Sailing Florida's Boca Ciega Bay

Boca Ciega Bay is ginormous. From it's northern border at Madeira Beach all the way to the tip of Pass-A-Grille and until it empties into the Gulf of Mexico, it's one big body of water. And it's a boater's paradise. We stayed on Boca Ciega on vacation this past summer, and I loved watching all the boats. We saw every kind of boat - from a dinner yacht to an old houseboat and everything in between. But what was really fun was sailing on the bay ourselves.

We sailed on the Dolphin, one of Dolphin Bay Charter Rentals, sailing yachts. We left from their port an hour before sunset on a beautiful Sunday afternoon. It was hot - but still a nice day for a sail. Dolphin Bay Charters allows you to bring your own food and drink on board so we brought a cooler with salami, cheese, crackers and homemade bruschetta. With wine, of course. You can't do a sunset sail without something to toast the sunset with!

Our captain headed out onto the bay and we saw lots of palm trees, waterfront homes and the famous pink hotel, The Don Cesar. 

We passed under the Pinellas Parkway bridge - just barely with only inches to spare - and headed down to Pass-A-Grill to see the sunset. On our way, the weather started to turn. The wind started kicking up and thunder started rolling in. But our captain promised us a sunset and he delivered. We caught a glimpse of it just as the rain started coming down.

He requested everyone come in from the bow to be safe. It was quite a different ride back to port than the ride out. Some of us went down below into the hull - and some rode under cover watching the lightening show. 

We arrived back at the dock safely - if not a little damp. A fun adventure - a sunset and a storm.


This post is part of a link-up with: Travel Photo Thursday at Budget Travelers Sandbox, Weekend Travel Inspiration at Reflections Enroute and The Weekly Postcard at Travel Notes and Beyond!