It's Sea Turtle Nesting Season: Want to Witness the Miracle? For Their Safety and Ours, Go Guided

Photo by Mitchel Lensink

Every year from March 1 to October 31, endangered sea turtles return to Vero Beach to lay their eggs in the same sand where they were born decades ago. It's one of nature's most incredible spectacles, and people desperately want to witness it. But going alone could destroy the very thing you came to see.

Your flashlight, your presence, even your footsteps can cause a nesting mother to abandon laying her eggs and return to the ocean. And hatchlings, guided by moonlight for millions of years, become fatally disoriented by phone screens and artificial lights—crawling toward parking lots instead of the ocean.

This is just one reason why Coastal Connections exists. Their permitted turtle walks on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday evenings (June-July) let you witness nesting without becoming part of the problem. Small groups experience the magic through carefully managed tours that put turtle safety first. You'll witness a creature following instincts older than mountains, laying eggs in darkness as her ancestors have done for millions of years.

Photo Credit: Joe Rimkus Jr. | From coastal-connections.org

Indian River County was home to 20,830 nests in 2023 and 2024, making it a global hotspot for sea turtle nesting. By the end of June 2025, over 3,700 nests had already been incubated.

For learn more, get involved, or register for a turtle walk, click here.

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