Shell Key | Explore this Florida Island and Sheller's Paradise

[@Explorcation]

Hi everyone, thanks for exploring Shell Key with us! What do you think, would you enjoy some time on an island like Shell Key? Let us know 😊

[@chrisfields8077]

Great vid! As always guys. My girlfriend Jess and I have been paddle boarding all over the nature coast, and your vids have been helpful! If you guys ever want to do a paddle trip with some company, let us know! We actually did Weeki Wachi yesterday. We're in the Tampa area and are on the GeoSup app

[@Explorcation]

@@chrisfields8077 that's so great to hear, Chris. We're not familiar with the GeoSup app but will definitely look into it. We wish our paddleboarding adventures did better on UA-cam, or we'd be doing it every weekend. That said, we still try to make time for it now and then and would love to have some company sometime!

[@chrisfields8077]

@@Explorcation yeah give the GeoSup app a look. It seems neat. It's very popular in Europe and the UK but it's used here too. Definitely let us know! And we can let you know next time we go. Probably in a few weeks. I'm sure your paddle board vids will catch on, it's getting more and more popular. :)

[@Explorcation]

@@chrisfields8077 that sounds great, are you on IG? If so, send us a DM (@explor_cation). It is much easier connect and message in real time there. As you can probably tell it sometimes takes us a while to respond to comments here on YT - not ideal for planning a meet up!

[@candiseburgess6972]

Shell Key or Tiger Tail Beach?

[@JohnZipperer]

I definitely would! Thank you for sharing Shell Key!

[@Explorcation]

Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment, John!

[@kimberlyzickefoose3994]

oh my goodness what an amazing trip. you 2 go to the most amazing places. thank you for bringing us along

[@Explorcation]

Thanks for joining us, Kimberly! We're glad that you enjoy the channel!

[@sshrader97]

Yes, I would love to spend some time on Shell Key planning to visit it in May when in St. Pete. The shells look amazing, I love collecting shells.

[@Explorcation]

If you love collecting shells then you'll definitely enjoy a trip to Shell Key. Thank you so much for watching!

[@Ac-ly8tx]

You two are the best! Thank you for all
The great informarion

[@Explorcation]

Thanks so much for the kind and encouraging comment!

[@jadeheart911]

This looks like the perfect spot to photograph my jewelry I make! Silver, turquoise, etc...!!!

[@Explorcation]

Oooo yeah that would be a great spot!

[@LucasWorldTravel]

It's amazing to me that there are still some secluded and undeveloped beaches in Florida. Great find guys! We would definitely love to spend some time on this beach!

[@Explorcation]

Yeah, all the secluded ones are pretty much state or county parks... but we've been surprised to find that there are actually quite a few of them around! And if you have your own boat you can get to some even smaller, more secluded ones that the ferries don't go to!

[@Workout_muscle]

Thank you so much for sharing. Have a wonderful day and success for you 🤝🏻😊

[@Explorcation]

Thank you so much for the kind comment! We hope you have wonderful day as well.

[@LeBoof]

What a great place. Boof says she's added this too our bucket list now.

[@Explorcation]

We sure enjoyed it! But we want to go back on a summer day now as the captain said it's a completely different experience.

[@bennysworld16]

Wow perfect Island vacation place

[@Explorcation]

It really was a nice island to visit, especially if you are just looking for some good relaxation. Thanks for watching, Benny!

[@ScullyPop]

What a cool place to go. Shell Key rocks. Great feature video 🔥🎬

[@Explorcation]

Thanks, Scully. It was really peaceful and enjoyable even on a cold (at least for Florida standards) day!

[@BobCarlson]

All the really perfect conch shells I’ve ever found had a resident. My mom still proudly displays a really beat up ugly one we found when we first got to FL over 40 years ago. Wish I’d know about this beach. Better yet, those oysters. Yum.

[@Explorcation]

If I had a beat up ugly shell from my first visit too Florida, I'd probably still have it on display too 😂 We've found some really nice ones over the years, but have always had to go out in the water a ways to get them. Skylar is good at feeling for them and picking then up with his feet. Usually they have something living in them, but every once in a while they don't!

