Cruisers' Net | Cruisers Helping Cruisers

Dec 14, 2011by: Claiborne Young No Comments
Marco Island to the Florida Keys
There is a wealth of good cruising tips in Captain Lloyd’s note below. His description of the “inside” passage navigational challenges, behind Marco Island, is spot on, as is his description of Little Shark River’s shoreline.
I might also add that as of a few months ago, the entrance channel into Flamingo was still quite shallow!
You can take the inside route behind Marco Island with a 4′ draft but avoid low tide. Charted depth is 4′ but depth increases by 3′ at high tide. Pay attention after Bear Point bridge as daymark colors switch sides. A red daymark appears to be out of position but it is not!
Definitely stop at Goodland, an old-time fishing village that is a marked contrast to the rest of Marco Island. Calusa Island Marina is within walking distance of restaurants.
Some boaters recommend Everglades City but I usually go directly from Goodland to Little Shark River in Everglades National Park. This area of the park consists of mangrove Islands and hardwood hammocks, not acres of sawgrass that one usually associates with the Everglades. There is a very protected anchorage about 1.5 miles up river.
I have not been to Flamingo since it was rebuilt after the hurricane. The approach was shallow at that time. I recommend a direct route from Little Shark River to Seven Mile Bridge and stop at Marathon.
Alan Lloyd
Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Western Florida Marina Directory Listing For Calusa Island Marina
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Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Western Florida Anchorage Directory Listing For the Little Shark River Outer Anchorage
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Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Western Florida Anchorage Directory Listing For the Little Shark River Southern Fork Anchorage
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Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Western Florida Anchorage Directory Listing For the Little Shark River Upper Anchorage
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Dec 14, 2011by: Claiborne Young 1 Comment
Englewood Beach Anchorage (Statute Mile 43.5)
The anchor down spot referred to below by Captains Rick and Donna is listed in our Western Florida Anchorage Directory as the “Englewood Beach Anchorage. They are quite right in describing this spot as a “good anchorage.” In fact, it’s one of the best sheltered along this section of the Western Florida ICW, and there is a restaurant withing dinghy distance as well!
There are no anchoring restrictions in lemon bay, except in the ICW. There is a good anchorage on the Lemon Bay side of Englewood Beach. To reach it, one bears right [southwest] after passing through [south of] the Tom Adams Bridge, leaving the ICW to your port. Stay in the middle of the channel, and head toward the moored and anchored boats off the mangrove island on your port side. Just past the moored boats there is a secure and safe anchorage. We live in North Port, and cruise Lemon Bay regularly.
Fair Winds,
Rick & Donna
Reprinted from the MTOA List Serve, with permission of the authors
Find out more about the MTOA at: http://www.mtoa.net/
Good info, but there is nowhere to go ashore except the restaurant. So you can’t tie up there and go to the beach. Dockage is available at Chadwick Cove Marina adjacent to the restaurant (The White Elephant).
Denny Botkin
This is a good anchorage, but since we have a heavy Gulfstar 39 sailboat with a 5′ draft, we want to point out a shoaling area along the western (toward the Gulf) side of the ICW that you have to clear before getting into the deeper water of the anchorage. We have bumped over this bar a couple times, but during higher tides we’ve had no problem. We tend to favor the bridge side of the sandbar before heading into the anchorage and have had fewer problems with access in our sailboat. There is a strong tidal current so set a good anchor with some scope and chain.
Mark Suby
And, here’s some good navigational advice on how to gain entry to this anchorage with the best depths possible.
Beware shoaling south of T. Adams Bridge along the west edge of the ICW. To avoid this shoal [when entering the Englewood Beach anchorage] that has formed further north than shown on the charts, turn toward the moored boats immediately after clearing the bridge (if southbound) and head directly toward the moored boats/mangrove. Note the additional shoaling north of the mooring field.
Any boats carrying over 4 to 4 1/2 foot draft should avoid transitioning from the ICW at low tide – unless you have local knowledge. The best way to proceed from the bridge is to go directly toward and into the mooring field (idle speed, of course) from the bridge. Favor the south side after clearing the shoaling that parallels and is immediately adjacent to the ICW. Additional shoaling north of the mooring field extends from a point just west of the bridge almost to the docks on the western shore. If going to the White Elephant or to Chadwick Cove Marina, remain close to the docks on the western shore. Cutting the corner can put you hard aground.
