Florida Island Colors

By Sue Hansen

February 2015

Along Florida’s southwest coast, islands extend in a long string like emeralds on a necklace. Almost 50 islands, many of them mostly covered by mangroves, are surrounded by the Gulf of Mexico’s crystal-clear, bluish-green water.

Matlacha (pronounced “Mat-la-shay”) Island and Pine Island, both located west of Cape Coral, have storied pasts and picturesque presents, and are tied to Florida’s fishing culture. But their similarities end there. One is quirky and colorful, the other quaint and charming.

You’re in the middle of the rainbow on Matlacha Island. It’s a magical, mile-long spectrum of hot pink, dark purple, sky blue, lime green, lemon yellow, and fluorescent orange. Add assorted polka dots, and you’ve got the most colorful community in Florida. Maybe even in the United States.

Crushed shells and sand form the foundation of Matlacha Island, which offers a mix of flamboyant art and local history. Home to fewer than 1,000 residents and a treasure trove for tourists, Matlacha Island is as distinctive as the coconut postcards sold at Lovegrove Gallery & Gardens.

“We have history with a sense of fun here,” said owner Leoma Lovegrove. She was the first artist to arrive on the island 19 years ago. “Our longtime fishing culture co-exists with the folksy charm I introduced in 1996.”

Matlacha, which means “knee-deep waters,” is one of the last of Florida’s historic fishing villages. A wooden swing bridge was built in 1927, connecting the island to the mainland. It lured soldiers from nearby Page Field during World War II, as well as anybody willing to drop a line and enjoy easy fishing. The bridge earned the nickname “The Fishingest Bridge In The World.” The area’s abundant mullet put Matlacha on the Florida map during the 1930s Depression, when hungry and enterprising folk built fishing shacks along the waterfront and sold their daily catch.

Eventually mullet were overfished, and the state banned the nets. The fishing shacks were abandoned, left empty until artist Leoma Lovegrove and her husband, Mike Silberg, moved here from Indiana. Leoma commented, “I wanted to live with palm trees around me, and when I saw Matlacha, I said, ‘I’m home.’ Besides, the beat-up fishing shacks were cheap and we could afford that.”

After buying their first shack, the couple purchased the one next door to prevent the property from becoming a parking lot. Leoma encouraged other artists to buy the remaining shacks — a total of 10 — and transform them into vibrant businesses. Though paradise has been painted in coats of many colors, the historic architecture of the shacks was preserved.

Tourism is now Matlacha’s main industry. For newcomers, it’s best to begin with a history lesson. True Tours leads visitors on a 60-minute walking tour that begins at Lovegrove’s place of business. Tours cost $10 plus tax (call 800-979-3370 for reservations) and begin at 9:00 a.m. on the second and fourth Saturday of each month. You likely will learn such trivia as the fact that the island first got electricity in 1941, and that it does not have schools or churches.

As you explore the restored fishing shacks in the historic district, you can sightsee and shop at the same time. The fishing shacks harbor items whimsical and wild, fancy and funky, patriotic and peculiar, from clothing and shoes to paintings, pottery, and furniture. Just browsing can brighten your day.

As Leoma says, “If you come to Matlacha feeling blue, just paint yourself a different color.” That’s the true masterpiece of Matlacha Island. Life here is leisurely. Just ask the locals, many of whom are retired, with Midwestern backgrounds. If you stay the day, chances are good of receiving friendly hellos and handshakes. “Living here is different than most Florida communities. It truly is where everyone knows your name,” Leoma said.

To get the most out of a visit to Matlacha Island, arrive early and leave late. You can stand on the east side of the island to watch the sun rise, and that same day walk across the road to the west side to see the sun set. And in between, meander around, sample seafood, and eat ice cream in a coconut shell. Or just sit in Lovegrove’s painted garden and wait for a manatee to swim by the deck.

A bridge still connects Matlacha to the mainland, though the wooden swing bridge was replaced with a concrete structure in 1968. And that bridge was redone in 2012. Fishing fanatics still line up along the railing to drop in a baited line.

Another bridge on the west side of the island leads to “old Florida.”

Pine Island, the largest of Florida’s Gulf Coast islands, is 18 miles long and 2 miles wide. Lifestyles are laid-back, and most residential architecture is the famed “cracker style,” known for large porches. The island is also known as the place where tarpon fishing originated in the late 1880s.

Fewer than 10,000 people live on the island year-round within four communities. At the southern tip, St. James City is home to much of the island’s population. Centrally located Pine Island Center is the only off-water community.