[@justyp]

Hey there! You guys should check out North Captiva, no bridges, no cars. Regular ferry service. Just north of Sanibel and regular Captiva…

[@Explorcation]

We would absolutely love to! We haven't done a whole lot of research on it yet, but from the little we have it really does sound like our type of place!.

[@ramunegaizutis1286]

Looks absolutely beautiful there....so peaceful. We definitely would check out shell key but maybe when it's a little (or a lot) warmer out! Haha! AAAANNNND the Phila Deli....drooling! 🤤

[@Explorcation]

Yeah, I think next we visit it will on more of a typical Florida day. But visiting on the coldest day of the year did have its benefits! And Phila Deli WAS legit. We would definitely recommend it if you're craving a cheesesteak! Thanks for watching, Ramune.

[@TravelInteresante]

Oh my that breakfast sandwich is looking so good! How lovely and colorful those shells are on the shore, never seen anything like that before! You two have the best suggestions for people who live in Florida or visiting down there. Thanks for all your hard work!

[@Explorcation]

First time we ever had a philly as a breakfast sandwich, but definitely won't be the last! Thanks for the kind comments, guys. Even though we don't always see the results we want in the analytics, it's nice to know that our videos are at least helping lots of people to enjoy their vacations.

[@vs123]

Wow Amazing my friend

[@Explorcation]

Thank you very much

[@genehinders9639]

Thanks for the Sand Dollar tip...I always see people leaving remarks about them and when its okay to keep them but it was never really explained how to tell.

[@Explorcation]

Ahh yeah it's pretty easy to tell if they are living or not once you know what to look for, but we definitely wouldn't have known when we first started visiting Florida either.

[@jimcwik7529]

We took a kayak trip to shell island, also super fun!

[@Explorcation]

I'm sure it was, Jim! We'll definitely take our paddleboards there one of these days, but wanted to show everyone the ferry experience as well. Thanks for watching!

[@genehinders9769]

The Mrs definitely wants to go out to Shell Key...thanks for the info!

[@Explorcation]

Our pleasure, Gene. I just hope that when you do visit you get a warmer day than we did!

[@genehinders9769]

@@Explorcation it's usually around zero to the 20's up here when we go down there, but yes I hope its a warmer day 😀

[@Explorcation]

@@genehinders9769 ooh that is too cold 🥶

[@BeingBedingfield]

This island is so cool! Those shells are beautiful, but love your shots of the ‘living’ shells!
Lol…trust Skylar to spot the tiki bar 😅 ooh..lobster bisque 🤤 we’ve never seen chargrilled oysters, looked so delicious!

[@Explorcation]

Yeah those living shells that opened and closed (some type of clam I think?) were really cool. We could have watched them all day! Skylar sure does still have his superhuman ability to spot tiki bars... too bad he couldn't tell if they were actually open or not 😅

[@OurTravelPlace]

So cool that you saw dolphins and pelicans! And that you pretty much had the place to yourselves. Those oysters actually looked really good, and I don't particularly like oysters! Love the cardigan btw Jamie 🙂

[@Explorcation]

Yeah, we see brown pelicans all the time on the beach but it's not too often we see the giant white pelicans, so that was pretty cool! We've been seeing more and more dolphins lately as well which we love! Jamie never really liked oysters too much until we moved to Florida. I think they are a bit of an acquired taste.

[@TheMapPinners]

Love long walks on the beach where you don't see many people - so peaceful. Glad you guys were able to catch your ferry right before it was about to leave! That would have been a long wait haha. I love all the shells that you found! That shell that the other person found on the boat was really cool - what a find.

[@Explorcation]

Yeah the captain of the ship said that someone only finds one of those huge conch shells every couple of months or so, so it was quite the find!

[@TideKnotTravellers]

Wow, I have never seen so many shells on a beach. You were super lucky with getting the boat back before it left.
Ahh we knew the Conch is the state shell 🐚 Key West is super proud of it!
It’s so strange to think of Florida being cold, still looks beautiful though and your dinner looked a great way to warm up 😋

[@Explorcation]

Yeah, it still seems weird that we consider 40 degrees in February cold now, as just 8 years ago that would have been a really nice day for February. We definitely don't deal with the cold as well any more, but we can sure take a lot of heat and humidity!

