OK, get off the couch, throw the kids in the car, fuel the boat, drive 2.5 hours (from Orlando area) and GO HERE!!! To me, this is the ultimate Florida boating weekend. A 45 minute boat ride (about half on-plane), swimming, beach, snorkeling with tropical fish (some in waste-deep water) and even touristy stuff. Throw a great (kinda) kid-friendly restaurant in there (with some adult-friendly sights) and you have a weekend you'll (and the kids) will remember forever. If crowds of boats don't bother you (or rather interest you), this is for you. Honestly, we've done this twice and neither time has it been as crowded as Disappearing Island at Ponce Inlet). But, I've been told it can get busy.

I'll scatter some pictures here, but they won't due it justice. Peanut Island in the West Palm Beach area is one of my FAVORITE places. There aren't many places you can snorkel in waste-deep water and see tropical fish of all different colors in their natural surroundings. It's like swimming in an aquarium. A MUST SEE for anyone with a boat. But even if you don't have one, you can get to the island on the daily ferries and hang out for the day (or shorter if you like).

Here's a few links, the GeoCities one is often down(too much traffic). The pictures are little daunting if you don't like crowds, but if it's not a holiday, it's not too ridiculous. Quite Fun actually.

Every weekend boater knows the fun of beach, water, other boats and fun, but there are sights on this island as well. It has 15 (I think) tent sights for the hardier partiers. Bathrooms and even some "different" things to break-up the day. They've built a cute lagoon with diving area (though the out side rocks are better). Bridges to walk over and view the parrot fish, as well as the famous JFK Bunker. It's not "really" open, but you could poke around and find people around it that might let you in to take the "tour". It's listed at $10 per person with 6 and under free. We had a worker approach us and ask if we'd like "the tour" (I'm sure a deal could have been worked out, didn't have my wallet, wanted to go back, but the kids were "dun" by the end of the day).

The following picture is tough to read, but follow the white, red-dotted line from Jupiter to Riviera Beach and you'll see the path we take. It's 12 miles (from Burt Reynolds Park to Peanut Island) and takes anywhere from 45-60 minutes. Along the way you'll see incredible homes, yachts and the occasional old , 1200 sq ft. rundown house with the half a million dollar yacht on the dock (I LOVE that guy...).

As the map shows, (follow the white line from Jupiter south) we drop in at Burt Reynolds Park in Jupiter (2.5 hour drive from Orlando with a boat in-tow). Great boat launch with ample parking, good security (the Fire Dept is right there) and 4 good-sized ramps. Details about this ramp could take a whole page, but the general idea is there are two separate ramps; one on the East side of US 1 (described in the above link), one on the west. We generally use the East ramp, since there is more parking. If you have a shorter boat (say under 5 feet), you can go under the small bridge in the link's picture (at high tide). Taller boat will have a 10 minute idle to go under the taller bridge (8 ft clearance at high tide). If you can't make those, go the west ramp, no such bridges there.

It's a little over 12 miles from Burt Reynolds to Peanut Island most of it is on plane, with a little idle speed for a few marinas and waterfront neighborhoods. It's a great ride, you'll encounter a few LARGE wakes (if you have a small boat), but they are manageable You'll see some rather large yachts (100' plus) on the way. It usually takes 45-60 minutes to cruise from Jupiter to Peanut Island on the waterway.

The Jupiter Waterfront Inn right on US 1. Pool, fishing pier (you can tie up to the pier) and reasonable rates. This is a fantastic, small hotel. It has a nice (my 11 yr-old daughter says "too shallow") pool and hot tub. It s VERY clean and just flat cool (looks very new though it's been there a while). The pier does not have "slips", but there were two other boats (24-30 ft) tied up over our last weekend. The deep half of the pier is plenty deep for the deepest V hull. It's situated so there are no heavy wakes/waves (sand bar half way out, but you can get around it when you leave) At low tide the pier is quite high, but it does have steps down to the water that will let you wade out to your boat if it's too far to step/jump down too. Be sure to leave enough slack for the tide when you tie up. It is about 3 mile north of Burt Reynolds Park ramp (15 miles to Peanut Island. They have a grassy area out front that you can leave boat-trailers (with or without boats on them). This past trip there were trailers for 30+ footers out there. Click the link below for address/phone #.

A great waterfront restaurant/bars is the Waterway Cafe:

The float-up restaurant is about half way between Burt Reynolds Park (in Jupiter and Peanut Island. It is just south of the PGA Blvd bridge (on the west side). It has some dock space (first come first serve), a floating bar and Tiki Hut. Here is their link, The Waterway Cafe

There are three other restaurants right around the same bridge: The River House is just north of PGA Blvd (west side also) and Season's 51 (east side) a bit fancier. They're not places I would consider to go after a day in the sun, but would be appropriate if you were just going out for a nice dinner. There is another restaurant just south of PGA, (Bahama Hatties, I think) across the river, somewhat more casual (like Waterway Cafe).