87. Jewfish Key Anchorage
Statute Mile 85
Lat/Lon: near 27 26.386 North/082 40.754 West
Location: will be found on the deep water behind (to the southwest of) the long, private island southwest of flashing daybeacon #41, known as Jewfish Key
Minimum Depth: 9-feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 55 feet
Foul Weather Shelter: very good
Rating: 
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Bradenton Beach Anchorage
Statute Mile: 87
Lat/Lon: 27 27.927 North/082 41.608 West
Location: tricky entrance channel leaves the Western Florida ICW just north of marker #49
Minimum Depth: 5 1/2 to 8 feet, BUT it’s easy to wander into grounding depth without very specific knowledge of the entrance channel
Special Comment: to enter this anchorage safely, cruisers must initially follow the marked Bradenton Beach Marina entrance cut, and then turn south in front of the historic Bradenton Beach Pier – easy to wander into grounding depths if you don’t have prior knowledge of this passage
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 50 feet
Foul Weather Shelter: Fair, wide open to fresh southern and southeasterly winds
Dinghy Dock Access: yes, found on northwesterly corner of anchorage – showers currently available; free city trolley can take cruisers to Publix supermarket and West Marine Express
Rating:
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88. DeSoto Point Anchorage
Lat/Lon: near 27 31.380 North/082 38.462 West
Location: found in the pocket of 6-foot waters just inside the shelter of DeSoto Point, south and east of flashing daybeacon #12
Minimum Depth: 6-feet, but caution is required to avoid 4-foot shallows
Swing Room: sufficient swinging room for vessels as large as 36 feet
Foul Weather Shelter: good, but open to eastern and northeasterly winds
Rating:
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This is an excellent anchorage and very popular with locals due to the nice beach and swimming area at the park. Weekends are crowded but it quiets down at night. DeSoto memorial park is worth visiting as well with a free museum and self guided walking tour. If the wind is blowing out of the northeast you could shoot across the way over to Emerson Point which is another great anchorage with another great park to visit. No provisions nearby but you could head up river to nearby bradenton or palmetto and grocery is nearby via a cab (Publix).
89. Snead Island Anchorage
Lat/Lon: near 27 31.826 North/082 37.974 West
Location: lies along the broad band of deep water northeast of unlighted daybeacon #11
Minimum Depth: 6-feet
Swing Room: unlimited
Foul Weather Shelter: fair, open to southern, southeastern and southwestern winds
Rating:
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It’s a great anchorage … we dropped the hook at 2 am and slept peacefully til the sun woke us at 9
thanks, we will try it for our first anchoring out adventure tonight around 11 pm, with a north westerly clocking to ENE wind by early morning. Our 29′ vessel only draws 3.5 feet. Still, anchoring, then watching to be sure it holds probably won’t be conducive to sleep. That may wait until t-docking at regatta pointe tomorrow night. S/V I imagine will report back sunday…
[…] went for a provisioning run, and then set off! David and I had done some research and scoped out an anchorage just down the Manatee River, off of Emerson Point Preserve and Snead Island. The anchorage was excellent; quiet, even for a holiday weekend, good holding, and protected from […]
Very large anchorage with good depth for large boats. We were able to come in here after dark in a 68′ cruiser.
90. McKay Point Anchorage
Lat/Lon: near 27 31.382 North/082 36.910 West
Location: lies north-northeast of flashing daybeacon #14
Minimum Depth: 5-9 feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 55 feet
Foul Weather Shelter: fair, open to southern, southeastern and southwestern winds
Rating:
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91. Hooker Point Anchorage
Lat/Lon: near 27 30.944 North/082 36.107 West
Location: lies northeast of flashing daybeacon #15
Minimum Depth: 6-feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 55 feet
Foul Weather Shelter: poor to fair, open to southern, southeastern and southwestern winds
Rating:
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92, Palmetto Waterfront Anchorage
Lat/Lon: near 27 30.549 North/082 34.416 West
Location: found northeast of unlighted daybeacon #20
Minimum Depth: 5-feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 36 feet
Foul Weather Shelter: fair, open to western and southwestern winds
Rating:
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93. Bradenton Waterfront Anchorage
Lat/Lon: near 27 30.056 North/082 34.476 West
Location: will be discovered south of unlighted daybeacon #22
Minimum Depth: 6-feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 40 feet
Foul Weather Shelter: good, but open to northern and northwestern winds
Rating:
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94. Egmont Key Anchorage
Lat/Lon: near 27 35.134 North/082 45.547 West
Location: found east of the Egmont Key location denoted as Pilot Lookout” on the current edition of chart 11411
Minimum Depth: 10-feet
Swing Room: unlimited
Foul Weather Shelter: poor, protected only from western, southwestern and northwestern winds
Rating:
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95. Bunces Pass Easterly Anchorage
Lat/Lon: near 27 38.834 North/082 43.149 West
Location: found on the waters just south of the Bunces Pass channel, immediately west of the fixed 19-foot bridge
Minimum Depth: 7-8 feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 38 feet
Foul Weather Shelter: good, except in strong western and southwestern winds
Rating:
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96. Bunces Pass Western Anchorage
Lat/Lon: near 27 38.703 North/082 44.184 West
Location: will be discovered on the waters just northwest of the charted offshoot in the southerly banks, between charted and unlighted daybeacons #4 and #2
Minimum Depth: 8-feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 40 feet
Foul Weather Shelter: good
Rating:
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97. Sunshine Skyway Anchorage
Lat/Lon: near 27 42.260 North/082 40.621 West
Location: lies in the lee of the northernmost section of the Sunshine Skyway causeway, north-northwest of unlighted daybeacon #13
Minimum Depth: 7-feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 55 feet
Foul Weather Shelter: fair to good, wide open to southern and southeastern winds
Rating:
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98. Little Bayou Southerly Anchorage
Lat/Lon: near 27 43.325 North/082 37.903 West
Location: will be discovered hard by unlighted daybeacon #17
Minimum Depth: 5-6 feet, but even a slight mistake to the west can land you in 3 feet of water
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 32 feet
Foul Weather Shelter: good
Rating:
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99. Little Bayou Northern Anchorage
Lat/Lon: near 27 43.455 North/082 37.952 West
Location: lies immediately southeast of unlighted daybeacon #21
Minimum Depth: 5 to 5 ½ feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 38 feet
Foul Weather Shelter: good
Rating:
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100. Big Bayou Anchorage
Lat/Lon: near 27 44.358 North/082 38.129 West
Location: lies about mid-way between unlighted daybeacons #14 and #16
Minimum Depth: 7-feet, but the bayou’s entrance channel can be very difficult for anyone without specific local knowledge
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 36 feet
Foul Weather Shelter: good
Rating:
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Big Bayou is suggested as an alternative anchoring spot to Vinoy Basin. However, I have looked for but not found definitive information regarding anchoring restrictions in Big Bayou. GIS map indicates Big Bayou is within the St. Petersburg City Limits so I presume ordinance 23H would apply. Does this mean anchoring here is prohibited for cruisers and if so, what are the prohibitions? I cruise year round and am considering St. Petersburg as a destination in 2014 primarily because it is rarely affected by hurricanes.
