touch.
- For more info on the Eggmont Key Ferry
- More info on Snorkeling Tours in Tampa Bay
So at 2PM we met up in the shade at Picnic Shelter #12 between the parking lot and the ferry pier and then walked over to the beach where we boarded the ferry up the gangway right off the sand. It was a pleasant 20 minute ride out to Eggmont Key and on the way we saw a manatee swim right by the beach. Our itinerary consisted of 3 stops: First stop was at the lighthouse where we saw a few Gopher Tortoises munching on the grass; the working ‘topless’ lighthouse is closed to visitors, but they do have a small military display nearby that tells a little history of the island and the fort that guarded the entrance to Tampa Bay during the Spanish-American War of 1898. More than half of Eggmont Key is designated as a wildlife refuge and is off-limits to access; there were a TON of birds of all different species, a bird watchers paradise! As it was a Sunday, there were a lot of ‘day boaters’ anchored on the beach with lots of swimmers splashing about.
Next we anchored on the east side of the island and Zip helped us pick out masks, fins & snorkels from the multitude of sizes they have on-board in the locker. We snorkeled amongst the seagrass beds in the 5’ shallows and saw a few fish. There was a little bit of a breeze, some current on an outgoing tide and the water temp felt like a bathtub at 90 degrees. Underwater visibility was a bit cloudy due to all the nutrients stirred up in the warm waters, you really could only see about 2 feet in front of you. Lastly we proceeded around to the west side of the island and anchored in 10’ deep waters by the remnants of Battery Burchsted, an underwater artillery emplacement where we saw lots of different colored fish massing within the nooks of the eroded concrete – some (not me L) were lucky to see a manatee swim underneath them!! On our way back, Capt. Jeff fooled us into looking out for a beached whale that turned out to be an erosion control concrete structure….. what a kidder! Throughout the voyage Jeff was great tour guide, on the microphone telling us all about the scenery and history of the area. I think it was getting close to about 6PM when we returned back to our cars, speaking of, make sure to have some toll money with you as there is a .75 toll on the western end of the Pinellas Bayway (Rte 682), .50 on the Tierra Verde Cswy (Rte 679) and $5 Ft.DeSoto Park entry fee.
Everyone had fun, it was nice to get out from behind a desk and out on the water to enjoy some of the things that our guests come here to do. And it was nice to see Ron MacDougall relaxing in shorts rather than his customary suit! I personally had never been out to Eggmont Key and I don’t believe any of our attendees had been either so it was a real treat. And Fort DeSoto Park is BEAUTIFUL with all of its little hideaway water access points and beaches. All-in-all it was a great time, thanks again for all who attended and sorry for those who missed it.