Sunset Beach Scenic Boardwalk on Treasure Island, FL
The Sunset Beach Boardwalk at the south end of Treasure Island is a peaceful and picturesque walkway around the island's tip. It's official name is the Sunset Beach Scenic Boardwalk, and it lives up to it.
Located in Sunset Beach, a sleepy, well-maintained, and laid-back little community of mostly retirees, it is visited daily by the locals.
The Sunset Beach Scenic Boardwalk starts in the south end of the Tern Parking Lot, which is connected to the Treasure Island Pavilion (site of many beach weddings.)
It is a 6/10th's of a mile stroll from the Gulf side, across Blind Pass, and turns north along the Intercoastal Waterway.
The boardwalk circumnavigates a huge condo complex and ends pretty close to the intersection of 77the Avenue and Bay Shore Drive on the east side of the Treasure Island.
The Sunset Beach Boardwalk is quiet, picturesque, and well-cared for
To get to Sunset Beach, just head south along Gulf Blvd. on Treasure island. You will see a large sign directing you to bear right at the stop light by the convenience store.
When you see the Sunset Beach Pavilion (Treasure Island Pavilion...the names are interchangeable to the locals) on your right, keep going about another 200 meters. The entrance to Tern Parking Lot is at the far end. (Make sure you bring Quarters for the parking meters.)
The start of the Sunset Beach Scenic Boardwalk is easy to find once you are in the Tern Parking Lot.
There are some easy rules to follow if you want to walk along here...however, don't be surprised to see somebody walking a little dog.
There is a nice overlook with some benches a little past the entrance to the boardwalk. It is rarely used in the mornings, but if you plan to watch the sun set...on Sunset Beach...you'll need to get there a bit early.
There are five dune walkovers on the Gulf side of the Sunset Beach Boardwalk spaced evenly between the entrance and Blind Pass Jetty.
There is a beautiful condo complex that sits in the middle of the boardwalk's semi-circular path. It is well-cared for and the grounds make for a pleasant setting.
The far south end of the boardwalk overlooks Blind Pass. This is the connecting entrance between the Gulf of Mexico and the Intercoastal Waterway. Upham Beach, on St. Pete Beach is directly across the channel of the Pass.
There's a pathway leading away from the boardwalk down to the beach that butts up against Blind Pass Jetty. This is a great place for visitors to go shelling. Some large nice ones get washed up during the night.
Although Upham Beach is only a few hundred yards away and the channel is shallow, DO NOT try to swim across it. Not only is there strong currents, but large sharks run in and out there chasing fish to eat.
The east side of the Sunset Beach Boardwalk overlooks the Intercoastal Waterway, a series of interconnecting channels which run far to the north, past Clearwater Beach.
Looking across the channel, you can see two of St. Pete Beach's high-energy beach bars...The Sloppy Pelican and Philthy Phil's.
The northern-most restaurant is The Sloppy Pelican Saloon, a nice establishment for casual dining, that comes alive the closer it gets to sunset.
Philty Phil's Beach Bar is the bar and casual dining place diagonally across from The Sloppy Pelican. It can get very crowded on the upper deck. There are good times to be had at both places and folks move back-and-forth between them all night.
The final few hundred yards run past the Heron Parking Lot. You'll see signs saying "Use Boardwalk at Own Risk", that's because folks use this section to fish...many times when they have about 40 beers in them. You have to be real watchful of errant fish hooks being cast into the Intercoastal Waterway.
The Sunset Beach Boardwalk comes to an end just north of Heron Parking Lot.
The end comes out right near the intersection of 77th Avenue and Bay Shore Drive. It only takes a few more minutes to cut through the island to get back to Tern Parking Lot.
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