Sarasota Day Trips and Optional Overnight – May 19-20, 2025

Two days of day trip or overnight adventures featuring learning, socializing, a boat ride, a bike ride, and fun! Here is the overview.

• Monday, 5/19, Historic Spanish Point in Osprey docent led tour

• Overnight in Sarasota with dinner and conversation at Yoder’s Amish restaurant or a local Italian restaurant.

• Tuesday, 5/10, Sea Life Encounter Cruise and lunch at The Salty Dog and exploration of Mote Marine and Aquarium. And for the Outdoors Bike riders – a ride on the Legacy Trail.

Highlights:

• Historic Spanish Point (a Marie Selby property) is a time capsule of the early people and pioneers of this region stretching back 5,000 years. The site preserves 150-years of pioneer heritage with restored homes and buildings. In 1867, the Webb family from Utica, NY on the shores of Little Sarasota Bay and the history of this region is a fascinating glimpse into regional history and native nature. Bertha Palmer purchased 350 acres on Little Sarasota Bay that included the Webb homestead. She preserved the pioneer buildings, connecting them with formal gardens.

• The Sea Life Encounter Cruise fun and educational. Cruising around Sarasota Bay, we saw manatees, dolphin with a very small baby, and bird rookeries filled with nesting birds. The onboard biologist did a net capture and told us about the catch. Puffer fish and three seahorses were impressive, along with the other marine creatures. All are handled responsibly and returned to the sea.

•  On Tuesday morning, the bike group braved the Legacy Trail - a rail-trail, smooth and wide, with most road crossings “protected” with flashing warning lights or traffic signals. There are frequent trailheads with playgrounds, ball fields, shelters, bathrooms, parking, water and air stations, and covered benches along the way for rest stops.