Publisher's Synopsis
Lee County Florida is the home to Florida's largest estuary. In the county are 50,000 registered recreational vessels that ply these waterways. Four unique waterways converge between Cape Coral, Fort Myers, and Pine Island. Here the Caloosahatchee River meets San Carlos Bay, Pine Island Sound, and Matlacha Pass.
Boaters new to the waters around Cape Coral, Fort Myers, Pine Island, and the barrier islands of, Sanibel, Captiva, North Captiva, and Cayo Costa are surprised by how different these waters are to any they have experienced in other parts of the country. In our estuary, a Federal Manatee Protection Area, is the J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge Complex and the satellite, Pine Island, Matlacha Pass, and Caloosahatchee National Wildlife Refuges. These sanctuaries are home to a variety of native plants and the nesting grounds of many migratory birds. These waters, in many parts, consist of narrow shallow channels, forcing boaters to share these passageways. This guide attempts to help boaters learn where the various main and side channels can take them. Along the way it points out which channels to take a pass on, and which might lead to an interesting adventure. This edition covers the channels found on the Caloosahatchee River from the W.D. Franklin Lock and Dam to where the river meets San Carlos Bay. The journey continues up through Matlacha Pass, around the top of Pine Island. At that point its back down Pine Island Sound, past the Barrier Islands, and ending at Matanzas Pass.
