barrier island center

Went for a photo class which I really liked. This is a small but adequate museum about nature with some local history. Nice walking paths. Good for photography.

I enjoyed the displays, they were very informative. The information regarding the types of turtles and the tracking capability was interesting. Enjoyed the movies, they were helpful to fully understand the turtle importance.

Great learning place. Lot we did not know about the local turtles. Very informative.A quick one mile hike is available. And they only accept donations. No entrance fee.

Nice stop with interesting information. great displays, interactive. Beautiful boardwalks which take you from the building out to the beach. You can make this a quick stop if you're short on time, or spend a bit more time there.

This was a great stop for the day. Learnd a lot from all of the exhibits! And they even have a walking tour for june for turtle nesting!!!

I have been volunteering here since last summer and have not heard any negative feedback. It is a great place to learn about the local environment. I learn something new every time I am there. They have several movies that run all day long and special events several times a month. It is in a beautiful location with trails and is free to the public.

This is an interesting and well designed introduction to the variety of turtles who visit this stretch of shore to lay their eggs and continue the cycle. There are a few interactive displays, maps of turtle nesting areas worldwide, small aquaria and a 30-40 auditorium for movies about turtles and conservation in Florida. My brother lives in the area and we spent part of a rainy afternoon marveling at the life cycle of these amazing animals and the foresight of those who worked to preserve this stretch of coast. The staff and volunteers were very friendly and obviously enjoy what working here.

Great information about the local and national Sea Turtle population.Eggs layed April to July,,, baby turtles head for the ocean July-SeptFriendly staffand it's FREE

We walked the trails of the Barrier Island Sanctuary for the first time on Labor Day weekend.The Trails: According to the Sanctuary website, trails were open until 8 pm and the center closed at 5. We pulled in slightly after 5 to find that the parking lot was closed together with the Center. Then, we could not do the Barrier Island Center and also had to find someplace else to park. With a little dead reckoning (the two short trails on the beach side of A1A are not well marked), we found and walked all three trail legs just like on the maps. Bring mosquito repellent. See photo 1.The Dunes: The main trail comes out across the street from Bonsteel Park just south of the Sanctuary. We crossed to the Park and took the boardwalk shared with the Center. The boardwalk led us to stairs down to the beach. See photo 2. We found out that while the Center overlooks the beach, it has no beach access. Why not just walk from the Center to the beach? Because the Center and boardwalk are separated from the beach by a steep slope - maybe 10 foot difference in elevation? We saw some areas that were sharply vertical – an escarpment. Others had exposed roots from the vegetation above hanging like curtains where the sand had eroded onto the lower beach. As we walked along, we saw posted signs (Sanctuary signs?) prohibiting you from messing with the “dunes.” Well. By definition a “dune” is a sand hill or ridge formed by the wind. Now if I turned vandal, how would I deface or abuse a sand dune sculpted by the wind? Could it be that these steep slopes in sand are unstable?We continued north looking for another stair to bring us back to the top of the dunes and to our car. I spotted a stair ahead. Nearby was an ordinary older gentleman walking his little dog on the beach. He was barefoot, in white shorts and lemon yellow T shirt. As we started up the wooden stairs, I heard a voice: “Can I help you?” It was the guy. Apparently those stairs (unmarked) were to his private oceanfront house. Pardon me. We had a longer walk back to our car. I thought about this later. I checked out the value of these ocean front properties: hard to find anything in that neighborhood for less than a million. So. Could it be that I had come face to face with one of those individuals who own million dollar oceanfront homes and also have the ability to snooker their Sanctuary neighbors, the government and other taxpayers to protect their “dunes” for them from the forces of Nature? I cannot often talk a bartender into a free beer. How do they DO THAT??? Still their secret. Wow. For now, go have a nice walk on the Barrier Island Sanctuary trails and beach for yourself – and protect those dunes.

This was a great stop for the kids! It's interactive while educational about the coast, the wildlife and habitat. It's free, but they take donations. It's worth the drive, your kids will enjoy it and you might learn something yourself :)

This was a great, informative little center. Lots of hands on learning activities in the center. Great location, easy to find right on the A1A. We took a 1 mile hike that went from the center, down the boardwalk and looped across the street. It was so quiet back there. Saw tons of crabs (even a few larger blue crabs), lots of birds, fish, spiders and bugs. I would recommend using bug spray as we ended up swatting the mosquitos the whole time. It was a very cool experience and who doesn't love some free activities that the kids can enjoy too

Great building to learn about sea turtles that nest annually on the beach which is right outside the huge windows! Fun gift shop and don' t miss the short film all about the giant turtles. If you visit in the summer, you can sign up for an evening turtle walk on the beach with a volunteer who will take you to see a turtle laying her eggs( (without disturbing her).

This is small free museum that is well worth the stop. It is on A1A near Sebastian Inlet State Park and one of the hot spots for sea turtle nesting. You can learn about the species that nest in this area it in the museum and then in the March to October time frame go on their lovely deck and see the tracks of the nesting turtles from the night before. In the winter months we sometimes see endangered Right Whales pass by with their calves just off shore of the museum.

I only wish that this center were larger! The short films were very interesting and informative. And, we enjoyed the 1/2 mile walk through the refuge. In a beautiful spot overlooking the dunes and the Atlantic. It would be great to return to see the turtles hatch and find their way to the ocean!

Beautiful center overlooking the dunes and Atlantic Ocean....a must see if you want to learn about the ecology of the Barrier Island...great for kids, great for adults, everyone really! Admission is FREE...displays, exhibits, films, and lots of scheduled events. Beach and rivers walking trails are available for all ages!