Southern Tier Trip – Day 3 – Captiva Island

On Day 3, we will again meet at the Ding Darling Visitor & Education Center on Sanibel Island at 7:45 am to start our ride promptly at 8:00 am. We will again ride the beautiful 4-mile Wildlife Drive through the main Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge (cost of entry $1 / person). We expect we will see some different birds and wildlife during our early morning start, as compared to the prior afternoon ride through the refuge. We will then ride the Sanibel bike path to the end of Sanibel Island and will then ride Captiva Drive, towards the end of Captiva Island. This is a beautiful ride along the Captiva beaches and expensive real estate. Total ride length for the morning ride will be approximately 12 miles.

At 10:00 am we will board our boat cruise for a 5-hour adventure that will include:
· A one-hour cruise through Pine Island Sound, reviewing local history, wildlife and more.
· Lunch on Pine Island at Tarpon Lodge – at your own cost.
· Tour of the Randall Research Center – archaeological and historical site and a guided tour of the Calusa Heritage Trail
· One hour return cruise back to Captiva Island
The cost of the boat cruise including the Randall Center is approximately $50. We need to commit to this and pay in advance and we will provide booking and payment information separately once you sign up for Day 3.

We will then stop for ice cream in the main town area of Captiva, prior to completing our 9-mile ride back to the 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.