Brief Summary first: this professional group and the location they toured with us provided a perfect evening, one that everyone should experience when they are in St Pete Beach!
The in-depth review: After very easy reservation through their online registration portal, we received excellent instructions on what was involved and where to go. We showed up, parked without problems, and then quickly got through signing waiver forms, receiving the plan and general/safety instructions, and were very quickly getting in our kayaks with help from guides so we could stay dry during entry. The lights were already on and we could easily see into the water around and beneath the kayaks, a very cool effect. Then, we were off!
The guides, talking to us through our phones so we could hear them no matter how far away we got, moved out into the beautiful Boca Ciega Bay, with mangrove forest island full of seabirds and water full of saltwater cat, barracuda, mullet and others. We moved at a smooth and steady pace slow enough to be relaxing instead of hard work. We saw underwater grasses, oyster beds, spider crabs, and even conch, and got to feed the catfish that have clearly become groupies for the Sharkeyās group after regular nightly treats.
My favorite part of this leisurely, roughly 2-hr excursion, was going under the Pinellas Bayway bridge, which is gorgeous and lit up amazingly underneath at night, while the water churned with hungry and happy catfish. Our guides were excellent, friendly, and relaxed, which lent to a very enjoyable time. And they are eco conscious, which helped us to feel like we were having fun without having to worry about negative environmental impact or damage.
Excited to know that this successful operation is doing so well they are expanding. They deserve it, and we will be back here when we return to the beach. Thanks, Sharkeyās