101. North Yacht Basin Anchorage
Lat/Lon: near 27 46.538 North/082 37.765 West
Location: found on the waters of the northernmost basin of the principal St. Petersburg waterfront, north of the charted “Municipal Pier
Special Note: This anchorage is, as of later 2011, early 2012, being converted to a mooring field, and all anchored vessels have been asked to leave. There is still a pay-for dinghy dock available in the harbor’s northwest corner
Minimum Depth: 9-feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 45 feet
Foul Weather Shelter: very good
Rating:
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This can be a very rough anchorage when the wind is out of the NE-E and blowing 15K or more. The incoming wavelets bounce off the surrounding concrete bulkheads and set up quite an irregular chop. Otherwise, a great anchorage close to lots of downtown activity and if you are lucky an outdoor concert or event.
102. Coffeepot Bayou Outer Anchorage
Lat/Lon: near 27 47.494 North/082 37.050 West
Location: found on the waters of the deep offshoot makes off to the north, just short of Coffeepot Bayou’s easterly entrance
Minimum Depth: 10-feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 38 feet
Foul Weather Shelter: very good except with strong southern winds in the offing
Rating:
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Comments from Cruisers (4)
Very nice anchorage – we spent 3 days here late February 2017. When we were here the water due SW of Jewfish Key was not as deep as depicted on the charts so head WNW immediately after clearing the southern tip of Jewfish. We enjoyed good Italian food at the Bayou Tavern, a short walk from the beach in the anchorage.
Near Longboat Key 27 degrees 26′ 12″N, 082 degrees 40′ 48.21″W. Of this two, I’d recommend this more than the other [Big McPherson Bayou] as there are restaurants, bars and a great beach for walking nearby. Good holding in sand with about 8′ at low tide. Watch for the tidal flow as it can get quirky with the change of tide.
Captain K
Subject: Longboat Key Anchorage
Message: My copy of your book is in the hoist out back, so I don’t know if you warn of the risk of anchor dragging in high wind conditions – even for us seasoned boaters. If not, please do. The villian is the shape of the bottom – sort of like a bowl.
Bill Cromer
Subject: #42 re: Jewfish Key anchorage
Message: This is one of our favorite anchorages. We were there for two nights October 14-15, 2008 and again for one night on 10/20. The wind was strong out
of the east and we were concerned that holding would be a problem, but we did not have a problem at all. There is a place to come ashore with a dinghy at a
public boat ramp next to the Mar-Vista Restaurant. Also, there is a trash receptable which is always a plus for cruisers. We had nice dinner at Mar-Vista. Moore’s Crab House appeared to be open but didn’t have an occasion to dine there on this trip. We were sad that the little grocery store nearby had closed. Local law enforcement was friendly and waved as they went by. A great anchorage! Steve and Regina Smith, M/V Island Time
Steve and Regina Smith
The best entrance to these anchorages is quite close to Jewfish Key. I did quite a bit of sounding (in the dinghy) and discovered that the best water is almost up to marker 40. I found the deep channel (16 to 18 feet) extends to within about 50 feet of the south side of the island. The southern half of the potential entrance space between marker 39 and marker 40 is shallow and should be avoided.
Best regards,
Gene and Sue Fuller
Punta Gorda, Florida
Claiborne,
First, let me say that I am a huge fan of your books. I discovered them quite by accident years ago when I found your North Carolina cruising guide on board a used boat we purchased. We utilized the guide on our first trip down the ICW to Florida in 1999. I found the guide so helpful that we stopped to purchase the books covering Georgia, South Carolina, and Florida. I’ve been hooked ever since and recently purchased the latest additions, visit your web site, and subscribe to your email updates.
This past week the Western Florida Guide was invaluable in finding a protected anchorage to wait out the big blow that passed through. We were headed to Progressive Marine in St. Petersburg for a haulout and bottom job (another tidbit we got from your guide). We got a late start from our home in Punta Gorda Isles and knew we’d have to lay over a day or two until the front passed and the winds subsided before crossing Tampa Bay. Your guide recommended the Jewfish Key anchorage at ICW mile 85. We anchored our 48′ trawler securely for two days with plenty of swinging room.
Thanks for all you do for the boating community. I look forward to seeing you at the Punta Gorda MTOA rendezvous in April.
Susan Parker