If you are interested in how charts are made, i.e hydrography, then this new NOAA electronic publication is for you. A handsome fifty-six page collection of historical and scientific articles is available free in both EPUB format and pdf format, see
http://www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/staff/news/2014/docs/135572_NOAA_Hydro-epubP7.pdf
For our cruising friends who are divers, this new database will greatly assist in choosing dive locations. For the full report, see http://www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/hsd/wrecks_and_obstructions.html
The Office of Coast Survey’s Wrecks and Obstructions database contains information on the identified submerged wrecks and obstructions within the U.S. maritime boundaries. The data includes the position of each feature (latitude and longitude) along with a brief description. Information to populate the database comes from what is currently available on the electronic navigational chart (ENC) and Coast Survey’s Automated Wrecks and Obstructions Information System (AWOIS) database.
According to a National Parks spokesperson, the National Park Service Docks in Ocracoke, which had closed in anticipation of Hurricane Arthur, see /?p=143288, have re-opened for business after having suffered only minimal damage from the storm. The spokesperson confirmed, too, that most businesses in Ocracoke are open as well. Certainly good news for summer visitors to this beautiful village on the Outer Banks.
According to an article by Taylor Griffith in South Strand News, owners of abandoned vessels in the anchorage between the waterfront docks and Goat Island were notified June 30th to remove these boats. Unclaimed vessels will be forfeited to the city and sold at auction. Plans for an official mooring field in the popular anchorage have been in place since 2013, but installation has not begun. Development of Goat Island has also been in planning since 2013. See /?p=131025. For the full South Strand article, go to:
http://www.southstrandnews.com/article/20140709/GTT06/140709873/-1/feed&source=RSS
Sunbury Crab Company Marina, A SALTY SOUTHEAST CRUISERS’ NET SPONSOR, lies off the AICW along the western shores of the Medway River, on the charted Sunbury Channel, north of Dickinson Creek.
If you haven’t tried it, PLEASE …. Take a brief trip up the River off I C W to Sunbury Crab just south of Savannah, and enjoy a bit of old Key West, and old Florida, in the heart of beautiful “down east Georgia ” with Barney and Elaine. Great place to hang out with some of the best food ever. If you are not on your boat, it is to reach by car too. This is a must ” experience !!”
First Mate Sue
Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Georgia Marina Directory Listing For Sunbury Crab Company
Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of Sunbury Crab Company
New River Marina overlooks the Waterway’s western banks from Swan Point, just north of marker #4. Sneads Ferry has always had a reputation as having good fuel prices and, as Skipper Floyd highlights, they also have great local seafood.
We brought a new boat from Charleston to New Bern just ahead of Hurricane Arthur and happened upon a marina worth touting. New River Marina boasts one of the best staff ever! They even offered to come out during the night if we needed anything (they live right behind the office.) BUT the best part of our overnight stay was the RiverView Cafe. As directed, we called the telephone number provided by marina staff and Julianna came by car to ferry us to the father’s restaurant nearby. The best seafood of our trip! the place where the locals eat – as always, the best reference! We would recommend both the marina and the restaurant to any cruiser going north or south on the ICW!
Joni Floyd
Click Here To View the Eastern Florida Cruisers’ Net Marina Directory Listing For New River Marina
Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of New River Marina
Readers of Mark Doyle’s Sailing and Cruising, Tammy and Bruce Swart submitted this welcome news item:
“NOAA has a new toy for us. Possible storm surge areas! That means you CAN’T go under that bridge that you can normally go under.”
Tammy and Bruce Swart, S/V Dos Libras
The program is called SLOSH, Sea, Lake and Overland Surges from Hurricanes. Go to: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/surge/slosh.php
SLOSH has been applied to the entire U.S. Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coastlines. In addition, coverage extends to Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, and the Bahamas. The SLOSH model coverage is subdivided into 32 regions or basins. These basins are centered upon particularly susceptible features: inlets, large coastal centers of population, low-lying topography, and ports.
NOAA
Vero Beach Municipal Marina, A SALTY SOUTHEAST CRUISERS’ NET SPONSOR!, lies on the eastern shores of Bethel Creek, moving northeast and north from the Vero Beach/Merrill Barber, high-rise bridge, south of flashing daybeacon #139.
Tucked in at Vero Beach Marina. A very nice city marina with fuel and amenities we liked. The beach is a short bike ride away. Dock master and crew very helpful and accommodating.