Having said that, the anchorage is protected quite nicely in virtually all weather conditions.
Kindest Regards,
“FAIRWINDS”
Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Western Florida Anchorage Directory Listing For the Englewood Beach Anchorage
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Dec 14, 2011by: Claiborne Young 1 Comment
Thoughts on Florida Anchoring Space
Captain Feiges is responding, in her message below, to a posting which appeared here on the Cruisers’ Net some time ago, about the victory in St. Augustine, when the city proposed ten day anchoring limit outside the mooring field, was shot down, and changed by the FWC to a thirty day limit.
Her point in this missive is very different, and very much worth the cruising community’s thoughtful consideration. Beverly speaks of a lack of anchoring “space” in Florida due to the proliferation of private moorings!
We are cruisers, plain and simple, and seldom stay in one spot for even a week. Even in Georgetown, in the Bahamas, where we may spend a month or more, we switch anchoring spots every so many days, depending on wind or activities ashore. Putting in mooring fields in very popular spots has the advantage of allowing many more boats to safely anchor, but it is also nice to have some room to anchor left over for those of us who may be too big for the spacing and holding power of the moorings, or too high off the water to easily pick up the mooring. Having permanently anchored boats in what is a limited area, even if they must move them every thirty days, does not help the honest to god cruiser who is passing through and wants a spot for a night or two. Even worse seems to be the unregulated dropping of private moorings everywhere it used to be possible to anchor.
I want the right to anchor, but there must be room to do it, and in allowing people to set their private moorings all over the place, (in Maine some people have as many as five in different harbors), or to stay anchored more than 5 days without a valid reason, then this room does not exist, and you just as effectively have cut off my right to anchor. We had this experience in St. Augustine this fall, almost impossible to anchor.
Beverly Feiges
Virtually all anchoring regulations being promoted by FWC are in violation of Florida Statute 370.04 in the wake of two Florida Supreme Court decision favoring boater’s (almost) unrestricted anchoring rights. There is nothing to be applauded here as FWC seems to be forging ahead unempeded with its greed and rise of power with little or no sound rationale or legal foundation.
Make your resistance known against this flagrant arrigance and disregard for formal constitutional decisions.
Bruce Bingham
Perhaps a private mooring can now be considered `the owner is anchored’ and falls under the new regs ?? Interesting possibility’¦
Dennis McMurtry
I agree with Beverly. Sure, Florida’s mooring fields are busy in the winter, but for most of the year there are many vacant moorings that eliminate huge areas that used to be available for anchoring. St. Augustine has effectively eliminated all of the best anchoring areas by covering the harbor in moorings, most of which remain vacant most of the year. Same thing in Marathon. I have squeezed into the remaining anchorage there during the off season when half the moorings were empty.
John Kettlewell
Laws continue to be changed. FL Statute 370.04 I could not find. Overriding everything is our Federal Navigational Servitude and the Public Trust doctrine which provide, among other things, that navigation includes the right to anchor in all navigable waters.
FL Statute 327.44 states `no anchoring’¦in a manner which shall unreasonably or unnecessarily constitute a navigational hazard.’
Jay Bliss
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Comments from Cruisers (1)

David Burnham - October 30, 2015 - 8:51 pm

More than a few of St. Augustine’s north mooring field buoys remain empty because of shoaling of the bay bottom. This prevents the marina from being able to assign boats to these buoys because a falling tide MAY have the boat on the hard bottom.
Because this is a designated mooring area, a shallow draft cruiser that COULD anchor in this space is denied anchoring as allowed by FS 370.04.
Reply to David
Dec 1, 2011by: Claiborne Young No Comments
A Quick Vote of Confidence in Salty Sams Marina (Fort Myers Beach)
Salty Sams Marina is the most upstream facility on Estero Bay. It lies along the bay’s northern shores on San Carlos Island.
If you want to be close to the beach, select Salty Sam’s Marina(239-463-7333) in Ft Myers Beach….very protected also and good for a short or long term stay.
Regards,
Tom Jones
m/v Marbles
Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Western Florida Marina Directory Listing For Salty Sams Marina
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Dec 1, 2011by: Claiborne Young No Comments
Happiness at Legacy Harbour Marina (Fort Myers Waterfront on the Calooshatchee River/Okeechobee Waterway)
Of course Captain John had a good experience at Legacy Harbour Marina. These good people are a SALTY SOUTHEAST CRUISERS’ NET SPONSOR!
