Night-time can be a peaceful or romantic time to kayak . Many parks and outfitters offer full-moon kayaking and canoe trips. Some encourage participants to bring a bottle of wine; others end the night with a campfire and s’mores.
A twist on full-moon kayaking is bioluminescent kayaking, where you paddle on the darkest nights (when there isn’t a full-moon) in order to see creatures that are like underwater lightning bugs. Here’s a Florida Rambler story on bioluminescent kayaking.
Full moons in 2022
- Monday, Jan. 17, 2022
- Wednesday, Feb. 16 2022
- Friday, March 18, 2022
- Saturday, April 16, 2022
- Monday, May 16, 2022
- Tuesday, June 14, 2022
- Wednesday, July 13, 2022
- Friday, Aug. 12 2022
- Saturday, Sept. 10, 2022
- Sunday, Oct. 9 2022
- Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022
- Thursday, Dec. 8,2022
Outfitters generally choose a Saturday night closest to the full moon for their night-time kayak trips.
Here is a sampling of places offering full-moon kayak trips. In addition to these, check for paddling outfitters and state parks near you.
Full-moon kayaking in South Florida
Oleta River State Park, North Miami, every month. Visiting this park, in the middle of the bustle of Miami, is like a mini-vacation.
Convenient to folks in Palm Beach and Broward counties, the outfitter at Snook Island Natural Area in Lake Worth now offers “Full Moon on the Lagoon” kayak outings.
In Southwest Florida, Kayak Marco Island offers moonlight kayak trips, including a full-moon party that ends at a local restaurant. In the Naples areas, there are full-moon tours from Adventures in Florida and in Fort Myers, from Gaea Guides.
Full-moon kayaking in Central Florida
On the Indian River Lagoon, an outfitter offers moonlight kayak tours regularly. In the summer, if you paddle on a truly dark night, you can experience bioluminescence — when creatures in the water glow like underwater lightning bugs. Here’s more about night-time paddling A Day Away Kayak Tours in Titusville.
Adventure Kayak of Cocoa Beach offers full-moon paddles on Merritt Island and Cocoa Beach.
Mote Marine Laboratory takes paddlers on Sarasota Bay.
Near Tampa, Canoe Outpost Little Manatee River, offers full moon paddles, including shuttle service for those who bring their own kayaks or canoes. (The Little Manatee is a beautiful and wild paddle.)
Full-moon kayaking in North Florida
Near Tallahassee, long-time outfitters T-N-T Hide-A-Way offers full-moon tours on the gorgeous Wakullah. It’s a leisurely one-way downstream paddle with a shuttle.
Note: Many other kayak and canoe outfitters all over the state offer full-moon kayaking, so check with your local outfitter or park. Most, but not all, require you to rent canoes or kayaks from them for the trips. Each outfitter is different, so call ahead. Most require advance registration and these trips do fill up during winter
Most full-moon kayaking activities take place on weekends closest to the full moons. Be sure to call ahead to make reservations.
And let us know about full-moon kayaking events that aren’t listed here so we can update our listings and share them with others.
More Florida kayaking resources:
Visit our kayak channel for more than 100 kayak destinations in Florida.
Six best towns for kayaking in Florida
Best kayaking in Florida: Our 15 favorite kayak spots
The author, Bonnie Gross, travels with her husband David Blasco, discovering off-the-beaten path places to hike, kayak, bike, swim and explore. Florida Rambler was founded in 2010 by Bonnie and fellow journalist Bob Rountree, two long-time Florida residents who have spent decades exploring the Florida outdoors. Their articles have been published in the Sun Sentinel, the Miami Herald, the Orlando Sentinel, The Guardian and Visit Florida.
dallen
Tuesday 2nd of April 2019
the camp bayou outdoor learning center does a few moonlight trips in the spring and fall. we do a loop paddle trip along the little manatee river in ruskin, florida. the next one is friday, april 12, 2019. you can find details at campbayou.org and on facebook.