Sonny Reeves
Approaching Vero Beach
THE OFFICE tucked in at Vero Beach Municipal Marina
Indian River Veterans Park at Vero Beach
Along the Way
Back in April SSECN hosted quite a discussion on the issue of increased rail service across Florida, see /?p=136159. This is one of those easy-to-be-torn conflicts in which one wants to see the increase in rail service to, hopefully, cut auto congestion along the coast, but at the same time, keep vessel traffic flowing smoothly through all those railway lift bridges. We welcome your arguments, pro and con! Our thanks to all who have contributed to this discussion.
NEWS FLASH 6/30/2014:
FYI, this matter will be discussed at the next Jupiter Town Council meeting, this Tuesday, 1 July 7:00 PM. If you know anyone in Jupiter, encourage them to attend. See http://www.jupiter.fl.us/AgendaCenter/Regular-Meetings-4
Beached in Jupiter
I asked Beached in Jupiter to keep us posted and these links were sent:
Tcpalm.com is probably doing the best news coverage of this issue. They have editorial position against AAF.
Palmbeachpost.com also covers but more of a pro AAF position. Miami to WPB favors trains; Jupiter north mostly oppose.
FTL marina industry very opposed due to blockage of New River most of the day. Will kill marinas.
Folks,
A plan, supported by the Florida Governor, to create a high speed rail system from Orlando to Miami will use existing coastal railroad right of way. This right of way is the one which includes the Florida East Coast drawbridge in Stuart and train bridges on the New River, Loxahatchee River, and the St. Lucie River. This plan would include adding 32 ADDITIONAL train crossings a day. The current estimate is mariners could face bridge closings totaling 9-9.5 hours a day — particularly if locales are successful in slowing the trains down for safety reasons as they pass through the highly congested south Florida.
The dialog is highly polarized with jobs being balanced against revenue against safety. Because the issue affects Waterway Navigation, there is room for non-locals and non-Floridians in the dialog. For boaters and residents east and west of the bridges, the principal goal is to move the high speed RR to the west. Others want it stopped completely.
More can be found at:
https://www.citizensagainstthetrain.com/?gclid=CjkKEQjwrLSdBRDYvIL0soO4vo0BEiQABALkqSfz6pCJ2nlGesnyEor14SZ5mT0kq0YV6r57nfmjfjjw_wcB
and
http://www.allaboardflorida.com/
Chris and Janet Waln
Don’t forget the St Johns River bridges, especially near Sanford. They have a new commuter rail system there now.
If you’ll notice on the All aboard Florida [website above] there is no completion date. If it ever happens, it will not be any time soon.
Lorne Cook
Good overview by Chris and Janet Waln, thanks! And thanks Cruisersnet for helping to get the word out on this situation.
Chris and Janet are correct about the bridge closings; Jupiter Inlet District (JID, http://jupiterinletdistrict.org) has monitored and photographed all vessel transits and lift bridge operations at Loxahatchee crossing since January.
In April, JID recorded just shy of 8000 vessel crossings. Not much more than kayaks and dingys can pass under this bridge when down for train to cross; ~4 ft air draft at high tide. Average total bridge closure time was 19 minutes per train. With at least 2 passenger trains per hour and one or more freights, that’s not much time for vessels to pass.
Even if you do not navigate these rivers, this affects traffic on the ICW, as boats back up into the channel while waiting for the bridge to open. Currents at this point can be quite strong with tidal flows, so accidents are a concern. Less experienced skippers may find it difficult to hold position for 20+ minutes. See https://www.google.com/maps/@26.9478155,-80.0897772,16z
The St Lucie bridge is especially problematic due to the great number of vessels moored and berthed in marinas upriver, west of the bridge. With the bridge down most of the time, boaters may be limited to only a few brief crossing times each day. See https://www.google.com/maps/place/St+Lucie+River/@27.2062829,-80.2676983,1258m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m2!3m1!1s0x88dee87938e18c99:0xc036915cb56e0c0a
The RR bridges are ~90 years old and in poor repair. see http://captainkimo.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/florida-east-coast-train-single-engine-crossing-railroad-draw-bridge-jupiter-florida.jpg. RR begins lowering bridge 15 min before trains are due, to make sure they have time for emergency stop without ending up in Loxahatchee, in case it doesn’t work.
Even without passenger service, increases in freight are expected. Freights of course are slower and longer so bridge impacts are even worse.
