Our sincerest thanks to Greg and Barbara Allard for sharing their experiences and beautiful photography from their cruises, this time from the Okeechobee Waterway. Enter “Allard” in our Homepage Search window for the Allard’s beautifully documented Bahamas cruises.

Here’s an update on the Okeechobee Waterway, with some local scenes.

On February 22 and 23, 2019, we crossed the Okeechobee from west to east. We had been closely watching the water depth reports from the Corp of Engineers, since there are plans to lower the lake level in the immediate future.

The reported depth for Navigation Route 1 (across the lake) was 6.79 feet, and the lake level was at 12.85. As expected, we found the lowest water along the eastern half of the Clewiston cut, in the channel which is east of the massive cylinder which sits just off the channel. With a calibrated depth finder, the shallowest water which we found along that stretch was 7.2 feet.

Years ago, an old timer who had lived along the Caloosahatchee River his entire life, said that he believed the Corp of Engineers understated the lake level by half a foot. Now, please don’t rely on this for navigational purposes, but the next time you cross, make your own observation. Also: the depths we report are only for the exact spot where we were; even a few feet to the left or right of those positions might be entirely different.

There is another shallow area at the entry/exit channel on the western side of the Port Mayaca lock. The lowest water where our boat traveled was 7.4 feet. The traditional advice when using that channel is to stay to the green side, and that is what we did. The Port Mayaca lock was in “pass through” mode – where the water level on either side of the lock is the same, so the lock gates remain open. You still need to call the lockmaster, who gives permission for individual boats to pass through the lock. That makes good sense, because there is not enough room for two boats to meet head-on in the lock chamber.

The lockmasters are now enforcing two new rules: all persons on board while in the lock chamber must be wearing a life jacket, and once you are tied up to the lock, you must turn your engine(s) off.

We saw no signs of green algae or red tide for our entire trip. It is reported that Tow BoatUS now has two boats stationed at Clewiston.

Crossing the State of Florida on the Okeechobee Waterway is a trip and a half; a true time warp. Locals fishing with bamboo poles on the riverbank. Alligators. The wonderful local bridge-operator at the Fort Denaud swing bridge who chats with you on your way through, as she stands isolated on the center pivot point of the bridge. There’s the adventure of the locks – and the $1.00 a foot dockage (power included) at the city dock in Moore Haven.

Every year we try to make a new stop. This time we decided to stay overnight at Calusa Jack’s Marina, approximately 2 miles west of the Franklin lock. The place always intrigued us. It could be a movie set for one of Randy Wayne White’s Doc Ford novels.

Calusa Jack’s Marina has a face dock and pilings in excellent condition, and the water at the dock is deep enough for the biggest boat. Sometimes before 5 PM there are some tolerable boat wakes, but after that we had a calm and peaceful sleep.

The views towards the river are beautiful.

There are a number of marinas along the waterway, and some of the older ones, like Calusa Jack’s, have their share of boats which years ago were someone’s dream, and will likely never be used again.

The people at Calusa Jack’s raise goats, and this billy goat was curious about the new visitors.

You never know what you will find along the Okeechobee. We walked along the road to the marina, and came upon this knight in rusting armor perched on a piling.

A day later, along a stretch of the St. Lucie River, we were again surprised – to say the least.

We came upon this magnificent wooden yacht, docked behind a private home. She was beautifully restored. At first we thought it was a Trumpy, but the lines were different from that iconic boat.

As we passed to her stern, our jaws dropped: the yacht is the Honey Fitz, one of the most famous historic yachts in the world. She was used by five presidents but made famous by John F. Kennedy. Why would this yacht be docked here? We don’t have an answer to that question, other than to say that nothing along the Okeechobee surprises us.

If you are interested in learning more about this yacht, this link has some interesting background:
https://gcaptain.com/photo-tour-of-jfks-presidential-yacht-honey-fitz/

The Okeechobee Waterway has its challenges, but it remains a fascinating adventure for cruisers.

Greg and Barbara Allard

Click here for Okeechobee Waterway Stuart to Fort Myers