Little Lagoon beckons: a long, thin, mostly shallow expanse of water sparkling in the sun just west of Gulf Shores, walled off from Mobile Bay to the north by the bulk of the Fort Morgan peninsula and from the Gulf of Mexico to the south by the thin strip of land that supports West Beach Boulevard and a skyline of big beach houses and low condos.

This little put-in spot isn’t much, just a loop of gravel road that approaches a small sandy beach. There’s abundant evidence that it’s a kayak-friendly spot, from the vehicles parked nearby to the marks in the sand where the stubby keels of small boats were dragged into the water. You might even find a row of brightly colored plastic kayaks just sitting there, the property of some local outfitter, idle between rental trips. It all makes for plenty of assurance that you’re at liberty to put your own vessel in here. Even the name is inviting: The Jeff Friend Kayak Launch.

Welcome to the Coastal Alabama Back Bay Blueway. Little Lagoon is as good a place as any to start exploring.

Drag the boat in, settle into the seat, propel yourself a little way out. Poke down with a paddle every now and then, you might be surprised by how shallow it stays, how far out. When you’ve got a couple of hundred yards, turn 180 degrees and face north, back to where you started. To your left, the green expanse of Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge. To your right, development. It’s not the wall-to-wall concrete towers of central Orange Beach, but it still shows how houses and piers tend to pop up on any parcel not set aside for preservation.

Where next? Going west, you can skirt the shoreline of the refuge, which sweeps around the entire west end of the Lagoon. Paddling across to the south puts you in more developed territory, though there are spits of wild land here and there that let you feel like you’re doing some exploring. In the distance you may see groups picking their way along the shallows, or kayak anglers out in the open.

There are other launches to the east, on both sides of the lagoon, and from one of them you might paddle all the way to its west end, where you’ll be looking up at the backsides of Gulf Shores businesses. If you want, you could even cross under Ala. 59 and into a marshy zone leading to Gulf State Park and its Lake Shelby.

The Blueway isn’t necessarily a fully developed concept. There’s a limited version of a map on the Gulf Shores & Orange Beach Tourism website. To get the real thing, you have to stop by the Gulf Shores Welcome Center on the way into town and pick up a free copy. It gives you locations for 21 launches spread across four zones – Fort Morgan, Little Lagoon, Gulf State Park and Orange Beach/Wolf Bay.

So far, so good. But the launches aren’t all created equal. Some put you on the south shore of Mobile Bay, others on waters north of Orange Beach that contain the Intracoastal Waterway, and all of these expose you to the trifecta of wind, waves and tidal flow. Not all have ample parking (and it’s bad manners to park a trailer-less vehicle in a spot designed for one pulling a boat trailer). Some, particularly in Orange Beach, are better described as “places where you could, technically, launch a kayak” rather than “a kayak launch.” Even the official guide warns that at a few, you might have to portage your boat over rocks, or risk damage to marshes by launching.

All of which is to say: If a kayak is among the toys you’re hauling down to the coast for your vacation, the opportunities are plentiful. It just pays to scout them out a little before you plunge in.

You might also consider using a rental service or an outfitter. Gulf Shores & Orange Beach Tourism maintains an online guide to many local rental and paddle tour operations. Sift through them and you can find everything from simple rentals to guided tours to fishing guides.

Easton Colvin, who works for the tourism bureau and specializes in outdoor activities and watersports, is an avid kayak fisherman himself. He said kayaking is a growing draw for visitors partly because of the accessibility.

“Really, it’s about the ease of access and you’re setting your own schedule,” he said. “Like, you can rent a kayak for the week and if you don’t feel like doing it two days out of the week, you don’t have to do it. But also, we talk about all the water that we have, we’ve got 32 miles of beach right here going to the Florida line. But when you consider the fact that we’re an island and it’s not a normal-shaped island, it’s not just a strip, the amount of shoreline we have got back through here is insane.”

Not all of it is for beginners. In particular, anyone thinking about going offshore needs to be “mentally and physically prepared” for the effort it can take to handle waves, currents and tides. Some areas have significant boat traffic. But even those can be the gateway to quieter waters. The high-traffic area around the Perdido Pass in Orange Beach is a prime example, Colvin said.

“Coming out of that Boggy Point Launch [on Marina Road in Orange Beach], it’s just a quick little paddle across the channel right there and you’re at Robinson and Bird islands and you’re fishing that big old grass flat right there,” he said. “You can run through there and fish all those docks, all through the canal, all of that stuff.

He also enjoys fishing out at the west end of the Fort Morgan peninsula, where two boat ramps are listed on the Blueway map. Make that fishing, and nature-watching.

“I was out in Fort Morgan last year, last fall, and saw a bald eagle and an osprey fighting in the air. I’m on a kayak and I’m just trying to fish and I’m like, ‘Oh, there’s a bite … I missed it. Oh, there’s a bite … I missed it.’ Because I’m over here watching this fight.”

Chris Wiber of WildNative Tours said operations such as his can help people make the most of their visit. WildNative has operated for about 15 years, he said, and it offers a wide variety of guided experiences from the Mobile-Tensaw Delta to the coast. A popular option is a three-hour dolphin and wildlife kayak tour departing from the Oyster Bay Marina in Gulf Shores.

“I recommend guided tours,” he said. “People from out of town, first of all, are not going to be familiar with our flora and fauna.”

WildNative focuses on inshore tours, in part because “aside from fishing, there’s not really much to do offshore.” Guided tours also provide an element of safety, he said, and that could be important because on the coast, even sheltered waters may be subject to rough conditions. Despite being fully separate from the Gulf and the Bay, he said, Little Lagoon is open enough for winds to whip up some considerable wave action. “People can really struggle with it,” he said.

If you’re looking for “a really beginner-friendly trail,” Wiber suggested checking out the Graham Creek Nature Preserve, off Wolf Bay north of Gulf State Park.

But back to Little Lagoon. It’s accessible, it’s sheltered and it’s accessible via three public launches on the Back Bay Blueway map. It’s an appealing spot, said Gulf Shores city spokesman Grant Brown.

Brown, an avid kayaker himself, said he likes the waters around Oyster Bay and the Bon Secour River. “It’s just amazing backwaters,” he said.

But Little Lagoon is an inviting spot where “you’re unlikely to get into trouble,” he said. He suggested a trip starting at Mo’s Landing, a boat launch a bit east of the Jeff Friend Kayak Launch. It’s geared more toward powerboats, but it’s in a park and has full restroom facilities close at hand.

“On the south side, just south of Mo’s Landing, where West 10th Street goes north and south, there’s a peninsula that’s got a little point,” he said. “That’s actually city property. You can actually take your kayak from Mo’s Landing and paddle straight across [to the south], pull your kayak up on that little sandy point and walk to the beach at the West 10th Street beach access. So you can actually connect the Gulf of Mexico to the little lagoon via kayak and the crossing, which is pretty cool.”

Overall, Brown said, kayaking isn’t just another thing to do while you’re at the beach. It’s one that puts you closest to the elements of coastal life that residents treasure the most.

“I think it’s an awesome experience for people who really want to get off of the public beaches and just experience what it’s like to live in this coastal community,” he said.