1/29 Update on the Sunken Vessel in Gulfport Mooring Field, Boca Ciega Bay, near GICW Statute Mile 115
Skipper Burnham has sent a photo of the white buoy marking the sunken vessel and the green trawler moored nearby in the hopes of helping visitors to Gulfport mooring field avoid the hazard. See /?p=145996.
As you can see from the photo, the white buoy (with the cormorant atop) marking the sunken vessel is VERY small and could, as Skipper Burnham has been warning, easily be missed, even in daylight hours!
Larry,
I sailed out to the sunken power boat today and took a picture of the light green steel hulled trawler and the small white buoy that marks the hazard.
Today the wind was blowing from the west and I was surprised to see the sunken hulk was north of the white buoy or just to the right of the buoy in the photo.
The buoy had been on the east end of the wreck and today it is sitting on the south side of it.
The light green trawler is seldom off its mooring so it probably makes a better hazard marker than the tiny white buoy until this starts showing up on the chart plotter updates.
Attached is a photo of the buoy and the trawler…
David Burnham
Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of Gulfport Anchorage/Mooring Field
Comments from Cruisers (2)
As of early this morning (1/29/2015), the green steel trawler is not moored out by the casino. It was moved up against the sea wall in front of the Coast Guard Auxiliary heading into the GP Marina. Make sure to use prior information regarding the location of the sunken boat that was near this vessel.
Larry, I sailed over to check on the sunken powerboat today and couldn’t see the small white marker buoy because a large brown pelican was using it as a perch, so it was barely visible above the water until the bird took flight. The light green trawler has moved north, closer to shore, and is no longer moored near the wreck making this even more of a hazard as the 3 foot keel on my sailboat had no problem lying against the wreckage until the breeze blew me off of it.