[@DavidandSarah]

We'd love to visit Florida some day and now this lovely island is also on our bucket list! That philly egg and cheese sandwich looked AMAZING btw!! Enjoy your travels guys. We look forward to more videos!

[@Explorcation]

We sure hope you two get a chance to visit some day. And yeah, that was our first time every trying a breakfast version of a philly, and it definitely did not disappoint!

[@rhondalyn100]

Those oysters looked amazing! Oh, and the island was gorgeous as well...:-)

[@Explorcation]

Oh they were, Rhondalyn. We were told by the waitress that oyster season is September through February, just in case you want to plan your Florida travels around it 😅

[@rhondalyn100]

@@Explorcation Y'all! I *always* plan my trips around food! :-)

[@Explorcation]

@@rhondalyn100 same here! Well food and beer I guess. 😄

[@ViolaVisuals]

This looks so fun! Skylar probably burned off all the sugar from the last video on that walk. Can’t believe you had the beach to yourselves. You could have done anything!!!

[@Explorcation]

We do try to work a lot of exercise into our videos to balance out all of the sugar intake 😆. And yeah, there definitely was an upside to visiting the island on one of the coldest days of the year! Thanks for watching, Grant.

[@iTip28]

Planning on checking this out on our next trip to Madeira Beach in Aug! Thanks for the review!

[@Explorcation]

That's awesome. August should be a great time to visit. If you do end up booking, tell the guys at Hubbard's that we say hi!

[@howwefindhappy]

We are staying pretty close to here next month, and I've had this on my list of places to visit. Hoping we get there. So pretty!

[@Explorcation]

We hope you guys make it there too, and hopefully have a little bit warmer weather than us!

[@ralphkeith2905]

Kayaked to Shell Key for the first time last weekend. I'll definitely be back. We launched from the "hole in the wall".

[@Explorcation]

We have been talking about taking our paddle boards out there. I will have to figure out where hole in the wall is 😆
How long did it take you to kayak?

[@ralphkeith2905]

@@Explorcation Shortly before you get the pay station to enter For DeSoto, start looking to your right. There's a large parking area on the right with a fairly large opening in the trees. We didn't take a direct route, if we did it might be a mile or so. Easy paddle.

[@Explorcation]

@@ralphkeith2905 thanks so much for the heads up, Ralph. That definitely sounds like a paddle that we can handle!

[@LoriF25403]

Planning on being there Nov. 2023 and hoping it's not too chilly

[@Explorcation]

Most likely it will be nice. It's normally pretty good weather that time of the year.

[@TheAverageTourist]

Good to know that there are no amenities out there - I would probably only last a few hours too before wanting to head back. The shells there looked so great and I love hunting for shells. Too bad the roof tip patio was closed. The weather looks pretty great to me, but we've been having -20 but even colder with windchill weather here. I think I would have wanted to get the char grilled oysters and I'm not even a huge oyster fan but those looked great.

[@Explorcation]

Yeah, we try not to complain about our "cold" weather too much, knowing that many of our more northern viewers would love to have 40 degree day right now! Jamie was not a huge oyster fan either, but we've had some really good ones lately, and I think I've converted her.

[@shawnaustin8957]

👍👍

[@Explorcation]

Thanks for the continued support, Shawn!

[@MangOeChannel]

It's really pleasure to watching your wonderful videos. Thank you so much for sharing. Have a blessing day 🙏☺️ liked + subs +🔔

[@Explorcation]

Thank you so much for your support. We really appreciate it.

[@LittleMew133]

You guys wear beanies in Florida? XD
Would be so cool to attach magnets to those shells to put on fridges.

[@Explorcation]

Every once in a while! We had nearly record low temperatures that day... I believe that morning actually started off in the upper 30's, but we still got up into the upper 50's by afternoon. Definitely a bit chilly though!