Draft EIS (for the $1.6 Billion taxpayer guaranteed loan) is due for review something this summer; will be available from Federal Railway Administration (https://www.fra.dot.gov/Page/P0672). Public comment is limited to 75 days so many winter cruisers will likely never know about it. Informal networking is critical to inform the boating community.
More info at http://www.tcrpc.org/special_projects/AAF/AAF4.html,
http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2014/jun/26/confidential-document-offers-some-answers-about/ and
http://www.tequesta.org/index.aspx?NID=1167
Beached in Jupiter
SSECN received these kind words from Skipper Ron and the link he asks about is probably http://www.charts.noaa.gov/ for free downloadable charts. As to an ICW website for north of Norfolk, our recommendation is Waterway Guide, www.waterwayguide.com
The Salty Southeast Cruisers is an excellent site for expert to novice sailors. Is there a site that covers the ICW north of Viginia ? Your organization does an excellent job in keeping the boating community informed. Additionally, I read an article posted on your site that provides marine chart viewing for free. I just can’t seem to find it anymore.
Thanks
Ron
For recent SSECN postings on NOAA, see:
/?p=137994
/?p=140179
/?p=139452
/?p=138499
The last report SSECN received was in May of this year (/?p=140772) indicated that the docks were closed for renovation. However, the very nice folks at nearby Anchorage Marina confirmed today that the National Parks Service Docks are now open. So if you have stopped into Silver Lake and can provide further confirmation, please do so! The Ocracoke National Park Service Docks lie on the northern shores of Ocracoke’s Silver Lake, just east of the harbor entrance.
July 2: A spokesperson with the Park Service confirmed that all facilities at the docks are fully functional.
Anybody have an update on the repair/re-wiring of the federal docks???
I have heard all is completed and are now open but cannot get confirmation.
Thanks much
Capt. Ron
Tarpon Basin is crossed by the FL Keys Inside Route, just south of Blackwater Sound and Dusenberry Creek. There are at least 3 good spots to drop the hook here, and creative skippers will find more. Our thanks to Skipper Reeves for this report and photos.
On our cruise North to Jekyll Island from Marathon we used several anchorages and found some interesting free city docks. Tarpon Basin is a good stop over anchorage with a free dingy dock. Going North exit the creek and head for marker R48. Turn in to basin before R48A stay near north side of basin. Close to shore we found 5-7 ft. On in towards anchored boats we found 7-9 ft and stayed to the north of city docks.
Sonny Reeves
Tarpon Basin from Dinghy Dock
Park at Tarpon Basin
A Quiet Anchorage
Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of the Tarpon Basin Anchorages
Skipper Spence was one of the two cruisers who on June 22 encountered the wake of a speeding sportsfisherman in the narrow channel south of Myrtle Beach known as the Rock Pile, see /?p=140570.
And now Paula sends us this online report of a Waterway accident on June 25 in North Myrtle Beach.
Here we go again!
Paula Spence
Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Southern End of the Rock Pile
This moving tribute comes from the Blackbeard Sailing Club of North Carolina. It was one of Claiborne’s last speaking engagements. He was a legend in his time.
Very interesting comments and observations from veteran sailor Dick Mills. Regardless of our individual boating experience, we are sure to see ourselves in these stories.
*Just Do It*
During our annual northward migration, my wife Libby and I encountered a couple in Elizabeth City just starting their cruising life. They had a new boat, with all new equipment, and all of one overnight trip for shakedown
and preparation, before they set out to do the great loop. They were eager for advice and we tried to be helpful. I heard the captain say they had no paper charts. I swallowed and kept my mouth shut. But a bit later he mentioned that he had not yet downloaded any charts for his new electronic chart plotter. Their next stop was Hampton Roads. Fortunately, I was able to persuade him to not go another mile before downloading those charts.
A week later we met another couple in Catskill, New York heading south to Norfolk. They had a very worthy looking Baba 35 from Taiwan. But this couple was so green that they had never used and anchor and never stepped in a dinghy before. The captain asked me to explain how his manual windlass worked. Gulp.
In private, Libby and I expressed our doubts to each other about the chances for these folks carrying out their plans. But then two things hit me.
First, we have been full-time cruising for nearly 10 years now, but in 2005, we too were very green. That first year we made lots of mistakes and we were ignorant of many important things, but that first virgin year was
magic.
In 2005, we thought it would be cool to start with a cruise from New York to Alaska (via Panama) to visit our son. We got as far as Mexico. Then, anchored off Yucatan, we realized that was not what we wanted to do. We turned around and sailed back to The Florida Keys without ever going ashore in Mexico. As blunders go, that was pretty big.
