Everglades Kayaking Weekend Map +
3-Day Chickee Camping Route
3-day Everglades kayaking weekend from Everglades City. A ~26-mile out-and-back on the Wilderness Waterway, camping two nights over the water on the Sunday Bay and Sweetwater Bay chickees, threading mangrove tunnels and open bays deep in the western Everglades backcountry.
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Build your own Everglades paddle, drag, reorder & map it.
Drag stops between days, swap chickees, and add your own launches and camps with the place search. The live map and paddling legs recalculate as you go, so you can tune the Wilderness Waterway route to your pace, the tides, and the wind before you launch from Everglades City.
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Two nights on the water, deep in the mangroves, from Everglades City.
For a 3-day kayaking weekend in Everglades National Park, base your logistics out of Everglades City and the Gulf Coast Visitor Center. This ~26-mile out-and-back on the Wilderness Waterway camps two nights on raised chickee platforms, Sunday Bay Chickee and Sweetwater Bay Chickee, without ever committing to the full 99-mile through-paddle to Flamingo.
Day one crosses Chokoloskee Bay and works south through marked channels and mangrove islands to Sunday Bay. Day two is a shorter, twistier paddle through winding mangrove tunnels to Sweetwater Bay, with time to explore and watch for manatees, roseate spoonbills, and ospreys. Day three retraces the route back to the Gulf Coast Visitor Center.
A wilderness permit is required for every overnight, now reserved online through Recreation.gov (opening 90 days out) or in person within 24 hours of launch. The dry season, November through April, brings cooler temperatures, lower humidity, and far fewer mosquitoes; December through March is the sweet spot.
Chickee sites are limited (10x12 ft, max 6 people per platform) and Sunday Bay and Sweetwater book up fast in peak season. Reserve your wilderness permit on Recreation.gov as soon as your date opens (90 days out, daily at 10 a.m. ET), or grab a walk-up permit in person within 24 hours at the Gulf Coast Visitor Center. Kayak and canoe rentals in Everglades City should be reserved ahead in winter too.
Everglades City to Sunday Bay Chickee · ~9 miles
Arrive at the Gulf Coast Visitor Center in Everglades City, pick up your wilderness permit, and launch into Chokoloskee Bay. The opening stretch is exposed, so watch the wind and tide, then follow the marked channels and mangrove islands south toward the Wilderness Waterway.
Paddle roughly 9 miles to Sunday Bay Chickee, a raised platform over open water. Set up your tent or bug net, secure all food and water, and settle in for sunset. There is no potable water anywhere out here, so everything you drink over the weekend has to come in with you.
- Everglades City · ~1.5 hr from RSW airport · parking on site
- Reserve on Recreation.gov or walk up within 24 hrs
- Paddle Chokoloskee Bay to Sunday Bay Chickee~9 mi · 4–6 hrs · open bay + marked mangrove channels
- Overnight on Sunday Bay ChickeeRaised platform over water · bring all water · pack out trash
- Carry at least a gallon of water per person per day; the entire Wilderness Waterway is brackish and there is no drinkable water in the backcountry.
- Check the tide chart before you launch. Timing Chokoloskee Bay and the channels with the tide makes the exposed opening miles far easier.
- Carry NOAA Chart 11430 plus a GPS. Channels are marked but the mangrove islands all look alike and it is easy to lose the line.
Chokoloskee BaySunday Bay ChickeeMangrove Tunnels to Sweetwater Bay Chickee · ~5 miles
Roseate spoonbillSweetwater ChickeeToday is shorter but twistier. From Sunday Bay you thread the winding mangrove tunnels of the Wilderness Waterway toward Sweetwater Bay Chickee, roughly 5 miles of precise steering through canopy-shaded corridors of dense roots. It is the most immersive paddling of the trip.
With a short paddling day you have time to explore side creeks and watch for manatees in the channels and roseate spoonbills, ospreys, and wading birds along the edges. Sweetwater Bay Chickee is a quiet, open-water platform, excellent for a stargazing night far from any land.
- Sunday Bay to Sweetwater via mangrove tunnels~5 mi · 3–4 hrs · tight, winding, canopy-shaded channels
- Watch for manatees & wading birdsRoseate spoonbills, ospreys, and pelicans at dawn and dusk
- Overnight on Sweetwater Bay ChickeeOpen-water platform · WAG bags if no toilet · great stargazing
- Full 99-mi route if you want to push deeper another trip
- Slow down in the mangrove tunnels. They are disorienting without a map or GPS, and a wrong turn into a dead-end creek costs real time and energy.
- The farther a chickee sits from land, the fewer mosquitoes and no-see-ums you deal with at night. Sweetwater's open-water setting helps after dark.
- Keep a respectful distance from manatees and never feed or approach wildlife. Secure all food from raccoons, which raid platforms at night.
Paddle Back to Everglades City · ~13 miles
Break camp early and retrace the route north, back through the channels and across Chokoloskee Bay to the Gulf Coast Visitor Center. This is the longest leg, roughly 13 miles, so start at first light to beat the afternoon wind that funnels across the open bay.
Land at the marina, return any rental gear, and reset at the visitor center. From here it is an easy drive back to Everglades City or Naples, or a short detour to a stone-crab lunch in town to celebrate two nights out on the water.
- Sweetwater back to Gulf Coast Visitor Center~13 mi · 6–7 hrs · start early to beat afternoon wind
- Land, return rentals & explore Everglades CityMarina services · stone-crab lunch in town in season
- Launch at first light on the last day. Wind builds through the afternoon and the open crossing of Chokoloskee Bay is far harder into a headwind.
- Ride the outgoing-to-incoming tide window if you can, so you are not fighting current on the exposed final miles back to the marina.
- Leave a float plan with the visitor center and a contact at home, and carry a whistle and a charged phone or PLB in a dry bag for the open water.
Chokoloskee BayBack at the marinaNow build your Everglades trip.
You've seen all three days. Open the free drag-and-drop planner and tune it for your dates, your paddling pace, and which chickees you can lock in on your Recreation.gov permit.
Essential wilderness rules & planning.
Wilderness permit is required
Every overnight in the Everglades backcountry needs a wilderness permit, including chickee platforms. Reserve online at Recreation.gov (opening 90 days out, daily at 10 a.m. ET) or get a walk-up permit in person within 24 hours at the Gulf Coast or Flamingo visitor centers. A permit fee plus a small per-person, per-night charge applies; confirm current rates on Recreation.gov.
Chickee camping rules
Chickees are 10x12 ft raised platforms holding a maximum of 6 people or one group. Bring a freestanding tent or a bug net, since you cannot stake into the deck. Some chickees have a composting toilet or porta-potty; where there is none, a WAG bag system is required. Open fires are prohibited, so cook on a camp stove.
Navigation & tides
Carry NOAA Chart 11430, a compass, and a GPS. Channels are marked but the mangrove islands are near-identical and easy to confuse. Plan your crossings of Chokoloskee Bay around the tide and the wind, and start early each day before afternoon winds build across the open water.
Go in the dry season
The dry season, November through April, brings cooler temperatures (60s-70s degrees F), lower humidity, and far fewer mosquitoes. December through March is ideal. Wet season (May-October) is hot, extremely buggy, and prone to afternoon thunderstorms and tropical storms; it is not recommended for multi-day backcountry paddling.
Carry all your water
There is no potable water anywhere in the Everglades backcountry; every channel is brackish. Carry at least a gallon per person per day, or pack a filter or purifier capable of treating brackish water plus a way to make it palatable. Pack out everything, including trash and human waste where no toilet exists.
Getting there needs a car
Everglades City is about 1.5 hours from RSW (Southwest Florida International) and roughly an hour from Naples. The Gulf Coast Visitor Center and marina are the launch point. Kayak and canoe rentals are available in Everglades City; reserve ahead in peak winter season. No public transit reaches the trailhead, so a car is required.
Everything you'll actually want to know.
Ready to go? Get your
Everglades kayaking weekend route.
Launch logistics from Everglades City, the wilderness-permit and chickee rules, tide and navigation tips for Chokoloskee Bay, drive times from RSW and Naples, and the daily distances you need to camp two nights on the Wilderness Waterway.
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