I’m back in Cincinnati after an incredible family vacation on Captiva Island in Florida! We have been vacationing in Captiva since I was a baby, and it’s always a nice weeklong escape when we go.
This year Joe was finally able to come on the trip with us, so it was his first time experiencing the island. In past years, the dates of our vacations unfortunately perfectly lined up with other work/travel obligations Joe had so I was excited this year worked out!
We like to lounge on our beach vacations, so most days we headed straight to the beach. We decided to switch it up one day and rent a boat to take us out to Cabbage Key, an island only accessible by boat.
The Boat Ride
We rented a boat from Jensen’s Marina, which happened to be right next to where we were staying so it only took us a few steps out our front door to get to the boat. There are a few different options in terms of what you can rent and where you can go, which is nice. Since none of us are really proficient in boating, we went with the option of having someone from Jensen’s man the boat. You can also rent boats where you’re the one in charge, so there’s something for everyone.
You can visit Cabbage Key, North Captiva Island, Boca Grande, and more, but like I mentioned above we opted for a trip to Cabbage Key. More on that below, but it was a very memorable experience!
My favorite part of the day was the boat ride itself. I’ve been on boats before, but this was a much more intimate experience since it was just my family and it was a smaller boat. Our captain was extremely knowledgeable on all the wildlife and surroundings during our ride which was interesting to get a deeper understanding of everything. It’s crazy that we’ve been visiting Captiva for so long but never ventured to some of the surrounding areas.
The home pictured below is known as the “Fish House” and was owned by Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist Robert Rauschenberg. It’s hard to tell by this picture but the house literally sits on top of the sea and instantly caught my eye when we sailed past it.
The coolest part of the entire day was when we had a large pack of dolphins jumping through the wake of our boat. I took some videos (which I will try to post here but have been having issues) and if you heard the audio of my mom and I gleefully screaming you would know how enjoyable it was. The dolphins were the cherry on top of a perfect day!
Cabbage Key
Cabbage Key was super picturesque from the second we pulled up in the boat. The island itself is pretty small and covers just 100 acres. Another interesting tidbit is that there are no paved roads or cars on Cabbage Key! It’s a very secluded place, which was cool to get to experience for just a bit.
The island was bustling with people when we arrived and headed up to the restaurant. The restaurant itself is pretty famous. The walls and ceilings are all covered in dollar bills. When you walk in you instantly see a sea of money taped to every surface and it’s truly a sight to be seen!
The entire day was so memorable and I know I’m not going to forget about it anytime soon. My mom and I have still been talking about what a great experience it was now that we’re back in Cincinnati. We made sure to get a picture with our captain from Jensen’s who was a great companion and source of information on the boat and during lunch!
This article by Olivia Johnson originally appeared on baublestobubbles.com