[@TobyBack-rf6qe]

Love watching you guys, I do have a question though, my wife and I were thinking about coming down in January, we were wondering if Shell Key is open and accessible since the hurricane. Thanks and keep up the awesome work!

[@Explorcation]

Yes, Shell Key is open and accessible and definitely worth visiting, although we do hope you get a little bit warmer weather than we did if you decide to visit! Thanks for watching.

[@TobyBack-rf6qe]

@@Explorcation❤️

[@donnahoff3096]

This is absolutely beautiful!!! But did you say no restroom? 😮

[@Explorcation]

It really is, Donna. But yes, no restroom on the island.

[@upploverabhi905]

👍👍👍👍

[@Explorcation]

Thanks for watching!

[@Editer38738]

Should have ate at Crabby Bills

[@Explorcation]

In our next St. Pete Beach video we may just do that!

[@docyoumomeries8613]

so the only way to get to shell key is by boat? very cool

[@Explorcation]

Yes, definitely no bridges to Shell Key, so boat or canoe/kayak only. It's really a fun way to spend a day!

[@AquariusTraveller]

I never knew the difference between a live shell and a dead one, thanks for that!
Was that a pelican that flew into your beach camp? It looked like one but a little darker than the ones we get over here ?
The beach went on forever and looked like a great day...but if people are going over there for hours, then should put some amenities there.
Finding more tiki bars though and a pity it was shut! I'm not a big fan on oysters but the variety you have looks amazing.... so many different flavours!
Shame you missed out on this trip because of rain, we are having some issues with that at the moment - flood waters raging, houses destroyed and road closed.....and yet the rain hasn't stopped. my street is blocked in by two sides, but I can still get out if needed. Suburbs are also being evacuated. Anyway...enough about me...
Great video Guys !

[@Explorcation]

Yeah, that was a brown pelican. We have a lot of them down here. We do have white pelicans as well which are much larger and for some reason do not seem to enjoy the beach like the brown ones do! I've always enjoyed oysters, but Jamie never really enjoyed them until recently. I'm glad that they are growing on her!
We're so sorry to hear about the flooding in your area. That sounds like a scary situation. We hope you and your loved ones stay safe and that the rains subside soon!

[@AquariusTraveller]

@@Explorcation I would definitely give those oysters a go 😁
Rain System is still moving south and affecting other areas now. Subsided from here but not over until the dam releases finish... more damage directly in the city now and along the major river running through Brisbane.

[@Explorcation]

@@AquariusTraveller wow that's so sad to hear. We don't hear anything about it on the news up here. Not surprising I guess with the war dominating the news, but I do wonder if it would make the news here otherwise. Sounds like a very serious situation.

[@AquariusTraveller]

@@Explorcation a very serious situation..gone from us but moved down south and still today flooding areas. The war is certainly taking up the news time right now...

[@jennylopez2753]

Can a person with a walker go on the ferry

[@Explorcation]

Hi Jenny, I am not sure. We did have to walk up and down a few stairs to get on and off of the ferry (they had moveable stairs to get on/off Shell Key). I didn't find any information about this on their website, but I did notice you can submit a question to them on their website and they will text an answer to you (hubbardsmarina.com) I hope that is helpful!

[@Editer38738]

You all need a drone

[@Explorcation]

We have one, but many of the spots around here it is not legal to fly them without getting special permission. We also cannot include the footage in our videos without getting a special license. I agree though that some good drone footage could have made this video better. Thanks for watching.

[@Editer38738]

Dolphins are all over there

[@Explorcation]

No doubt about that!

[@DannyPerry160]

Thanks for sharing. Looks interesting. However, $30/person ($60/couple) for a short round trip ferry ride sounds exorbitant to me. Am I missing something here?

[@Explorcation]

Hey Danny. Yeah, it is a bit pricey, but cheaper than owning or renting a boat to get the secluded island experience. We will likely paddle there the next time we visit, but wanted to show everyone the ferry experience. Thanks for watching.

[@DannyPerry160]

@@Explorcation Yeah, I hear you. I guess I'm going to have to get my paddling game on if I want to head out there. :)

[@Explorcation]

@@DannyPerry160 😆get some good exercise and save some money... can't beat that!