We stayed at Legacy and left our boat their and then decided to stay longeron our return. It was absolutely delightful. The is a new Publix foodstore two blocks away and plenty of restaurants and entertainment.
Both marinas are good, but Legacy is the most comfortable with floating docks and pump-outs at the slip, etc.
John Haluska
M/V Emery El
DeFever 40 RPH
Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Western Florida Marina Directory Listing For Legacy Harbour Marina
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Dec 1, 2011by: Claiborne Young No Comments
Crystal River Depth Problems (Western Florida’s Big Bend Region)
Sounds like Captains Barbara and Jim, plus Golden Retriever Lily, may have run into some lower than usual tides. I don’t ever recall finding such shallow depths in Crystal River. Have you had a similar or dissimilar experience on these waters? Please click the “Click Here to Submit Cruising News” link on the upper right side of this page, and share your information!
Our draft is 4.7 and had no problems in Steinhatchee. However, when we reached Crystal River, we had to wait 1 1/2 hours at the entrance to the channel to wait for the tide to come in for enough water for our draft. Boat US heard us talking on the radio to our buddy boats and told us to wait. We docked at Twin Rivers since it was getting dark and did not want to proceed further. The next day we were sitting in the mud. We were told there would be enough water at the docks there, but not so! By the time the tide rose the next day, it was too late to leave. SO, the next day, we headed up to Pete’s Pier. There we had .6 under our keel at low tide. We were lucky to have a good weather window and by leaving at 0900, were able to make it down the river and to the Gulf during high tide. If we didn’t leave that day, we would have had to wait 2 weeks for the tide to roll around with enough daylight to get to Tarpon Springs.
Both towns were nice and worth the stop, however, the tides would make the deciding factor. It was a bit tricky with the timing.
Barbara and Jim Benjamin and Golden Retriever, Lily
Golden Lily, Nordic Tug 42
Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To Crystal River’s Entrance Channel
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Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Western Florida Marina Directory Listing For Pete’s Pier/Kings Bay Marine
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Nov 20, 2011by: Claiborne Young No Comments
Turtle Cove Marina Photo Gallery
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Nov 20, 2011by: Claiborne Young No Comments
Belle Harbour Marina Photo Gallery
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Nov 17, 2011by: Claiborne Young No Comments
HUGE VICTORY FOR THE CRUISING COMMUNITY – Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission Sets St. Augustine Anchoring Limit at 30 Days (NOT 10 Days!)
At approximately 1:00 pm today, 11/17/11, we received a telephone call from our very special Florida Keys Correspondent, Captain Charmaine Smith Ladd. Charmaine passed along a detailed report on today’s FWC meeting in Key Largo, Florida, which had just adjourned. This gathering was called specifically to consider St. Augustine’s request for a 10 day anchoring limit on their corporate waters, outside the city mooring field.
The only people to speak were Captain Charmaine, representing both BARR (Boater’s Anchoring Rights and Responsibilities) and the SSECN, Bonnie Bashem, representing Boat/US, and a representative from the city of St. Augustine.
According to Captain Charmaine, the St. Augustine representative, as you would expect, requested approval of the already much discussed 10-day anchoring limit for the waters outside of the city mooring field, while both Bonnie and Charmaine argued for a longer time limit. In fact, Charmaine asked for a 90-day limit.
The final result of the meeting was a DENIAL OF ST. AUGUSTINE’S REQUEST FOR A 10-DAY LIMIT, AND, INSTEAD, A THIRTY (30) DAY LIMIT WAS APPROVED. Vessels which want to anchor in St. Augustine waters for longer than 30 days must leave the corporate waters for at least 24-hours, and they can then return for another 30 days.
Now, I know some will say there should be no anchoring time limit at all, and I, for one, am not about to argue against that point of view. HOWEVER, IN LIGHT OF WHAT 24 HOURS AGO APPEARED TO BE A VIRTUAL CERTAINTY THAT ANCHORING IN ST. AUGUSTINE WAS ABOUT TO BE LIMITED TO 10 DAYS, THE DENIAL OF ST. AUGUSTINE’S REQUEST, AND THE IMPOSITION OF A 30 DAY TIME PERIOD INSTEAD, MUST BE SEEN AS A HUGE VICTORY FOR THE CRUISING COMMUNITY!
