Dr. Beach (Stephen Leatherman) announced his annual list of Top 10 beaches today and local favorite Fort DeSoto was at #1 and Caladesi Island was #4.

posted on 25-May-2005 | Topics: Caladesi Island  Fort DeSoto  Gulf Coast Beaches  

Where would you expect to find an exotic 400-acre island, complete with a lighthouse, ghost town, and mysterious military fortifications, all guarded by a large resident population of tortoises? Some forgotten colonial outpost in the Carribbean, perhaps? No, lucky for you this island is Egmont Key and it's just a stones throw from Fort DeSoto at the mouth of Tampa Bay.

posted on 17-May-2005 | Topics: Egmont Key  Gulf Coast Beaches  

Fort Desoto is one of my favorite Tampa Bay area beaches, and considering it's on Dr. Beach's 2004 list at #2, I'm not the only one. Seeing as the water is "almost" warm enough to swim in, at least for people who are acclimated to Florida temperatures, it seemed like a good time to pay a visit to this park.

posted on 22-Apr-2005 | Topics: Fort DeSoto  Gulf Coast Beaches