Also in 2005, I saw a sign in the river that said `Dismal Swamp Route’, so I took it. We discovered the Dismal Swamp Canal (DSC), and Elizabeth City and the Rose Buddies and we were enchanted. Everything we did that virgin
year (dumb or smart) is etched into our brains as meaningful life experiences.
Second, we were forgetting the one rule that all veteran cruisers eventually learn. Plans are pretty worthless. So what if they don’t complete the loop, or get to the intended destination? They’ll have a wonderful time and learn many new things nevertheless. The point of cruising is to have fun, not to execute plans.
We also met a third couple. The husband had extensive boating experience and a very level-headed attitude, but the wife had nearly zero experience. They have a very limited budget and a very little 26 foot sailboat. Nevertheless, they plan to cruise to Boot Key Harbor. I’m confident that they’ll make it, and that it will be the adventure of a lifetime.
The point is that these couples (green or not) were doing the right thing. Instead of sitting home year after year dreaming about cruising, they were out there doing it. I say bravo for them.
Flip the coin: We also met a man at the DSC Welcome Center. He had an extensive sailing resume from The South Pacific. He had sailed all the island groups from Hawaii to The Phillpines. But now he bought a motorboat in North Carolina and wanted to bring it to Fort Lauderdale. He was afraid to use the ICW because of all the problems he heard about shoaling, so he was going to ship his boat by truck.
I also think of all the intrepid veteran cruisers who are afraid to try the Dismal Swamp Canal route. Robert at Deep Creek Lock told me that about 9000 boats use the Virginia Cut route each year, and 1000 the DSC route. There
are endless scary stories about DSC; shoaling, deadheads, snakes in the trees, duck weed. The vast majority of our veteran cruiser friends are afraid to try it.
Those who choose to not use the ICW or the DSC because of scary stories, are choosing wrong in my opinion. They are influenced by the stories, but they ignore the thousands of vessels (large and small) that successfully
use these routes every year. Part of it, must be the psychology of scary stories and bad news. If you look at Claiborne Young’s cruisersnet.net you’ll find a section called `ICW trouble spots’. Read the daily paper and
you’ll hear about crime. Non-trouble and no-crime are not news. Boaters love to tell stories, and telling scary stories is often the most fun. But to judge the real risks of go no-go decisions we need to look at statistics
(such as 10,000 ICW users and 1000 DSC users) rather than anecdotal stories.
This is more than a boating issue. It is a life style issue. You can sit at home watching TV magazine shows that inform you about 20 new scary risks every week. But the one warning those shows will never give you is that
senior citizens staying home watching TV and dreaming rather than doing is like having one foot in the grave. Be active! Get out there and follow your dream. Do not let scary stories deter you. You’ll not only be glad that you
did, but you’ll live longer too.
Dick Mills
SV Tarwathie
The following article from BoatUS on how to choose a good boat yard is certainly helpful, and you can find among our SALTY SOUTHEAST CRUISERS NET SPONSORS! two of the finest yards on the east coast. Sponsors that are helping to keep this service FREE to the cruising community. Those yards are, of course, Atlantic Yacht Basin in Chesapeake, VA and Bennett Brothers in Wilmington, NC.
ALEXANDRIA, Va., June 24, 2014 ‘“ While boatyards are busy, summer may be a better time to have repair work done on the boat. Why? The typical boatyard and shop warranty on labor is 90 days, giving boaters the time necessary to use the boat and ensure a correct repair. But where does a boater go to get repairs done right? Boat Owners Association of The United States (BoatUS) has some tips:
Use what your eyes are telling you: Sometimes it’s the little things that give you a sign that the yard you are entering isn’t the best. One BoatUS member took his boat to a repair facility and thought that the abundance of boats in the lot meant that the boatyard was popular. It wasn’t until after the yard started giving odd excuses for delays and then made him pay for hundreds of dollars of ineffective engine repairs before releasing the boat, did the member notice that few, if any, of the boats in the lot had been moved in years.
All recommendations aren’t the same: Online recommendations are a mish-mash of good and bad: more reliable ones have real names attached and specific details in postings. Fellow boaters are likely the best folks to recommend a yard, but go one step further: be sure that the repairs are similar to what you need. Another option is to ask a marine surveyor. These professionals are often knowledgeable about the quality of work in local repair yards, as long as they’re impartial and unaffiliated with any shop or boatyard. Look for a boat surveyor having SAMS or NAMS credentials as these surveyor associations require their members to be independent. Another good sign to see is a shop that follows American Boat and Yacht Council (ABYC) guidelines for repairs, which ensures that crucial safety standards are met. ABYC technicians also get specialized certification in a range of boat systems.
