Keewaydin Island, Naples, Florida

The excursion to Keewaydin Island Beach begins here at Rose Marina on north Marco Island for beach-goers who will be taking a ferry. Rose Marina is located at 951 Bald Eagle Drive and is easy to get to from Naples and Bonita Springs. The ferry trip is reasonable in all aspects, including price, logistics, and ease of use.

The ferry experience of getting to and from Keewaydin Island Beach makes for an easy rustic Gulf island adventure. The Marina parking lot is clean and well-maintained with ample parking spaces. The walkway here is pedestrian-friendly. The church located just to the west of the lot is the Marco Presbyterian Church.

Upon arrival at Rose Marina, it might be fun to go inside the marina right way, but it’s best to check in with Hemingway’s first mate, Val. Val is here, helping passengers with any questions about the vessel. There are nice washrooms inside and lots of souvenirs, but Val will explain the island-going process thoroughly.

Rose Marina is a busy place. It is a marine outfitter and tour embarkation point open seven days a week with long-term and transient dockage. The Key West Express docks here. The Hemingway Water Shuttle, which goes to Keewaydin Island Beach, has a kiosk here. Two adult round-trip tickets with beach chairs and umbrella is $138.70. Those prices were in effect March 7, 2024.

Just follow the Hemingway Water Shuttle arrow to slip A16, but on this visit it was easy to follow returning customers to the boat. Opened in 1969, this marina was later purchased by Chicago native Bill Rose. It became the Rose Marco River Marina, but with the passing of Mr. Rose in 2010, it was renamed Rose Marina.

The excitement builds as everyone gets closer to the shuttle. The route is accessible with few inclines, but there are many turns and people move quickly. The dock ramps have some bounce to them. Crewmembers and passengers are getting the Island Hopper, at left, ready for a fishing trip with gear and barrels of ice.

The Hemingway Water Shuttle has three skippers: Captain Steve Hemingway (right), who is a master captain; Captain Matt Hemingway (left), who is also a master captain; and Captain Jack, the most beloved captain of all. Captain Jack is an Australian Labradoodle who greets every passenger boarding the shuttle.

Captain Jack loves to be around people, and his job aboard the water shuttle is dolphin watching. He loves dolphins. In just a few minutes, the shuttle will be heading north out of the marina and into Factory Bay, where dolphins are swimming. The water shuttle is a 30-foot catamaran with a seat for each of its 22 passengers.

All passengers were greeted, boarded, and seated by 9:15, the scheduled departure time. Captain Matt introduced himself, as well has Captain Steve and Jack. Captain Matt spent a few minutes going over the logistics for the initial trip and the return trip. The Hemingway was underway at 9:20 with all eyes forward.

Past Factory Bay, the shuttle provided a great view of the S.S. Jolley Bridge and then headed west over the northernmost tip of Marco Island. The S.S. Jolley Bridge connects the Florida mainland to Marco Island via North Collier Boulevard (951). To reach the marina from 951, make a right turn onto Bald Eagle Drive at the Publix at Marco Town Center.

Hemingway Water Shuttle is a family owned and operated business, with roots in Minnesota. The four Hemingways also include Lauren, who runs the website and all online operations. Her brother, Captain Matt, said during the trip out that Jack had caught the eye of tropical outfitter Tommy Bahama for a photo shoot.

The ride to Keewaydin Island was a classic Gulf of Mexico water trip. Both Captain Matt and Captain Jack were quick to alert the passengers to the dolphins who were leaping in Factory Bay. In this image, the shuttle has cleared Marco Bay, motored through Capri Pass, and rounded Sea Oat Island to reach the destination.

The trip from Rose Marina to the harbor on the eastern side of Keewaydin Island took half an hour. The eastern harbor, facing Hurricane Pass, is where island-goers land their boats for the day. As soon as the ramp went down, Captain Jack was the first off the boat and took care of business, next to the sand turtle on the left.

After disembarkation, Keewaydin Island Beach is just steps away. A look back toward the shuttle drop-off point, which will also be the pick-up point at 3:45 pm this afternoon, shows Cannon Island right across Hurricane Pass. Keewaydin Island is an isthmus that runs eight miles north to Gordon Pass and the city of Port Royal.

Sometimes less is more . . . especially when it comes to relaxing on a beach. During the 1960’s, a bridge was proposed to connect this barrier island to the mainland. Local residents, however, petitioned Naples City Council to stop the so-called improvements. Thus, Keewaydin Island remains primitive and pristine.

There are about a dozen homes here. This as-it-should-be barrier island, according to NOAA, is “a constantly changing deposit of sand that forms parallel to the coast.” The dunes and grasses help block the ocean waves before they strike the mainland during storms. Turtles, deer, bobcats, and wild boar also live on this island. April is turtle nesting season.

An eastward view reveals the  undeveloped nature of Keewaydin. Apart from a handful of houses to the north, chairs and umbrellas are the only structures on this island. These three items are rentals from Hemingway at $10 each plus tax. A glance at the trip receipt with a calculator shows tax on everything to be 14 percent.

The water around the Keewaydin Island Beach is very shallow, which when the tide goes out, reveals a bounty of scalloped shells. Tide pools form during the day as the water goes out and comes in at various places up and down the shoreline. Many different types of shells reveal themselves, some quite large and in pristine condition.

