This is the practical downtown launch, a free city ramp on Seddon Channel at the north end of Davis Islands, across from the little seaplane basin. It has two wide lanes and a dock, it is open around the clock, and a board goes in fast, which is exactly why it is the one people reach for when they want quick water near the city. From here you are into Hillsborough Bay and the channel within a few strokes, the downtown skyline at your back. It is open, exposed water, so a windy day stacks up a chop in the channel and the bay, and you share the launch with powerboats, so keep to the edges on your way out. Two practical notes: there are no restrooms at the ramp, so plan ahead, and the Marjorie Park yacht basin nearby is a separate paid marina, not this free ramp. The Davis Islands dog beach is just down the road if you have a paddling dog along.
Where do I park, and is it free?
- Cost
- Free
- Parking
- Ample
- Restrooms
- no
- Dogs
- Leashed dogs welcome
Free city boat ramp on Seddon Channel with parking.
How clear is the water?
Open bay and channel water.
What will I see?
- Dolphins working Seddon Channel and the open bay, often near the basin
- Manatees move through the channel and the basin in the warmer months
- Herons and pelicans along the seawalls, snook and redfish on the structure, trout on the flats
What's the fishing like?
Hillsborough Bay and Seddon Channel: snook and redfish along the seawalls, trout on the flats, sheepshead on structure.
How do I share the water here?
This ramp was built with Tampa Bay Estuary Program funds, and the channel it opens onto is a working manatee route as much as a busy boat lane. Hold to the posted manatee and idle-speed zones, keep to the channel edges and off the shallow grass flats, and give any manatee that surfaces near the basin plenty of room instead of paddling over for a look.
See how it scores before you drive out.
Check Davis Islands Boat Ramp on the live map