Dealerships may offer more, but don’t write off independents: There are certain benefits to taking an out-of-warranty boat or motor to a dealership, with the best training and equipment being at the top of the list. Dealerships also enjoy better parts connections. On the other hand, most well established independent repair facilities also produce high quality work ‘“ especially those run by former or current factory-trained technicians. And unlike a dealership, they must compete on repair business alone and their prices are usually lower.
Look for shops that specialize: Boats vary in type, size and complexity and so do repair facilities. Don’t bring a 34-foot trawler for repairs to a shop that mostly works on trailer boats, and don’t expect the guy living in a van down by the river to fix your high-tech outboard.
`Always check around first before doing business,’ said BoatUS Director of Consumer Affairs Charles Fort. `Many boaters only have the summer to enjoy their boats, so any problems could lead to a premature end of the boating season.’
http://www.boatus.com/pressroom
Click Here To View the Virginia Cruisers’ Net Marina Directory Listing For Atlantic Yacht Basin
Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of Atlantic Yacht Basin
Click Here To View the North Carolina Cruisers’ Net Marina Directory Listing For Bennett Brothers
Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of Bennett Brothers
Jim King Park is the newest of Jacksonville’s dock/boat ramps and is still undergoing construction of some phases. The ramp is used as headquarters for the Greater Jacksonville Kingfish Tournament, and is closed to the public during the tournament. The facility is located just north of the intersection of the St. Johns River and the Waterway. All of the facilities are new and the docks are listed as unlimited as to size of vessel. Skipper Reeves sends two good photos of the new floating docks. Sisters Creek bascule bridge has a 24ft closed vertical clearance.
Jim King Park Dock – Sonny Reeves
Jim King Park – Sonny Reeves
For a listing of the facilities, go to:
Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of Sisters Creek Bridge
Rivers Edge Marina in St. Augustine, FL, is found well off the AICW, on the San Sebastian River, near this body of water’s upstream cruising limits. Our thanks to Skipper Reeves for this report and photo.
When we travel the ICW to visit St. Augustine we stay at Rivers Edge, back when it was Oyster Creek we stopped in our sailboat. Why do we stop here for overnights rest and relaxation? Easy in and out, Quiet, No or little current.
Paul the dockmaster is the best! Sure the docks are old and the walkways are some what tricky. Watch you step type of tricky. But there is a fresh fruit and veggies market around the corner with great prices. Hurricane Patty’s is on the site with a discount for boaters that Paul will give you. Low price fuel delivered by truck, Call Paul before hand. Stores and Sailors Exchange in walking distance or ride your bike.
The old city is a long walk or a shot bike ride away. Enjoy!
Sonny Reeves
Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of River’s Edge Marina
Like others before, Skipper Reeves sends good remarks about the facilities at Palm Coast Marina. This marina is found on a small canal which indents the Waterway’s western banks south of St. Augustine and north of Daytona Beach.
Great stop over! Clean restrooms showers, nice dog walk. Easy walk to restaurants and shops. The pizza at Mezzaluna Pizzeria is above average. Very little tide or current. Sheltered from high winds.
Sonny Reeves
Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of Palm Coast Marina
Calabash Creek lies to the north of the Waterway, just south of the SC/NC state line. This anchorage can get very crowded during the busy season, but if you can find a spot, there are two fine seafood restaurants accessible just upstream by dinghy.
Take note of Skipper Hetzer’s advice to enter between the two red markers, both “2”. One is a Little River ICW marker R2 with the yellow square – take to Port on entering – and the other is R2 for Calabash Creek. Fortunately, such marker confusion does not happen often along the Waterway.
We’re locals and anchor there frequently in our 35′ Island Packet with 4-1/2′ draft. Enter and exit BETWEEN the Reds, favoring the ICW R2. Anchor in 9-12′ at high tide north of the channel anywhere before the Clubhouse on the north bank. Lots of fishing boat traffic, so anchor out of the channel, but don’t get too close to shore either, lest you swing ashore. Keep your rode as short as you dare. 2-3kts of current at full stream, but good holding on a muddy bottom.
Michael Hetzer
Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of the Calabash Creek Anchorage
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