ahead you will find a large, two-story white
building called The White Elephant. It has
great dockage (but it fills up quickly on the
weekend), live music and a very large menu. It
also has outdoor seating and is pet friendly.
My wife Heidi loves the blackened mahimahi
sandwich and I enjoy the wings served
with a rum runner.
Taking off from this location, follow
Chadwick Point around to the back canal,
where we find SandBar Tiki & Grille. It has
outdoor seating, a full bar, excellent food and
lots of live music.
Lunch favorites include coconut shrimp,
lobster mac & cheese and honey sriracha
chicken. Happy hour starts at 11 a.m. Dock
space is at a premium, so be prepared to be
creative.
Let’s jump back onto the ICW and continue
south. Our next destination will be on our
portside, The Lighthouse Grill at Stump Pass.
This location has undergone a fantastic
renovation recently; there is a full-liquor bar,
fantastic food and live music. They also offer
outdoor seating at this pet-friendly location. Enjoy
a signature salad, dive into fresh grouper, or treat
yourself to a handcrafted Angus cheeseburger
with homemade potato chips. Order a tropical
cocktail or a cold beer while listening to live music
from one of our favorite local bands. When you’re
finished with your meal, head over to the garden
area and have a seat in the Adirondack chairs.
Contact the dock master as you pull in at the
fuel dock for docking assignments.
Continuing south on the ICW, to our starboard
you will find Rum Bay Restaurant. You can also
access it from Palm Island. Go north a little less
than under a half mile to marker 9A and turn west.
Be sure to stay inside the markers since it gets
really skinny outside the channel. Follow the
channel approximately a half mile from the ICW.
The channel has good water depths, about 5-to-7
feet.
Rum Bay Restaurant has a sign when you get to
the docks on your portside. The first lay-along
dock is for the water taxi only so don’t dock there.
The next docks that you come to are for Rum Bay
visitors. Be sure to pull into your slip bow first.
Anything larger than 32’ may be a little more tricky
July/August • 2020 • GASPARILLA MAGAZINE 71