The half-mile boardwalk off Shell Island Road starts the 2026-27 season marked "closed for renovations until further notice." State bid records describe the work as a rebuild of the boardwalk route on 534 piles, with a low bid of nearly $3 million. While that work is pending, this season at Rookery Bay centers on the Snail Trail behind the Environmental Learning Center on Tower Road, two paddle launches, and a classic car show held off the reserve this Saturday.
Why the Shell Island Road Boardwalk Stays Closed
Pacter Boardwalk, also known as Briggs Boardwalk, is a half-mile, self-guided trail through five habitats, from scrub to brackish pond, with an observation deck along the way.
The plan to replace it is older than any recent storm season. Rookery Bay's 2022 management plan notes that the boardwalk once belonged to the Conservancy of Southwest Florida and that ownership had passed to the State of Florida. It then weighs patching against replacement:
"The existing boardwalk requires maintenance and repairs if it is to be kept. However, a better investment may be to rebuild the entire boardwalk with additional extensions or overlooks to improve environmental interpretation."
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection took on the Briggs Boardwalk project. It went out to bid twice:
- February 27, 2025: DEP advertises the Briggs Boardwalk project, which covers both the boardwalk and its parking lot.
- April 14, 2025: DEP rejects every bid from that round and says it will reissue.
- June 10, 2025: The reissued bid goes out. It covers labor, materials, equipment, supervision and permitting.
- July 15, 2025: Four bids are opened. The state's bid tabulation lists Kelly Brothers, Inc. of Fort Myers as the anticipated award at $2,967,408.
The bid numbers show the size of the job. The three lowest bids, from Kelly Brothers, Stokes Marine and Shoreline Foundation, came in within $49,342 of each other, all close to $3 million. The fourth came in at $6,390,390. DEP's signed construction plans call for a 2,556-foot boardwalk on 534 piles. That length is close to the half mile the reserve already describes. The plans keep some existing elements, including a wood deck and a walkway.
The Walking Moves Across Henderson Creek
With the boardwalk closed, the Environmental Learning Center at 300 Tower Road is the main way onto Rookery Bay's trails. The Snail Trail starts behind the center and crosses the Henderson Creek walking bridge. Trail guides are at the front desk. The center lists its two primitive trails, Catbird and Slash Pine, as currently closed.
Seasonal hours run Tuesday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., from October through June. The center is closed Sundays and Mondays. Admission is $10 for adults, $5 for ages 4 to 12, and free for children 3 and under. Friends of Rookery Bay members, members of reciprocal nature centers, and active or retired military with family get in free. Visitors using SNAP EBT pay $1 per person, for up to four people per card, through Museums for All. Inside are a 2,300-gallon mangrove aquarium and the Estuary Encounter touch tank, which holds more than a dozen marine species. The gallery currently shows "The Gulf," a mixed-media exhibition by Florida Gulf Coast University students that runs through January 28, 2027.
The center is also the starting point for the reserve's evening programs. Florida Weekly lists Moon Walk: Nights in Nature on November 24, December 23 and January 22. These full-moon walks with Rookery Bay biologists cost $25, require registration, and run only from October through May. The listing names the Snail Trail as one of the routes the walk uses.
Shell Island Road Still Opens at Dawn
The reserve lists Shell Island Road as open from dawn to dusk. Its kayak route launches from 10 Shell Island Road. The other Shell Island Road trail, Monument Point Trail, is also open. It starts at the boat ramp and ends at the Children's Monument on the bank of Henderson Creek. The monument honors the schoolchildren who helped raise early funds in the 1960s to buy the core lands around Rookery Bay. Anglers also use the trail to reach the creek.
The second launch is a short drive farther along Collier Boulevard. The Isles of Capri Paddlecraft Park, at 1295 Capri Blvd., is the only public facility in Collier County built just for canoes, kayaks and paddleboards. It has a ramp, picnic pavilions and restrooms, and it opens onto McIlvane Bay, a shallow bay lined with mangroves. Collier County Parks & Recreation runs the park under an agreement with the reserve, and launch fees are posted at the site.
For guided time on the water, the reserve's only boat tour partner is Rising Tide Explorers. Its small-boat tours carry no more than six passengers and include free Learning Center admission on the day of the trip. Farther out, designated primitive campsites south of San Marco Road reopened November 1 and stay open through March 31. They include Dickmans Island, Kice Island, Cape Romano and Camp Lulu. Sites are first-come, first-served, and none of them have facilities.
This Saturday's Car Show Is Off the Reserve
The 8th annual Rookery Bay Classic Car Show, presented by Carter Fence, takes place Saturday, November 14, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. It will be held at Florida SouthWestern State College, 7505 Grand Lely Drive. Past shows have brought out more than 100 antique, classic, muscle, exotic and high-performance cars. This year's lineup adds more than 20 vendors, entertainment, and activities for families and dogs. Proceeds support Friends of Rookery Bay.
Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for ages 4 to 12, with children 3 and under free. Cash and cards are both accepted. A car show ticket also gets you into the Environmental Learning Center the same day. The center keeps its usual 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. hours that Saturday, so you have two hours after the show closes to visit.
The Calendar From Now Through the Festival of Birds
The rest of the season's programs all start from Tower Road or the reserve's events page.
| Date | Event | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Tuesday, Nov. 17 | Festival of Birds tickets, member presale | Open to Friends of Rookery Bay members |
| Saturday, Nov. 21 | Essentials of Digital Photography Workshop | 12:30 p.m., registration required |
| Tuesday, Nov. 24 | Moon Walk: Nights in Nature | Evening walk, registration required |
| Tuesday, Dec. 1 | Festival of Birds tickets, public sale | Open to everyone |
| Thursday, Dec. 3 | Watercolors and Wildlife: Manatees | 9:30 a.m. |
| Saturday, Dec. 5 | Birding with Biologists, then Forest Bathing Wellness Walk | 8 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. |
| Saturday, Dec. 19 | Essentials of Digital Photography Workshop | 12:30 p.m. |
| Thursday, Jan. 7 | Members' Day Celebration | Annual member event |
| Jan. 14 to 18 | 23rd Festival of Birds | Field trips across the region |
| Every Saturday | Science Saturdays | 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., free with admission |
December 5 is the busiest day of the season. The two morning walks lead into the Holiday Hootenanny, which runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. It includes in-person sales of 20 to 50 percent off select Nature Store items, including prints and postcards by photographer Clyde Butcher. From 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., local children's author Susan Levine launches "Rookery Rescue: Giving Wild Birds a Second Chance." The book, illustrated by Irene Bofill, tells the true story of nesting wading birds helped by wildlife rehabilitators, according to Florida Weekly. Admission at the door is $10 for adults and $5 for children. Pre-registering online saves $1.
The season peaks at the Festival of Birds. The 23rd annual festival offers guided birding walks, car caravans, boat trips, kayaking and swamp-buggy trips to sites around the region, plus expert lectures. Members can buy tickets starting November 17, and public sales open December 1, both through Rookery Bay's events page. After the festival, the next date on the reserve's annual calendar is Bash for the Bay on February 25, 2027.
For Isles of Collier Preserve residents, we keep track of Rookery Bay's closures, events and trail access all season. If you'd like to talk through life near the reserve, or what a home near Tower Road and Shell Island Road means for your plans, Team Faby is glad to help. Schedule a consultation today.
