Pine Island

Discover the Untamed Allure of Pine Island Sound: A 4-Day Fishing Odyssey

Posted on November 21, 2025
Dining, Fishing & Boating, Pine Island, Tarpon Lodge

We’re thrilled to share this captivating video from the team at Suns Out Fishing, who joined us for an epic four-day expedition through Florida’s most underrated inshore fishery.

Invited by Salt Water Sportsman Adventures, they traded city lights for rod-and-reel pursuits, docking right here at our waterfront to chase snook, redfish, and speckled trout amid mangroves and sun-drenched flats. From heart-pounding strikes at first light to sunset toasts on our veranda overlooking the Sound, their journey captures the raw, exhilarating spirit of Pine Island—proving once again why anglers from near and far return to our shores year after year.

Pour yourself a chilled glass of something crisp, settle in, and let their story transport you. Who knows? It might just inspire your own reel escape. Ready to hook into the legend? Give us a call at (239) 283-3999 or book your stay today—your slice of Old Florida awaits.

Tarpon Lodge attracts gamefish that serious anglers have on their bucket list

Posted on October 29, 2025
By Steve Waters, Miami Herald
Bokeelia, Fishing & Boating, Pine Island, Tarpon Lodge

Here at the northern end of Pine Island, it feels like you’re a world away from the vibrant streets and nightlife of nearby Fort Myers. Especially if you’re staying at the charming Tarpon Lodge, a legitimate Old Florida establishment that celebrates its 100th anniversary next year.

The lodge got its name from the bucket list gamefish that attracts anglers from around the world seeking to hook up with the silver king, the nickname given to the regal tarpon.

Overnighting in old Florida, at Pine Island’s Tarpon Lodge

Posted on January 4, 2023
By Susan Glaser, cleveland.com
Cabbage Key, Pine Island, Reviews, Tarpon Lodge

A sapphire blue pool reflects a serene sunset scene at Tarpon Loge.

The pool at sunset at Tarpon Lodge, an old-Florida retreat on Pine Island in Southwest Florida.

PINE ISLAND, Florida – There are no sandy beaches on this Florida island, no high-rise condo complexes, no fancy stores.

What you’ll find instead on Pine Island, just west of Fort Myers: a mostly rural atmosphere with exotic fruit farms and some of the best fishing in the state.

There’s also a unique old Florida place to spend the night, the Tarpon Lodge, with 22 overnight rooms and cottages, many with views of the Pine Island Sound.

A Return To Old Florida: 6 Fantastic Experiences On Pine Island

Posted on March 2, 2021
By Fred Mays, Travelawaits.com
Dining, Fishing & Boating, Local Attractions, Lodging, Nature & Wildlife, Pine Island

We all have those favorite vacation spots that keep bringing us back. It’s that feeling of peace and comfort that draws us again and again. That’s the way it is for me and Pine Island. I’ve been there four times and still want more.

There are any number of reasons to visit laid-back Pine Island off Florida’s Gulf Coast near Fort Myers. There is solitude and relaxation. Art galleries, fresh seafood, peace, and quiet are in abundance. There are no beaches, no hi-rise condos, not much traffic. But the biggest reason people come here is to fish!

Worth the Trip: Three Small-Town Getaways

Posted on August 5, 2020
By Marie Speed, Boca Magazine
Matlacha, Pine Island, Staycation, Tarpon Lodge

Shake off the buzzy East Coast and nuzzle up to some Old Florida charm

If travel isn’t front and center yet on people’s agendas, there is a solution. Try rediscovering your own backyard for a little easy, close-to-home getaway. These small-town destinations will take you just down the road—but into some other worlds entirely.

Matlacha

An artists studio in Matlacha. Photo: Don Johnson.

This impossibly bright little artist colony in Lee County between Pine Island and Little Pine Island off Cape Coral on the mainland is just short of three hours from Boca, but may as well be on another planet. Matlacha was once a fishing village, in the South Florida days people made a living fishing for mullet instead of selling real estate. When a 1992 ban on net fishing was enacted, those days were over. The mullet fishermen burned their boats, and the town reinvented itself as“a funky arts community that likes to fish,”according to one descrip- tion. This is a place to wander through the art galleries and little boutiques, maybe rent a paddle- board, stay overnight if you have a hankering. A popular choice is the modest and comfy Bridgewater Inn with its big porch, or go a few miles north on Pine Island to the Tarpon Lodge in Bokeelia, which is the top pick for both food and lodging. Other people like Sandy Hook Fish & Rib House, Bert’s, Blue Dog Bar & Grill—but there are plenty of places to get your fish on. This is tiny, laid-back and a great day trip.