I might also add, that this decision shows me that the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission IS keeping the needs of cruisers in mind, at least somewhat, as the process of approving local anchorage regulations for those communties (or counties) involved in the Pilot Mooring Field Program, goes forward!
The cruising community owes of a HUGE debt of thanks to Boat/US and Bonnie Bashem, Captain Charmaine and the hundreds and hundreds of cruisers who have bombarded the FWC and the St. Augustine City Government with e-mails.
However, the fight is most surely NOT over yet. There are still details to be worked out in St. Augustine, and there are four more Pilot Mooring Field Program sites for which anchorage regulations are yet to be approved.
So, the Salty Southeast Cruisers’ Net’s advice is STAY VIGILANT! In the meantime, though, let’s all bask in this victory, for at least a few moments!
As you might imagine, comments have been POURING in to the Salty Southeast Cruisers’ Net since the above article was published. So many, in fact, that we have had to establish a separate page so that everyone’s words can be displayed. Please click on the link below, and discover what your fellow cruisers have to say on this HOT topic:

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I have been contacted in the past month by a group whom are trying to stop the anchoring in Sarasota Bay. So heads up and look out for the next boom of protest to prohibiting boaters their rights.
Captain Kat Luchene
I agree that having to move your boat once every 30 days is a small inconvenience for boats cruising Florida waters compared to having to move it once every 10 days.
For sailboats it is even less of an inconvenience. I am thinking that the captain who is anchored waiting to get a part shipped for his engine so that he can continue cruising his powerboat is at a disadvantage unless he can get a friendly tow.
I too am fed up with abandoned boats sinking in our anchorages. Boats need to be stored on land and used on the water. Just as automobiles are not stored on public highways. http://www.gibsondrydock.com
My Cal 2-29 is on a private mooring in the St Johns River. It is moved at least twice a month but seldom for a 24 hour period. That is the one aspect of this that has me in disagreement. I am more concerned that an anchored boat is being used by its owner than how long it has to be moved from its anchorage. If the owner is aboard once a month, leaves the anchorage and returns, problems may be corrected before the boat becomes a hazard.
David Burnham
Thank you for this very important and needed update!
helmut g. kramer MD,MSc
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Nov 17, 2011by: Claiborne Young No Comments
Little Bayou Anchorage Navigation (Tampa Bay, Western Shore – south of St. Petersburg)
Captain Collins has provided important and helpful navigational advice below for entering the Little Bayou Anchorage, south of St. Petersburg. This posting is in response to an earlier Cruisers’ Net article about anchorage no longer being allowed in St. Petersburg’s Vinoy Basin. As part of that posting, we listed other anchoring alternative in the area, of which Little Bayou is one.
Having visited Little Bayou myself many times, Captain Mike’s warnings below are correct, and need to be taken seriously.
There is an obstruction in the middle of this bayou. It’s about 2 1/2 feet off the bottom, so at an average tide it is about 2 1/2 feet below the surface. It is a hard, man made object, roughly the shape of a fin, possibly an old keel without the keel bolts.
Also, there are several shoals in the bayou. The estimate of 5 to 6 foot average depth is accurate for the rest of the bayou. The deeper water tends to be around the rim, which is why the channel is around the rim.
Mike Collins
Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Western Florida Anchorage Directory Listing For The Little Bayou Southern Anchorage
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Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Western Florida Anchorage Directory Listing For The Little Bayou Northern Anchorage
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Nov 17, 2011by: Claiborne Young No Comments
Publix Supermarket Within Walking Distance of The City of Fort Myers Yacht Basin’s Dinghy Dock (Caloosahatchee River/Okeechobee Waterway)
How typical of a CLASS Operation and a SALTY SOUTHEAST CRUISERS’ NET SPONSOR like the City of Fort Myers Dockage Basin to provide a dinghy dock. And, thanks to Captain Dunham, we know there’s a Publix Supermarket within walking distance.
The City of Fort Myers Yacht Basin, located on the Caloosahatchee River, has a free dinghy dock. The marina is located in a downtown location and a Publix is .8 mile from the marina.
