Everglades City, accessed via the Indian Key – Barron River channel, south of Marco Island and Coon Key Pass, is a slice of OLD Florida. This is what the Sunshine State looked like as a boy when I was spending winters here in the 1950’s and early 60’s.
The only real place for cruising size craft to dock in Everglades City is the Rod and Gun Club. This historic structure features its own marina and on-site restaurant.
The channel leading from Indian Key to Everglades City gets rather shallow in places at low water. Captains piloting vessels drawing more than 4 feet or more may want to time their passage for mid to high tide.

We left Naples on Saturday the 26th, bypassed Marco Island and the Cape Romano Shoals, and then turned in through the Ten Thousand Islands to Everglades City and the famous Rod and Gun Club, where unbeknown to us a wedding was about to begin on the grounds. In fact, the father of the bride very graciously caught a line for us (since they don’t monitor VHF and didn’t answer the phone upon our approach). What a neat little town and a worthwhile stopover. We did hit bottom once (we draw 3.5 – 4 ft. depending on how much fuel and water is weighing us down) on our way back out the channel the next morning at low tide.
Sharon and Ken Vogel
Gold Loopers
M/V Docker’s Inn

Click Here To View the Western Florida Cruisers’ Net Marina Directory Listing For the Rod and Gun Club

Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of the Rod and Gun Club