Pine Island Florida, USA

It all started because I wanted to see where my favorite coffee is roasted. Really! My MiL and I packed up the kids and took a 40 minute drive to Bones Coffee in Cape Coral Florida. The manager wasn't in to give us a tour, but we took some pictures, got some coffee and swag, and had a few squees.

Then MiL decided to play Tour Guide, and I LOVE that. So off to Pine Island we went!

We crossed the beautiful Matlacha Pass Charlotte Harbor estuary, a tidal node connecting Charlotte Harbor and the Caloosahatchee River. The winding water is home to oyster bars, mangrove islands and seagrass flats. It contains the Matlacha Pass Aquatic Preserve, and ends at the Matlacha Aquatic National Wildlife Refuge. Unfortunately, it suffers from Red Tide. Tucked in between Pine Island and the mainland is a tiny island called Matlacha. 

Matlacha, Florida, population 537 (2019), reminds me very much of the tiny fishing town on the way to Apalachicola, called Carabelle. The colorful buildings are every beachy summer color. The linear main town is mainly tourist-enticing shops with summer dresses, beach gear, local art, and "gifts". The homes, both permanent and rental vacation bungalows, are brightly painted and adorned with ceramic and concrete statues, landlocked boats, and boat-tie-mounted mailboxes.  Even the fire station station is a set of pastel blocks with fish and sea motifs painted on it. 

Pronounced Matt-LaShay, in Seminole it means either "big warrior" or "junior warrior" - though others say it means "knee-deep water." (VisitFlorida) The road leading in and out is a built-up berm, like many other roads in wetlands. The town is only 0.69 sq mi, and only 0.20 of that is land. *The other 0.49 sq mi is water (Wiki). It's not even really its own town, but is part of the Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Florida Metropolitan area.  

We stopped into the "Post Office and Gifts" for a cancelation and some post cards. The postal worker said she thought the post office was about 700 sq ft, but if I wanted to see a really small post office I should head up to Pine Island Post Office, which she said might be the smallest in Florida. Of course, we would go. 

Pine Island, Florida, is really still part of the Cape Coral coastal area like Matlacha is. From Matlacha, you drive onto Pine Island and can either go left to St James and marina life or right to Bokeelia and find a little community. The center of the island is literally called Pine Island Center. We went south through Pine Island Flatwoods Preserve. Nearly 945 acres of mesic pine flatwoods, freshwater marshes, tidal swamp, hydric hammock and coastal grassland. 

At the end of the island is St James. We found the Gulf washing right up onto the road. It was oddly peaceful, though I wondered about the risk of the house next to it falling into the water...

And just past "Southermost Point Inn" we found "Drunkenmost Point", a painted bouy claiming to be "245 miles to Cuba".

He looks embarrassed of me, whaddya think? Never to really to start embarrassing your kids. 

About three-quarters up the island is the Pineland, FL Post Office. It really IS small. But the Postal Worker told me she thinks there's a smaller one in the Everglades. She thinks her station is about 800 sq ft.

She's right, by the way. "The smallest Post Office is located in Ochopee, FL (34141) and is 61.3 square feet. The building used to be a storage facility for irrigation pipes of an adjacent tomato farm (Wiki)."

The drive north takes you past Tarpon Lodge (where my parents in law honeymooned), the Randell Research Center (RRC), dedicated to learning and teaching the archaeology, history and ecology of Southwest Florida. There is a 1-mile interpretive walkway through mounds, canals, and other features of the Pineland archaeological site. It has been thoroughly photographed, in case you want to virtually hike it. 

 At the tip of Bokeelia we found Capn Rons Fish House, a residence turned restaurant, and a fishing pier. 

 

Our tour complete, we headed off the island, stopping on Matlacha for Ice Cream! No island trip is truly complete without ice cream. 

We had a lot more touring to do in Cape Coral, but all family history stuff. We saw the house MDH grew up in, and the house my MiL grew up in! Very cool. It was a wonderful day!