Susan Dunham
Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Western Florida Marina Directory Listing For The City of Fort Myers Yacht Basin
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Nov 17, 2011by: Claiborne Young No Comments
Big Bayou Anchorage Navigational Advice (Western Shore of Tampa Bay, south of St. Petersburg)
Many, many thanks to “Local Sailor” for providing the very specific navigational advice below to facilitate a safe entrance into the Big Bayou Anchorage. This posting is in response to an earlier Cruisers’ Net article about anchorage no longer being allowed in St. Petersburg’s Vinoy Basin. As part of that posting, we listed other anchoring alternative in the area, of which Big Bayou is one. Now, with “Local Sailor’s” advice, we can feel a bit more confident about this anchor down spot.
By the by, I checked my notes which resulted from our last research trip to these waters, and “Local Sailor” is right on the proverbial money!
This is a tricky one, if you’re not very familiar with it.
1. If you are sailing in from the Bay you would need to approach from the North and make the turn to Starboard.
2. There is a 90+ degree turn to port at the back side of the bayou.
3. The anchorage area is pretty full of derelict boats also so’¦.watch your scope.
Local Sailor
Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Western Florida Anchorage Directory Listing For The Big Bayou Anchorage
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Nov 16, 2011by: Claiborne Young No Comments
Info on Burnt Store Marina (off the Western Florida ICW, on Charlotte Harbor)
Burnt Store Marina is a large, well sheltered marina flanking the southeastern shores of Charlotte Harbor, well south of Punta Gorda. To be succinct, this is a superb facility, with two restaurants, an on-site variety/convenience store and some repair capabilities. And, if that’s not enough for you, Burnt Store is the headquarters of two major southwestern Florida charter operations, including SALTY SOUTHEAST CRUISERS’ NET SPONSOR, Southwestern Florida Yachts.
The message below comes from Burnt Store’s harbormaster, Captain Peggy Wark, and was originally directed at AGLCA members. However, I’ve condensed it to info that applies to all cruisers.
Give Burnt Store a try! You won’t be sorry!!!!
We are in the middle of our visiting club season so make sure you call ahead to make your reservations. Our ratesare $14.50 per month and $1.50 per day and don’t forget if you stay three days you get the fourth day free. One lucky boater has already taken advantage of this great deal. Make your reservations by calling 941-637-0083.
We have two restaurants, fitness center and heated pool and if you care todo so you can also play golf. We will provide you with transportation to and from the golf course. We are a secure, gated community with friendlypeople.
So plan to put us on your list when traveling through southwest Florida.
Fair winds and calm seas,
Capt. Peggy Wark
Harbour Master
Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Western Florida Marina Directory Listing For Burnt Store Marina
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Nov 15, 2011by: Claiborne Young No Comments
Happy Words About Smokehouse Bay Anchorage (Marco Island, Florida – south of Naples, FL)
To successfully enter the excellent anchorage on Marco Island’s Smokehouse Bay, you must make your approach via a well marked, but exacting channel which cuts off from the southern approach to Capri Pass Inlet and runs through the easterly reaches of Collier Bay. Some low water depths on this approach run as thin as 4 1/2 feet (in one spot), but if you can get past these shallows, your reward will be one of the most sheltered anchor down spots in southwestern Florida, with good shoreside access! Follow the links below to learn more!
Whole heartily endorse the anchorage in Smokehouse Bay on Marco (this is where the Esplanada is. Dinghy under the bridge and Winn-Dixie has a dingy dock you can use. There is also a great Farmer’s Market on Wednesdays – we always plan to hit there on our way through.
Marty & Jerry Richardson
Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Western Florida Marina Directory Listing For Smokehouse Bay Anchorage
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Nov 14, 2011by: Claiborne Young No Comments
Good Words About Naples City Pier (Naples, Florida)
What a great, one paragraph review of Naples City Pier and the many attractions available within walking distance. This is indeed a great place to coil one’s lines, BUT be sure to call ahead and make dockage reservations as transient space is at a premium!
Naples is our home port. The city docks are an excellent location. You would be within walking distance of 5th Ave. And 3rd Street for shopping and restaurants. A great foodie type grocery store and hardware store are a short bike ride away. West Marine and Enterprise just a couple miles away. By the time you walk down 5th you are only a few blocks from the beach. Our favorite restaurant (Bleu Provence and their new wine store) is within walking distance.
Naples is a MUST stop.
Betty and Rusty Hughes
Docked there earlier this year on our trip from Ft Myers to Islamorada, very nice stop, friendly people and the trolly ride is well worth the history and the opulence that exists there.
