Ft. Myers airport to Sanibel/Alternate Route?

We%26#39;re travelling to Sanibel on Sat. March 10. We had friends visit Sanibel in Feb. and said the traffic was terrible from the airport to Sanibel (and back) along the signed beaches route. They suggested an alternate route to miss the construction but I don%26#39;t remember what it was. Something about going straight on Daniels then turning later and coming back to the main road before the bridge. Any ideas or help is appreciated. Also I%26#39;m reading about the beach issue (red algae and tide). We%26#39;re staying at Sanibel Surfside (near the Holiday Inn). How%26#39;s the beach?

Ft. Myers airport to Sanibel/Alternate Route?

Just stay on Daniels till you hit McGregor and then turn left onto McGregor. It will meet with Summerlin shortly before the causeway. It isn%26#39;t that big a detour. There is construction around Gladiolus that they might be talking about as you cannot escape the causeway construction. Beach conditions vary day to day along that stretch.

Ft. Myers airport to Sanibel/Alternate Route?

Just got back from Sanibel. Traffic was an issue all around Ft. Myers. I advise patience %26amp; leaving early if you want to do anything. We made the mistake of leaving the islands once. We didn%26#39;t do it the rest of the trip....

The red tide wasn%26#39;t really an issue. The most I saw was around the beaches at Middle Gulf around Sunset South, Sanibel Siesta etc. It washed away the next day %26amp; wasn%26#39;t an issue. I saw a very small amount at Blind Pass one afternoon. It was gone the next day %26amp; didn%26#39;t return the whole time we were there. Shelling was exceptionally good at Blind Pass last weekend. Did not go to Bowman%26#39;s Beach at all this trip so can%26#39;t report on that. We flew over the entire beach Monday afternoon %26amp; the only algae I saw was just SouthWest of the Lighthouse. Like Tourmaline %26amp; MSB keep saying, it can disappear overnight %26amp; not come back for days. There was always clean beach somewhere. But the Traffic cannot be gotten away from. If the causeway isn%26#39;t open next year I won%26#39;t leave the island. We are perfectly content now to stay on the island. They say it is only like this from mid-Feb. until about the end of March. After that things get pretty normal. We may go back down this summer....