Keewaydin Island was previously called Kee Island some decades ago, although additional details about that are hard to come by. After shelling on the southern most tip of the island, shell-seekers are working their way northward with totes in hand to find abundant sand dollars, conch shells, and fossilized coral.

These are the treasures left behind by the tide pools on the Gulf side of Keewaydin Island. There are scallops, conchs, sand dollars, star fish, moon shells, urchins, and more. Visitors are reminded to check each conch for an inhabitant and to leave it be if there is one. There is no live shelling in Southwest Florida.

Around lunchtime came two sea-going vendors for all of those tourists covered with oil. The boat on the left was a floating beverage barge and the other was a floating shirt shack. The barkeeper on the beverage barge said that there was a burger vendor that came to Keewaydin, but only on weekends.

The prices on the Beer Boat are high, but the barkeeper is a lot of fun and the beverages are cold and fresh. Partaking of the Beer Boat is almost an experience in and of itself, and comes highly recommended. The shirt shack next door is also worth a look, especially for long sleeve sun-protection shirts in a variety of sizes.

The Beer Boat is brought to you by the Bone Hook Brewing Company of Naples, Florida. Bone Hook has a restaurant at the corner of Immokalee and Goodlette-Frank Roads. This family-owned and operated business has just this one location; well, maybe two locations counting the Beer Boat that docks at Keewaydin.

The Beer Boat offers beer from Bone Hook plus mixed drinks. Want something lighter? The lemonade drinks are very refreshing. The lemonades are 24 ounces (0.7 l) of water, sugar, and two freshly sliced lemon halves at $11 each (including tax). There was enough lemon to flavor another 12 ounces (0.35 l) of water when the lemonade was done.

Keewaydin Island is the only dog-friendly beach in the vicinity of Naples and Marco Island. Only service animals are permitted on Marco Island, but well-behaved, leashed dogs of all kinds are indeed permitted here. The Hemingway Water Shuttle is also pet-friendly, but these pooches here arrived by private boats.

There are no amenities here. There are no washrooms, water fountains, fixed food stands, or picnic tables. There are no doggy baggy dispensers, either. Visitors must bring their own creature comforts. Besides water bottles and some baggies, and maybe an umbrella and chairs, some visitors may feel like nothing else is even needed.

The tide was on its way out by 3 pm. Beach-goers strolled out into the Gulf of Mexico as far as the eye could see, barely more than ankle deep. Boogie-boards were perfect for skimming the shallow water along the newly emerging sandbars. Although busy Marco Island was visible from here, no boats were anywhere near the shore.

Some distance out from the shore revealed the sparkling beauty of the ocean floor. The sand was sculpted by waves and wind, and each one could become a sandbar, or perhaps even a barrier island. This very spot was strewn with bivalve shells. Check out this shell factsheet: https://www.risingtidefl.com/2021/09/27/common-shells-of-sw-florida-and-keewaydin-island-beaches/.

Keewaydin Island provides an unspoiled paradise, if only for today. This paradise, for these unhurried beach-goers, will last well past sunset, as they came to this island via private boat and not on the Hemingway, which will arrive in half an hour. Some beach-goers may spend the night here, as that is indeed permitted by the city of Naples.

At 3:30, the water-shuttle visitors are packing up, leaving those who have gotten here on their own or who have a home here. Large sandbars attract as many shore birds as shellers. Conversations with frequent visitors to Keewaydin may yield expert information on the many arks, cockles, and jingles found here. Jingles make great wind chimes.

The Hemingway Water Shuttle arrived on the eastern shore of the island exactly at 3:45 pm. Captain Jack was there to greet all of the passengers as they boarded. Captain Steve was behind the wheel as Captain Matt handed out water bottles to some very grateful passengers and asked everyone about their trip to Keewaydin.

Captain Steve and Captain Matt completely covered their heads and necks against the sun’s powerful rays, which are constantly reflecting off the water. The motor aboard the shuttle was loud, but that didn’t stop the lively conversation during the trip back to Rose Marina. Captain Jack enjoyed the breezy afternoon as he watched for dolphins.

For the return trip, Hemingway Water Shuttle now heads southward past Jolley Bridge and onward toward Rose Marina on Marco Island. The shuttle, while incredibly reliable, is still subject to the whims of the capricious weather of Southwest Florida. The Hemingway had not run the day before due to storms around Naples.

Passengers aboard the Hemingway came from all over. One interesting thing about the return trip was that there were different passengers than on the way out. Some stayed the night on the island or had arrived in a private boat. Florida beaches have always been chilly after sundown, regardless of the daytime temperature.

At 4:20 the Hemingway headed into its slip at the A16 dock. The shuttle emptied quickly when Captain Steve announced the all clear. Steve and Matt wished all of us a nice evening. On its website, Hemingway states that it will do its best to accommodate passengers whose plans may change for either the departure date or the return trip.

Rose Marina is just as busy in the early evening as it was in the early morning. At 4:35 pm, passengers are headed out of the marina and off to enjoy the rest of their evenings. Marco Island has many wonderful restaurants along Collier Boulevard, and farther north, Naples also has great restaurants, open late into the night.

One minute on Keewaydin Island Beach at noon on March 7, 2024.