Dennis McMurtry
Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Western Florida Marina Directory Listing For the Naples City Pier
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Nov 14, 2011by: Claiborne Young No Comments
Salty Sams Marina and Fort Myers Beach Mooring Field (Fort Myers Beach, Florida)
Good words below from Captain Tom about Salty Sams Marina in Fort Myers Beach. This facility is found on the northern banks of the Fort Myers Beach channel, northeast of unlighted daybeacon #28. Note also the brief comment about the Fort Myers Beach Mooring Field. These good folks are a SALTY SOUTHEAST CRUISERS’ NET SPONSOR!
In Ft Myers Beach a great stop is Salty Sam’s-239-463-7333…..floating docks, fuel, wifi, fun restaurant with great food and entertainment at times. From the north proceed under the Mantanza’s bridge, turn to port and follow the channel past the shrimp boats to the marina. You can dinghy to 4 other restaurants from there, and there is a dinghy dock under the Mantanza’s bridge on the west side if you want to go to the beach. The Mooring Buoys are also reasonably priced and controlled by the Manatanza’s Inn Marina. You can reach them on VHF 16.
Regards,
Tom Jones
m/v Marbles
Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Western Florida Anchorage Directory Listing For the Fort Myers Beach Mooring Field
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Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Western Florida Marina Directory Listing For Salty Sams Marina
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Nov 10, 2011by: Claiborne Young No Comments
Diesel Mechanic Recommended in Fort Myers, Florida Region
I have always said repair recommendations from fellow cruisers are invaluable. When one of our number has had a good experience with a repair firm or individual, chances are the rest of us will have good luck as well.
I would highly recommend Calusa Certified Marine Marine for anyone requiring Service on a Cummins/Yanmar/Volvo Penta in the Fort Myers/Cape
Coral area. They did a complete cooling systems service , timing Belt replacement and valve adjust on my Yanmar 300 HP 6LP. The Mechanic GREG
was extremely well organized, very efficient, very knowledgeable answering all my questions. He took great care servicing the engine and the work
area was left cleaner than when he arrived. He also discovered a problem with the timing belt tensioner that if had not been corrected could have
resulted in a catastrophic engine failure. The work was done on time and the price was very fair
For Service Contact Bob Miller- Calusa Certified Marine, LLC (239) 574-5053
I have no interest in this company – Just a very satisfied customer
Darrell Berge
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Nov 8, 2011by: Claiborne Young No Comments
Anchoring/Mooring Field Editorial From Captain Jay Bliss, St. Augustine Port Commissioner
The following article is reproduced by special permission from both Captain Jay Bliss and StAugustine.com.
Letter to the Editor
St. Johns County and Vilano homeowners have reached an accord, DEP and Army Corps of Engineers have permits in place, and significant dredging will take place this winter in the StAugustine channel entrance and off Porpoise Point. Massive federal funds, $20M plus or minus, will pay for dredging and renourishing StAugustine Beach sands. The inlet channel will be twice its width and as deep as 30 feet. Turtles have nested and before they return to lay eggs in Spring 2012 the dredging should be done.
Boaters will be able to access the inlet in relative safety. An onshore wind and an outgoing tide will still create a rollercoaster ride. Once inside, StAugustine’s unique waterworld offers scenic wonders whatever your course. Boaters can look for a new floating dock off the Vilano fishing pier by Spring 2012, providing free short-term docking and ready access to Publix’ new supermarket at Vilano Beach. B&B guests downtown might embark by water taxi at the City dock to shop the Vilano Publix. Certainly boaters at anchor or on moorings will enjoy the convenience of a market close to the water.
City Commissioners and staff are intent upon maximizing revenue from the mooring fields. There are bills to pay, debts to amortize. Their Pilot Program ordinances increase `no anchoring’ zones. Moorings are convenient, and at $20 a night, not a bad deal. Anchoring does enjoy a following, however. Picky boaters place their trust in their own equipment. Boaters who read fine print might not sign off on the liability release on the mooring contract. One proposed ordinance limits time at anchor. Similar time limit laws have been declared invalid in Federal courts in Stuart and Naples. Navigation laws, anchoring precedents, predate even StAugustine’s history.
More importantly, we (County, Port, City, residents) need to ask: what has the placement of mooring fields done, and what can we project with the Pilot Program ordinances?
