Southern Tier Trip –3 Day Trip to Fort Myers –Day 2 – Sanibel and Captiva Island

The Sanibel and Captiva Islands ride is the second day of the Southern Tier – 3 Day Trip in April. This is the big ride of the trip, both from a mileage perspective (27/42 miles) and the beauty of the barrier islands. Sanibel Island is a biker’s paradise with over 25 miles of paved bike / walking paths that cover the entire island. It is complemented by many miles of both paved and hard-pack paths that run through the JN “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge. Although Sanibel was badly damaged by Hurricane Ian in 2022 and subsequent storms, it continues on the long road to recovery and the bike paths are open and clear.

Our initial 27-mile ride on Sanibel will start from the Ding Darling Visitor & Education Center and we will proceed on the Sanibel bike paths and some small roads for a beautiful 9-mile ride to the Sanibel Lighthouse on the south end of the island. We will then continue on the Sanibel bike paths and some limited hard-pack paths through some conservation areas back to the middle of the island. Next, we will ride the hard-pack Bailey Tract, a short 1+ mile ride through freshwater marshes, brackish impoundments and mangrove islands, which most often includes various bird species, including Osprey, and alligators. After completing approximately 15 miles we will stop for lunch at the wonderful Doc Ford’s restaurant.

After lunch, we will ride back on the bike path to the Ding Darling Visitor & Education Center and will ride the beautiful 4-mile Wildlife Drive through the main Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge (cost of entry $1 / person). Ding Darling is home to 245 bird species and other animals. At the end of the Wildlife Drive you will have the choice of returning to the Visitor and Education Center by the Sanibel bike path and completing the 27-mile Sanibel ride or continuing the ride on to Captiva Island.

The Optional Captiva Island ride is an additional 15 miles return, for a total ride distance of 42 miles. We will ride the Sanibel bike path to the end of Sanibel Island and will then ride Captiva Drive, out to the end of Captiva Island. This is a beautiful ride along the Captiva beaches and expensive real estate. We will likely stop for ice cream in the main town area of Captiva, prior to returning to Ding Darling Visitor Center. Please note that Captiva Drive is the main road out to Captiva and is shared with cars and trucks. It has a low 25 mile per hour speed limit and drivers are used to bikes sharing the road.