Where to start:  For Florida vacation information, go to VisitFlorida, the state's helpful planner. For the Fort Myers area, including Sanibel and other nearby islands, go to FortMyersSanibel or call 1-800-237-6444.

The Great Calusa Blueway:  This nature trail on the water, in Southwest Florida, meanders among the islands and mangroves between the Imperial River of Bonita Springs in the south to the top of Pine and Caya Costa islands near Charlotte Harbor to the north. The area includes the popular Sanibel and Captiva islands, as well as Fort Myers Beach. Recently, Lee County has added a new leg to the trail up the Caloosahatchee River. The total waterway now is about 190 miles.

Using the Blueway: The water trail is user friendly. For planning a trip, click on GreatCalusaBlueway for trail maps that explain where you may start and stop, what you can see and do. The Website is user friendly, offering  ideas, outfitters, a tidal chart and current trail conditions. Free maps detail location markers, tidal flats for bird watchers, opportunities to get close to Atlantic bottlenose dolphins, historic sites and nature centers.

Guides: For people who want to go it alone, boat rentals are numerous. You can ask to get picked up at your resort by an outfitter and returned at the end of the day. Outfitters also offer guided trips to view sunrises and sunsets, bird rookeries, manatees and dolphins, shelling, archaeology and history. One to consider is GAEA Guides at GaeaGuides or call 1-866-256-6366. For a longer trip, consider Royal Palm Tours, RoyalPalmTours or 1-800-296-0249.

Kayaks: Roy Massey of Ace Performer delivered my Cobra Navigator kayak, which rents for $30 for a half day, $50 a day or $200 a week (or you could buy it fully equipped for about $1,000) Call Massey at 239-489-3513 or go to AcePerformer.

Kayaks come with either a seat that places you about a foot higher than the bottom, or, in a recreational kayak, at the bottom. For beginners, guide Trudi Edelman recommends a recreational kayak. The smaller the kayak the easier for getting into tighter places. Some people rent canoes. Edelman said she chooses kayaks, because "when you're in a canoe, you're sitting high. I don't like that feeling. I want to be close to the water."

The tides: Be aware of the tides, the great flows of seawater that raise and lower the depths twice a day. Consult a tidal chart before you plan an outing on the Gulf. At high tide, water at inlets to the mangroves is deeper. At low tide, the inlets may be dry or only a few inches deep. Paddling against a tide requires more energy than paddling with one. Tides are highly predictable, though they are affected by the weather.

Exploring by land: Nature centers along the Great Calusa Blueway can be reached by car. Directions are at GreatCalusaBlueway. One recommended stop for nature and history lovers is the new interpretive pathway at Pineland on Pine Island. Visitors can walk among shell mounds and remnants of an ancient canal. Signs with text and artwork tell the Calusa Indians story.

Cheeseburger in Paradise: If you want a cheeseburger at Cabbage Key, you will have to get out of your car and into a boat. Look for Mile Marker 60 on the Intercoastal Waterway.