Sailing in the intracoastal waterway from Dunedin North to Tarpon Springs and the Anclote River can be challenging and fun . I spent my first 12 years in Florida living in this beautiful area that has lots of activities, beaches, spoil islands, restaurants, etc. From what I can tell on Google Earth, St. Joseph Sound seems to be the northernmost barrier island area until you reach the panhandle.
Shallow Water & Motorized Turds
Dunedin may not be the best “sailing destination” (I wouldn’t really charter a boat here), but it’s a great area to live and gunkhole around. The Sound is quite shallow and if your boat draws over 3.5 feet, you really need to stay in the channel. Once you are in the narrow intracoastal waterway channel between Clearwater and Dunedin causeway, you are at the mercy of every powerboater in the area (seems like everybody in the state is here on the weekends). This can get old fast. Surprisingly the penis boats aren’t as bad as a lot of the big cruisers that drag 4 foot rolling wakes behind them. I’ve had countless spilled drinks and upset cabins by captains (can they be called that?) that didn’t even glance back at the schlumping boat with figures bouncing from port to starboard gunwale. These guys are the worst and my biggest beef about the area. They’re all usually south-bound to their Clearwater waterfront mansions. Best to try and avoid the weekend crowds if possible.
Caladesi Island
Caladesi Island State Park really is one of the best places in the entire area – if you’re looking for like-new floating docks and all the amenities. You can stay for an extended time, but it costs money and you should make reservations. The little cove marina is on the intracoastal side of the island. To get to it: From channel marker #14, just west of the Dunedin Causeway Bridge, take an approximate 212´degree heading on your compass for approximately 1 mile. Follow the channel markers into the Caladesi Island State Park Marina. You need to stick to this heading and field goal the markers you see in the distance. Don’t wander off course! You can usually see the channel by the color breaks in the water, but if it’s low visibility stray outside the channel and you’ll be grounded. It get’s shallow quick. Stay away from the no motor zone as well - let’s face it, if you’re that far off course then just stay at the marina and have a few more drinks.
If you have a Florida parks card you’ll save money if you visit here more than a few times. Still be prepared to pay. It’s not much, like four bucks for the day and you can donate to help the island if your intracoastal cocktails have kicked in and you feel generous. Caladesi is great for a nice long beach walk joined by an amazing sunset and then followed with an easy walk back to the slip. No wading back to the boat and hoping that you’re anchored far enough from shore. Floating dock = easy night sleep.
Honeymoon Island
Honeymoon Island begins on the North side of Hurricane Pass and is approx 3 miles long. The North end of Honeymoon Island is chocked full of natural beauty and a heck of a long walk if you begin from the parking lot. My wife and strolled past a sunbathing Hulk Hogan and entourage once while trudging the 2 miles out to the end. His high dollar cigarette boat was anchored just off the beach. Hulk had the right idea, the North end is fairly private and best reached by powerboat. Sailboat, a lot more challenging. If you would like to attempt a landing here I think the best bet is to approach the very North end via the intracoastal waterway. There’s shallow sandbars everywhere but we were able to sneak up in there once with a Morgan 24 that had a 3.5 foot draft. Woke up the next morning to tarpon rolling just off the stern. The water can almost be “keys like” at the pristine North end of the island.
I think the best approach to getting back in there is to head North from the Dunedin Causeway (an on-”request” bridge), up the intracoastal until you are even with the “pass” between Honeymoon and Three Rooker bar, then turn West and aim for the pass – careful, once you leave the channel it can be 5-6 feet and then suddenly there’s a sandbar, just watch the color changes. Once you reach the “pass”, again watch for the color changes and you can wind your way up behind the North tip. If your boat draws over 4 (and this is probably pushing it) probably best to just stay back and dingy in. There’s also some rippin’ current around the end – this allows for a nice deeper cut to get back in there, but also makes anchoring kinda tricky. With a boat like a Catalina 22 I probably wouldn’t hesitate to go up here – but I don’t mind getting out and pushing off the bottom either.
Three Rooker Beach Bar
This “rookery” (lots of birds) is protected so you can’t go trouncing around the interior of the island. Just stick to the beaches, and if you have a pet for god sake keep it on a leash. Every weekend Three Rooker is invaded by almost every person that owns a boat and cooler full of booze. This is a weekend party/drinking island. That being said, the island really is an amazing gem and it was always my number one destination. I’ve been there on a Monday morning with not another boat in sight. The island has many faces and this was it’s most amazing.
The hurricanes over the past few years have dramatically changed the landscape, but it’s still fairly simple get to. The last time I was there, you could get very close to the island (within wading distance) by just heading due west from the Intracoastal. Come right up the backside and watch the color changes. I think the South and North end are a little deeper. I could go on about shelling, the pristine sand – go there and check it out.
The Spoils
North of the Dunedin Cause way on the east side of the intracoastal waterway are 6 small spoil islands that run parallel with the channel. I think a couple of the first ones are posted as bird sanctuaries, but the others were open last time I was out there. I’ve spent the weekend on the northernmost island three or four times. Dubbed “Lost Tooth” when my nephew lost his tooth while sitting around the fire, this tiny land mass is the closest I’ve come to living out my Pirate/Robin Crusoe fantasy. It almost came true because a funky tide almost kept us there another day. Lost Tooth doesn’t have a single bug most likely because there’s no standing water, only a clutch of pines and whatever stuff other visitors leave behind. For the most part it stays pretty clean and is a great way to spend the weekend. I can’t speak for camping on the other islands as we always head to Lost Tooth. It hangs out there by itself and at night, if you look West, you feel far far away from everything – until you turn around and see the lights of civilization, which still reassures you home (ug, and work) is not that far away.
The Rest
Two of the big Marina’s in the area are Dunedin Municipal Marina and Home Port. There’s a couple smaller private ones, but everything turned to condos so fast I’m not sure if there even worth mentioning because they may be gone. Dunedin is well protected and has pumpout. I THINK they have transient slips, but check with them for availability.
Downtown Dunedin has some of my still favorite bars and restaurants – after a day of cold, rainy sailing head to Flannagans Irish Pub for a Guinness and good music.
Kelly’s Restaurant used to be my favorite place until they got “upscale” and told me I had to remove my “ballcap” after 9:00. Our group had been there since 6:00 (pre-ballcap ban) spending over $150 and suddenly the place goes upscale. Good food and atmosphere, but us dirty sailors may not be the clientele they’re after, even though folks like us built the place. Enough of that little rant. There’s more restaurants, shops and a gas station all within walking distance of the marina. Nice little hangout area.
Bon Appetite is a nice place on the water right next to Dunedin Marina. A bit on the pricey side, but you’re on prime waterfront property with zillion dollar views, nothing’s free.
I may have left some things out, but that leaves room for discovery.
Click the image for the Dunedin Picture Gallery:* WPG2 Plugin Not Validated *