At the northern end of Pine Island is Bokeelia, home port for commercial fishermen and a spot from which the island’s mangoes, guava, lychees, and other tropical foods are shipped. Much of Pine Island is dedicated to agriculture, and when the mangoes come into season (June and mainly July), people flock to farmers markets.

Pineland, just south of Bokeelia, has one of the United States’ smallest post offices and the island’s only golf course, Alden Pines Country Club. At Pineland, ancient history is preserved, too.

Pine Island originally was called “Pineland” for its abundant pine trees. (The palm tree industry has since replaced most of the pines.) Native people first inhabited the Florida peninsula 12,000 years ago, and the Calusa Indians arrived approximately 2,000 years ago. This group was powerful and prosperous, eventually controlling much of southern Florida.

The Randell Research Center near Pineland sheds light on the Calusa Indian culture. The complex consists of a museum and the Calusa Heritage Trail, which offers easy walking around an area that was once a village. Descriptive markers along the way illustrate the Calusa Indian lifestyle.

Compared to other native peoples of that time period, the Calusa were tall in stature (5 feet 6 inches to 5 feet 10 inches). They had long, black hair; painted their bodies; wore beads; pierced their earlobes; and lived an average of 40 to 50 years. They built more than 60 villages along shorelines in southern Florida, where they fished, hunted, grew crops, and gathered wild plants.

The Calusa built higher ground out of crushed shells; basically, they formed mounds, called middens. The Randall Center’s tallest midden is 30 feet high. The higher ground provided safety from rising sea levels during hurricanes, access to cool sea breezes in summer, security from approaching danger, and a place for burials. It’s believed that the wealth and authority of the family determined a midden’s height.

Spanish conquistador Juan Ponce de Leon landed on the island in 1513. The Calusa fought his band of explorers and eventually became victims of disease, warfare, and slavery. By the early 1760s, the last Calusa left Florida. Today, middens can be seen on Pine Island, Big Mound Key, and Mound Key.

Also on Pine Island, the Museum of the Islands, in Pine Island Center, features displays focused on Calusa history, along with early pioneer and fishing heritages.

Like the Calusa, people today still go offshore to fish for tarpon, redfish, snook, and sea trout. Recreational boating, kayaking, and canoeing also are popular. Visitors can cruise the Gulf while dolphins surf in the boat’s wake. It’s also possible to kayak or canoe around the island along the Great Calusa Blueway Paddling Trail (a marked, 190-mile water trail off Florida’s west coast). It’s perfect for viewing wildlife, especially manatees and 300-plus bird species.

Nature lovers also will enjoy Pine Island Flatwoods Preserve, west of St. James City. It covers 920 acres of protected freshwater and mangrove swamps, pine forest, coastal grasslands, and mudflats. Open year-round from dawn to dusk, a mile-long loop trail presents opportunities to view wildlife.

West of Pine Island, 100-acre Cabbage Key can be reached only by boat. Named for the cabbage palm tree — Florida’s state tree and producer of those “hearts of palm” used in salads — this private island was the winter estate for the Rinehart family starting in the early 1930s. The island is now owned by Rob and Phyllis Wells, who also own historic Tarpon Lodge on Pine Island. The main lodge at Cabbage Key has the famous Dollar Bill Bar, where more than $70,000 worth of dollar bills signed by patrons are pinned to the walls and ceiling.

Sitting 38 feet above sea level, Cabbage Key has one of the last original water towers in the area. Though buffeted by hurricanes since its construction in the 1930s, the wood structure continues to stand tall (60 feet high), with 41 steps that ascend to a 6,000-gallon tank. The view is worth the climb. Scattered below are rental cottages tucked alongside lush native Florida flora and a sandy “Trail To Nowhere” path.

To get to Cabbage Key from Pine Island, arrange for a water taxi or other excursion through one of the services that dock in Pineland Marina.

Try the tropical oases that are Cabbage Key, Pine Island, and Matlacha, and you will realize that “old” Florida sure can be bright.

Greater Pine Island Chamber of Commerce

3640 Pine Island Road

Matlacha, FL 33993

(239) 283-0888

Matlacha Island has no camping facilities, but day parking is available in a small lot at the west end of town. Pine Island has the following two RV parks. Many more RV facilities can be found on the mainland. Check your favorite campground directory or the RV Marketplace, published online at FMCA.com and in the January and June issues of FMC, for more listings.

Fort Myers/Pine Island KOA

5120 Stringfellow Road

St. James City, FL 33956

(800) 562-8505 (reservations)

(239) 283-2415

Tropic Isle RV Park

15175 Stringfellow Road

Bokeelia, FL 33922

(877) 677-1568

(239) 283-4456