Florida / Choctawhatchee Bay /

Choctawhatchee Bay Carry-in Access

This is a public kayak and canoe launch on Choctawhatchee Bay near Destin, Florida.

Aerial view of Choctawhatchee Bay
Choctawhatchee Bay, the water this launch is on. Aerial view of Choctawhatchee Bay Photo: eutrophication&hypoxia · CC BY 2.0 · via Flickr

Status not reported No closure has been posted for this launch, but its agency does not publish open or closed status. Check with the managing agency before you tow.

At the launch

Type
Carry-in (canoe and kayak)
Tidal
Yes
Coordinates
30.39121, -86.52210

Directions (Google) Apple Maps

This launch has no official name in our sources; the name above describes where it is.

Channel depths in feet from the Army Corps' surveys (Mobile District; the one nearest this launch is of August 13, 2026). Not for navigation.

Conditions

Marine advisories

Advisories in effect load here; without them, see the NWS zone forecast below.

National Weather Service marine zone GMZ635, Western Choctawhatchee Bay. Zone forecast: winds, seas, warnings.

Tides

Predicted highs and lows at NOAA's East Pass (Destin) station, 0.6 mi from this launch, in local time above MLLW. Predictions, not observations: wind and weather move the real tide. Full predictions at NOAA.

Tide predictions, Mon Nov 2 to Sun Nov 8
Mon Nov 2 High 3:40 am 0.8 ft · Low 2:54 pm 0.1 ft
Tue Nov 3 High 4:52 am 0.7 ft · Low 3:12 pm 0.1 ft
Wed Nov 4 High 6:18 am 0.5 ft · Low 2:46 pm 0.2 ft · High 8:54 pm 0.5 ft
Thu Nov 5 Low 4:27 am 0.2 ft · High 8:11 am 0.4 ft · Low 11:31 am 0.3 ft · High 8:14 pm 0.6 ft
Fri Nov 6 Low 5:32 am 0.2 ft · High 8:19 pm 0.7 ft
Sat Nov 7 Low 6:27 am 0.1 ft · High 8:36 pm 0.7 ft
Sun Nov 8 Low 7:19 am 0.0 ft · High 9:01 pm 0.8 ft

Channel survey

The Army Corps surveys the channels it maintains and posts every survey.

  • Destin · 0.3 mi from this launch
    Condition survey of August 13, 2026 by the Mobile District. Least depth in the channel (Destin North Channel): 6.2 ft; project depth 12 ft. Survey sheet (PDF)

US Army Corps of Engineers hydrographic surveys, from eHydro. A survey shows the bottom on the day it was made; channels shoal after high water and change with dredging. Not for navigation.

On Choctawhatchee Bay

Choctawhatchee Bay is an estuary on the Emerald Coast of the Florida Panhandle, lying within Okaloosa and Walton counties. It runs east to west for about 27 miles, is 1 to 6 miles wide, covers about 129 square miles and ranges from 10 to 43 feet deep. Most of its fresh water comes from the Choctawhatchee River, whose watershed covers about 5,350 square miles of northwest Florida and southern Alabama. East Pass, just west of Destin, is the bay's only direct opening to the Gulf of Mexico. It is an artificial channel opened in 1929 where there had previously been an intermittent opening. The bay also connects to the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway on the east and to Santa Rosa Sound on the west. The Mid-Bay Bridge links Destin and Niceville, and the US 331 bridge links Freeport to the coast. More about Choctawhatchee Bay.

Boating rules on Choctawhatchee Bay

  • $25 daily launch fee at Joe's Bayou Boat Launch (free annual pass for residents of incorporated Destin) source

Community

Where people who use Choctawhatchee Bay talk about it.

Nearby launches

Sources

Why it is listed as public: listed by Florida DEP Circumnavigational Saltwater Paddling Trail kayak launches. Something wrong, or is this launch private? Send a correction; it goes to a person.