ADVENTURE TIMES KAYAKS - Kayak sales, rentals, and tours in Palm Beach County, Florida

kayaks rental west palm beach florida kayak rentals adventure island sports

kayaks rental ocean kayak west palm beach florida kayak adventure island sports

ST. LUCIE INLET STATE PRESERVE
Miles Of Unspoiled Atlantic Ocean Beach Make This Park An Unusual Kayaking Find Near Stuart, In Southeast Florida.

This is the beach view looking north. The St. Lucie Inlet runs in front of the distant buildings.

LOCATION: Stuart area of Southeastern Florida area. Intracoastal Waterway, Indian River, just south of the St. Lucie Inlet.

For several miles south of the St. Lucie Inlet there is an incredible run of natural preserve. Kayakers can enjoy the sights as they paddle the Indian River and the Narrows from the St. Lucie Inlet to Hobe Sound. There's a great boater-only park located here.

UNSPOILED PRESERVE: The State of Florida has built an impressive natural park that is exclusive to boaters. Together, the St. Lucie Inlet Preserve and the Hobe Sound Natural Wildlife Refuge form an incredible 6 miles of unspoiled land on the northernmost part of Jupiter Island.

Click here to see a map/dock location

Click here for the State web site for preserve area

VISITOR FACILITIES:
WEST SIDE (Intracoastal Waterway): Just off the docks is a restroom area and information office. The restrooms have no running water. There are no showers, phones or drinking fountains.

EAST SIDE (Atlantic Ocean): There is a picnic shelter, metal barbecues and restrooms near (but not on) the beach. There is no running water, drinking water, showers or phones.
There is a nominal ($2-per-boat) day use fee for the park. It's a real bargain!

Note: This page contains several photographs. It may take a little time to load, especially with a dial-up connection.

This is the St. Lucie Inlet Preserve view that kayakers see as they launch in the Indian River. The dock is connected to the Atlantic Ocean Beach by a half-mile long boardwalk.

We paddle by the boaters dock at the preserve before we begin to enter the narrows in our kayaks.

It's a short walk over the dunes to the beach.

This is the beach view looking south. The beach is wide, secluded and undeveloped. The beach extends for another several miles to the south. This is Florida "like it used to be."
Because this area is immediately south of the St. Lucie Inlet you may see a lot of fishing boats just off shore. Note: The water color can change from blue to brown here. This is because on an outgoing tide, brown water from the Intracoastal Waterway exits through the St. Lucie Inlet and flow south. Click here for more on the changing water color.

The dunes, beach and ocean make this a great place for a long walk or a day at the beach!

As you can see this is a paddlers paradise!

FINAL THOUGHT: St. Lucie Preserve Park is the best kept secret in South Florida. There's no place between here and Miami with so much undeveloped preserve shoreline. The land is located on Jupiter Island, which is the wealthiest place in America. It's remarkable that this expensive land was saved by the government... and opened for boater use with an extensive boardwalk and dock facilities. Visiting the park is supporting it. If this park gets used, it encourages the government to keep it open and build more boating destinations such as this.