The Round The Island Race, an annual 100-mile race for multihull sailboats that circumnavigates Santa Rosa Island, running half of its course through the sound.
During strong hurricanes, storm surge elevates the Gulf of Mexico above the barrier islands to the south and increases the water level of the sound. Hurricane Opal and Hurricane Ivan caused extensive damage to waterfront structures on both sides of Santa Rosa Sound.
Three bridges carry pedestrian and automobile traffic to the barrier islands on the south side of the sound. The first two bridges have the lowest clearance of any span over the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. For this reason, many sailboats with masts taller than 50 feet must "go outside" and bypass the protected sound using the unprotected waters of the Gulf of Mexico.citation needed
The bridges crossing Santa Rosa Sound, including the names of communities on both sides of the bridge (mainland side, followed by island side) and center span clearances above mean sea level, are:
