Venice Beach, Florida is the shark tooth capital of the Gulf coast
By Brian Miller
On the Gulf or Mexico a couple of hours or so south of Tampa Bay, is Venice Beach, Florida and it happens to be one of the best beaches to find shark teeth.
For those who like to hunt for shells, Venice gives you a little something else to look search for. Shark teeth are pretty abundant and it shouldn’t take you long to find one, two, or a dozen. In the winter months, crowd levels are down, and finding teeth are a lot easier.
We took our kids a few years back and still have a jar of the teeth sitting near our shell collection. I would warn you, the waters off the shore are home to sharks as all beaches along the coastal shores typically are. Is something to be worried about? Not really but being aware is enough.
The last time I was there I was in shoulder-deep water when a dorsal appeared above the water line and make a turn towards me. I didn’t wait around to find out if he or she was going to sample a mid-morning meal, I caught the next wave out.
There were plenty of swimmers in the water and I didn’t see any more fins during that day and I went back in but being at a beach with so many shark teeth and seeing a shark was a little surreal.
This entire area of western Florida is a great place to explore. Venice has an incredible Tex-Mex restaurant you won’t want to miss and the fact that it is in Venice is a little surprising.
To the south, Manasota Key is a lovely island with miles of shoreline and a state park that you can explore. Tortoises cross the pathways and dolphins feed off the shallow waters on the gulf side. They have come so close to shore that you can feel the water spray off their splashing tails.
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Shells dot the sandy beaches and make for a fun escape. We spent a week here a couple of years ago and I can say, no sharks were seen. Probably because of the dolphins in the area.
Regardless of what you are looking to do, the Gulf of Mexico on Florida’s western coast offers a lot for the family. Sun, beaches, shells, and shark teeth.