The Southern End of Honeymoon Island

Honeymoon Island State Park has many faces, each one making the trip to the island worthwhile venture. It features natural beaches, a nature trail, nature center, a public beach, concession stand, loads of parking, and more. It provides a fantastic setting for anyone who likes wildlife or the beach.

One of the best thing about Honeymoon Island is that there is more than one type of beach. To the north you will find a very long stretch of beach that is in its natural state. Next to the parking lots is the best area of the island to have a day at the beach that will make your vacation memorable, with restroom facilities and a concession stand nearby. The southern end of Honeymoon Island is yet another region of the island that is a world of its own. This blog post focuses on the fantastic south end of the island. Read on to discover the southern pleasures of Honeymoon Island State Park.

Honeymoon Island Beach Trail

You can access the southern end of Honeymoon Island via the beach or the trail. While it might seem that they are almost the same, they actually quite different. At the beach, you will have the sea breeze to cool you and the beautiful views of the Gulf of Mexico. On the trail, the sea breeze might cool you off -or it might not. In the summer, it is a very warm walk. The payoff, of course, is that when you reach the end, you can dip into the water to cool off. If you have always wondered what it would be like to walk down a sandy trail amid the beach grasses, then this is a walk you should take. You will walk past palm trees and shrubs before breaking out into the open. Keep your eye out for wildflowers, as this trail is a very good place to view them. The sandy trail is also a great walk for photographers because the scenery changes in subtle ways as you go along. When you near the end, the path forks, leading to different sides of the island, which is quite narrow at this point. To the right is the dog beach and to the left is a cove. We recommend both! The dog beach is part of the main beach of Honeymoon Island while the cove offers a view of mangrove coastline and the Dunedin Causeway from a very small section of beautiful, white sand beach. If you want to see it all, then head left toward the cove, then walk the beach around the tip of the island. You will come wind up at dog beach and a second cove once you round the end of the island.

Fishing on Southern Honeymoon Island

Any shore you chose on Honeymoon Island is a fun fishing trip. Plenty of fishermen head to the park to fish just off shore, standing waist or chest high water. Because the Gulf Coast shores are shallow, you can walk surprisingly far out to do your fishing, well away from the swimmers at the beach. The very southern tip of the beach is a local fisherman favorite, however. The currents pass by the location strongly which provides excellent fishing opportunities. The current has also has washed away the softer sands, and that keeps most of the beach-goers away, leaving the spot open for fishermen. You will rarely visit the southern tip of Honeymoon Island without seeing someone fishing from this locally favored fishing spot.

Honeymoon Island Dog Beach

The dog beach on Honeymoon Island is easy to find via the many signs. The best route to the dog beach is the beach trail. The path helps you to avoid pulling your dog through all the sunbathers on the regular beach, which is actually not allowed. You will definitely want to bring a baggie for dog droppings. Canisters to deposit used bags are provided. Your pets will enjoy the beach trail but they will definitely love the beach. A small section of split rail fence marks the area where your pet is allowed to be. Unfortunately, leashes are required on this beach and park rangers in boats might give you a ticket if you break the rule. While this might seem unfair, the land surrounding the trail to dog beach and all the grassland bordering the beach is a bird sanctuary. Keeping your dog on the trail and on the sands of the beach is a must. Rules aside, the dog beach is a fantastic place to play with your pet. It is also a fun place to sunbathe, which means you and your four legged friend can both get what you want from a trip to Honeymoon Island.

Coves of Southern Honeymoon Island

You will find two coves on the southern end of Honeymoon Island. They are both very small, one at dog beach and the other on the far side of the island’s tip. Both are great for swimming and are also fun places to land smaller watercraft such as kayaks of standup paddle boards. The eastern cove is less traveled, which might give you intermittent stretches of solitude. The other cove is right at dog beach. The dog beach cove is created by a sand spit reaching southward, separating the small section of water from the Gulf of Mexico. Because the spit is all soft white sand, it is a popular place for visitor to spend time and is therefore the most multi-purposed section of the entire island. Regardless of what you do at these two tiny coves, you might find them to be a pair of the most enjoyable spots on Honeymoon Island.

Caladesi Island Ferry

The Caladesi Island Ferry sets out from the southern edge of Honeymoon Island. The ferry costs $14 for adults, $7 for kids, and is free for those 5 years and under. The boat ride is fun and you will definitely enjoy the beauties of Caladesi Island. To reach the ferry port, look for the signs right after you pass the entry gate of Honeymoon Island State Park. The road, which leads to the ferry or the dog beach parking lots, will be on the left.

Honeymoon Island offers a Beach for Everyone

It is quite remarkable how many different activities you can enjoy just on the southern end of Honeymoon Island. Sunbathing, hiking, swimming, fishing, boating, beach combing, bird watching, photography, and fun with your pet are all found in one relatively small space. And, oddly enough, it is one of the less-visited sections, which means you will also have a fair amount of elbow space. Put this park on your list of sites to see on your next Florida Gulf Coast vacation. Among the many other pleasures of island, you should definitely give the southern end of Honeymoon Island State Park a try.

Other posts you might enjoy:

Beach Walk of a Lifetime at Honeymoon Island State Park

Exploring the Honeymoon Island Nature Trail

Hurricane Pass Tidal Currents