Cayo Costa Day attracts a crowd
The Friends of Cayo Costa held its semi-annual “Cayo Costa Day’ Saturday under sunny skies and warmer than usual temperatures.
The 55-minute boat ride alone is worth the price of admission and when the Tropic Star arrives at the small dock and shuts down her engines you are surprised at how quiet it is. Cayo Costa, also known as La Costa Island, is a barrier island off the western coast of Pine island.
Greeting visitors as they came off the boat was Margi Nanney, president of the steering committee for Friends of Cayo Costa.
“We’re off to a great start,” Nanney said. “The weather couldn’t be better and I understand the boats are at capacity so we will have a busy day. I hope everyone takes advantage of this amazing opportunity to experience the natural beauty and the history of Cayo Costa.”
Miles of beaches, pine forests and mangrove swamps have changed little since the Calusa walked the island in the late 1700s. The island has nine miles of white sandy beaches, bird watching, snorkeling, hiking and even bicycling.
There were organized beach and shell walks and historic trail walks, including Cemetery Trail where Capt. Peter Nelson and members of the Southwest Florida Padilla family are buried. There were also lectures about native plants by Marty Kendall, author of “The Plant World of the Calusa: A View from Pineland.”
“I became interested in these plants from the many digs that were done on Pineland,” Kendall said. “They found seeds in every layer of these digs and I started thinking about what the Calusa used these seeds for. The research suggests the Calusa used these for medicinal purposes, religious rights, food and even building materials. My illustrated book, published this year by the University of Florida, includes about 70 plants that the ancient Calusa used. That’s what I will be talking about today.”
“The truly great thing about today is everyone, from the captains and the boats, to volunteers on the island, like the Department of Parks and Recreation, Randell Research Center, have donated their time to help Friends of Cayo Costa,” Nanney said.
Each boat captain and crew were given a “certificate of appreciation.”
“I want to show all of the captains our appreciation with this plaque for bringing all of these people to our beautiful island,” Nanney said. “The plaque says ‘Thank you for going over and above the call of duty…’ Thank you very much you made those a very successful day for Friends of Cayo Costa.”
The Friends of Cayo Costa State Park is based on Pine Island. FoCC is a division of Barrier Islands Park Society, a 501c3 organization which is the official Citizens Support Organization for Cayo Costa, Gasparilla, Stump Pass, Don Pedro State Parks and Port Boca Grande Lighthouse & Museum. All funds raised by FoCC will be used exclusively for Cayo Costa State Park. Tax #65-0327405.
For more information email friendsofcayocosta@gmail.com or call 941-527-7865.