This article excerpt is from the May/June 2020 issue of Boca magazine.

Secret Islands of Florida

Posted on May 13, 2020
By Tracey Minkin, Coastal Living
Pine Island, Tarpon Lodge

Plan your escape to these off-the-beaten-beach-path gems, from wild mangrove islets to salty stilt-house hideaways (coordinates included!)

26.5958° N, 82.1115° W

THE GOODS A half hour from Fort Myers and a world away with a dose of Old Florida charm including brightly colored cottages, fruit-tree nurseries, and seafood dives. BEST ESCAPE Long weekend (book a day of fishing) at Tarpon Lodge; tarponlodge.com.

This is an excerpt of an article by Tracey Minkin which originally appeared in Costal Living.

Sunsets, waterfront and Old Florida shine at Tarpon Lodge on Pine Island

Posted on March 10, 2019
By Artis Henderson, Special to The News-Press
Pine Island, Reviews, Tarpon Lodge, Tarpon Lodge Restaurant

Tarpon Lodge’s almost 100-year-old Pine Island setting still stuns with its Old Florida charms, and with a local, seasonal menu that’s always fresh.

The genteel setting of Pine Island’s Tarpon Lodge calls to mind scenes of old Florida — gin and tonics on the porch, fresh fish on the menu, elegantly dressed diners looking up from their plates to catch the last rays of sunset.

Which is exactly how co-owner Rob Wells wants visitors to feel.

7 unforgettable moments you’ll have fishing The Beaches of Fort Myers & Sanibel, Florida

Posted on June 29, 2018
By Tom Keer, Matador Network
Cabbage Key, Fishing & Boating, Fort Myers, Pine Island, Sanibel, Tarpon Lodge

Photo: The Beaches of Fort Myers & Sanibel

There are so many reasons to visit Florida’s lower Gulf Coast — all those beaches, the calm, warm water, the sailing, power boating, kayaking, diving, SUPing…. But hey, my linebacker legs don’t do well on SUPs. No, all those things are well and good, but I come here for one reason: to fish.

Checking In: Tarpon Lodge: A Taste of Old Florida & Life Along Pine Island Sound

Posted on June 6, 2018
By Lori and Angelo Sorrentino, TravlinMad.com
Cabbage Key, Pine Island, Tarpon Lodge Reviews

Driving onto Pine Island is like stepping back in time to Old Florida. There’s still just one way on and one way off this largest of Florida’s barrier islands, passing through the tiny fishing hamlet of Matlacha with its funky shops, galleries, and open air bars, then over a draw bridge – affectionately nicknamed “The World’s Fishingest Bridge”.

If you sail in on your yacht, you might never know you’re just a stone’s throw from the bustling coastal city of Ft. Myers, but the rest of us will navigate the bustling traffic over bridges, causeways, and through Cape Coral to get here. That’s OK, the better to appreciate the slower pace.

We were on our way to Tarpon Lodge, Pine Island, one of the last remaining Florida-style sportsmen lodges in this part of southwest Florida. And as we headed north on the island’s one main road, I had the feeling I’d been here before, with fleeting memories and treasured photographs of my grandfather on his annual fishing trips to Florida coming back to me. Pine Island is 18 miles long from Bokeelia at the north end to St. James City at the southern end, and just 2 miles wide, and is close to Sanibel and Captiva Islands as the crow flies. We drove miles of mango orchards and palm tree nurseries before arriving at Tarpon Lodge just after lunch.

We were guests of Tarpon Lodge during our stay, however as always, all opinions are ours alone based on first hand experience.

Inn-to-Inn: Around Pine Island, Florida

Posted on August 3, 2017
By Lisa Ballard, DIY Fishing / Photos by Jack & Lisa Ballard
Fishing, Kayaking, Pine Island, Tarpon Lodge

MY HUSBAND, JACK, desperately wanted to hook a big snook, which was the motivation behind our three-night DIY kayak-fishing trip around Pine Island, the largest landmass in the archipelago which includes southwest Florida’s seaside resorts of Sanibel and Captiva. There was only one problem, as far as we knew an inn-to-inn paddle-trip in that area had never been done before. It wasn’t exactly a heroic off-the-grid adventure. During the day we’d weave in and out of mangroves and across shallow bays, then come ashore at dinnertime, check in to a waterfront lodge, then paddle and fish again the next day.

“I think it’ll work,” Jack said, after researching some nautical charts and regional websites. “We’ll need to paddle about eight miles each day, which should leave us plenty of time to fish.”

Eight miles in the ocean? What if we got lost? What if the sun scorched our pale northern hides? But we might catch snook! A month later, we launched our boats at Tarpon Lodge on the west side of Pine Island.

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