Dog-Friendly J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge in Sanibel, FL

Last weekend, we set out on a road trip to Fort Myers and Sanibel Island. The majority of the 2.5 hour drive west was on the remote road known as Alligator Alley which passes through Everglades National Park, Big Cypress National Preserve and the Miccosukee Indian Reservation.  Once across however, it is only a short drive North to Fort Myers and the white sand beaches of Sanibel Island.

We stayed at a dog-friendly hotel on the outskirts of Fort Myers, 6 miles East of Sanibel Island, because prices on the Island are a bit steep for our wallets.  A long causeway and bridge system connects the Island with the mainland and it makes for a beautiful drive.  You can stop, as I did in the above photo, along the many pull-offs on the causeway to enjoy some beach time on the Gulf of Mexico.

Upon arriving on Sanibel Island, you can stop at the Visitors and Information Center. We were happy to report that Sanibel Island is dog-friendly, with accommodations, restaurants and beaches open to well-behaved, leashed dogs. The Visitors Center will even provide you with a list of all the dog-friendly places upon request.

Despite so many dog-friendly things to do on the island, the holiday weekend made it a bit difficult to get near any of the restaurants or beaches. However, our goal was to visit the J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge and we did and it was worth it.

“How rich will we be when we have converted all our forests, our soil, our water resources, and our minerals into cash?”

-- Jay Norwood “Ding” Darling

The J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge was named for Jay Norwood Darling, a pioneer conservationist who blocked the sale of the land the refuge is now on to land developers back in 1945.  The Refuge consists of over 6,400 acres of mangrove forest, submerged seasgrass beds, cordgrass marshes and West Indian hardwood hammocks all of which protect over 245 species of migratory birds.

After a stop at the Education Center, we walked the Indigo Trail. The trail is made from crushed sea shells so we recommend booties for dogs with sensitive paws.  While walking on the trail, you may be lucky enough to come across a spot where an alligator crossed the trail. You can recognize it by the claw marks and squiggly lines made as its tail drags along the shells.  If you listen to the birds, you may be able to spot an alligator in the marsh since the birds call out warnings to each other. We spotted one and he was pretty big, though you cannot see him in our photo.

The Indigo Trail leads you to the Wildlife Education Boardwalk. The boardwalk passes over the marsh and leads to a two-story observation pavilion.

Along the way, you will notice sculptures of scat on the boardwalk railings.  It is a game to see if you can recognize the poop of different species of animals. Once you guess, lift the handle on the box and you will be able to read all about that species and their poop! Ma did way better than Daddy-dog at guessing “Who’s Poop?”.

After the trail walk, you can get back in your car or get on your bike and head out on the 4-mile Wildlife Drive.  There are two hiking trails accessible from the Drive (they have their own parking area) as well as plenty of spots to just pull over and observe the many species of waterbirds and shorebirds. During the winter months, you may even see some marsh rabbits, otters or bobcats.

Since it was a holiday weekend, the Wildlife Drive was packed with cars. We did get out and walk one of the two trails and we saw many different species of birds from the comforts of our car.  Though the winter months may be best for viewing some of the wildlife, we believe it would be better to visit outside of “season” so there are less people around.

If you decide to take a Florida West Coast adventure, we highly recommend a stop at dog-friendly Sanibel Island and the J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge.