REAL ISLAND LIVING: What's it Like to Live On a Real Island?

We get this question all the time and wanted to share a part of an article written by one of our own Useppa Island residents, Gretchen F. Coyle.  This article was originally publishing the July/August issue of Time of the Islands. 

What’s it like to live on a real island?  No!!  Not islands like Boca Grande and Sanibel where Robb and Stuckey and Home Depot trucks cruise down palm-lined roads, daily…
 

Real islands, with no bridges or causeways to them, attract an ingenious, independent sort of residents.  They are creative, making their own fun, and more than able to amuse themselves.  Artists and writers enjoy the tranquility; readers relax on a porch easy chair.  There is a Bridge Club, a Book Club, an Historical Society, our Croquet Club and Tennis.  Craft ideas are traded among island residents while others tinker in their well-equipped workshops.  Boats are a constant source of conversation and consternation, not to mention upkeep. And, someone is always up for a spontaneous sail.
 

 

Out islands in Lee and Charlotte counties – like Cabbage Key, Three Sisters, North Captiva, Cayo Costa, Little Gasparilla, Mondongo, Burgess, Palm Island and Useppa – are accessible only by boat, small planes, seaplane, or helicopter.  These are places where “schlepping” is commonplace.  In fact the only way to get anything to these islands is by boat.
 

It is said that everything brought to Useppa is “touched”, at least 14 times, from the stores’ shelves to our shelves.  Multiply the above by everything that goes into any island home and there you have what we on the island call “schlepping”.  And, Useppans don’t buy just one of anything.  If one box of Kleenex is needed, buy three.  The same goes for Mayo and other basic essentials.  Toilet paper and paper towels… how about a case at a time?  You see, you can’t run down to the corner convenience store every time you are out of something.  We keep an extra refrigerator and big freezer for our overflow, especially handy at holiday time when our home overflows with family.
 
Most island residents are meticulously organized with lists kept for everything from grocery store to Lowe’s.  Mainland excursions – dictated sometimes by necessity, others for cultural or social functions - are multi-faceted with a number of errands crowded into a short time.  Do we run out of things? Sure do.  Borrowing a teaspoon of cumin or two tablespoons of cream of tartar from a neighbor is a regular occurrence. It's all part of true island life and we wouldn't trade a thing for it!