On Saturday, April 13, the 41st Annual Bottle Boat Regatta brings wet and wild fun to the waters south of the Palma Sola Causeway from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The Bottle Boat Regatta is part of the Hernando de Soto Historical Society’s celebration of the area’s history.
The boats may be simple, or they may be fancy, but they share two things – buoyancy from empty plastic bottles and propulsion by oars.
Teams of kids and adults build them for a sponsor and they share the joy of victory or the agony of defeat trying to keep the rudderless watercraft from going off-course. Hernando de Soto will be there to give the teams his blessing and his court will be there to cheer them on.
It’s fun, it’s free and there will be food and liquid refreshments. Don’t forget to bring a beach chair.