Putting the mooring fields in place required energizing enforcement: we discovered that about ten boats had been long abandoned. The mooring fields then displaced some 28 boaters/boats from the downtown area and from Salt Run, and they’re part of the anchored fleet S of the 312 and N of the Vilano bridge, beyond City limits. Google `StAugustine city limits’ for a map.
Imposing the Pilot Program ordinances will further displace about 15 boats beyond City limits. Those boaters will join others who cannot afford to be part of the mooring system. The ordinances will demand more time from City and County and FWC law enforcement. Increasing their duties, adding to the laws, will not improve enforcement of laws already on the books. Overboard dumping, derelicts, are already covered by laws on the books. (Call FWC 407 275 4150 to report on-the-water problems). Those very real challenges do not justify further Pilot Program ordinances. The challenge is enforcing what we have. Will revenues increase significantly?
Every motorist expects to be duly notified with a yellow line, or ` no parking from here to corner’ sign. It’s difficult to imagine how we will legally notify our boating guests of all these prohibited anchoring zones, and still generate goodwill.
Our image with the boating public is at risk. We disregard the effects and consequences of anchoring sprawl, and add more fine print, more laws. We court failure in Federal court. We need to make mooring fields more appealing, affordable, rather than make anchoring more prohibitive. When boaters cruise in the StAugustine inlet, they should be greeted with hospitality and choices.
Fantastic even handed commentary from a government official. Yes indeed there are already laws against dumping sewage and against derelicts. Yes you will drive anchorers away including me. I know what my anchor will hold and what condition my rode is in. I sleep better on my own tackle. Looking forward to trying the free dock to shop at publix in the spring of 2012.
Bill Dixon
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Nov 7, 2011by: Claiborne Young No Comments
What Cruisers Truly Bring to Tourism – An Editorial by Captain Charmaine Smith Ladd
I have been saying for years and years that the state of Florida is playing with FIRE, when it comes to anchorage regulations, MSD boardings and midnight safety inspections. Let’s all remember that the marine industry is the second largest in the Sunshine State, second only to tourism (and the success of Florida’s “Tourist Industry,” it can be argued, is somewhat tied to the success of the “cruising industry” as well).
Captain Charmaine Smith Ladd, our very special Florida Keys Correspondent, shares her thoughts below on this very issue!
November 4th, 2011
What Cruisers Truly Bring to Tourism
by Charmaine Smith Ladd
It just dawned on me that I’ve never seen a glossy magazine cover showing a mooring field. It’s the magazine cover that piques the interest of a potential consumer, it is there to draw them in to buy it. With that said, there is no vicarious romance with mooring fields. LOL
Boaters and cruisers are always shown having a wonderful time. Or if only a vessel or vessels are shown, the depiction is usually that of in an idyllic, exotic locale that makes the landlocked wannabes’ mouths water. That is the romance of cruising.
All cruisers have friends and family who live vicariously through them. My website has more landlubbers who profess to me their envy at we who lead such rich and rewarding lives. It’s not a monetary stash of riches, but riches that money cannot buy: freedom, or the semblance of freedom. This is why during the winters, cruisers have no shortage of friends and family (and often just mere acquaintances) who wish to visit them. And visit they do!
Most cruisers have blogs or websites that narrate a lot of their travels. We introduce others to places they had not thought about visiting. With us there first, we open the door for others to visit these places as well. This is an overlooked fact that landlubbers who think cruisers are just, well, cruisers sitting in their waters, do not realize. We bring more tourism to their areas each time we visit. Others love destinations to explore, especially when relatives and friends are already there and tout the friendliness, warmth, and beauty of a new-to-them community.
Our guests fly or drive to meet up with us. They stay aboard with us a day or two, if that, and the remainder of the time are guests at local hotels and motels. We entertain them and they entertain us. We frequent local establishments and enjoy the sights. We are cruisers and tourists, yet the tourism from cruisers brings in more tourists to the area.
Areas in Florida are contemplating placing regulations on cruisers. This truly should been seen in the bigger picture as we actually do more for these areas than is commonly perceived. In all of the continental U.S. there is no place quite like Florida in the winter. Our northern friends and relatives relish the thought of we cruisers sitting down here where it is warm and flock to us. They come where we go.
Sitting in a mooring field is not the romance depicted on the magazine covers, and with good reason. There is a place for mooring fields as they serve a very useful purpose. However, there’s nothing quite like swinging from the hook and enjoying cocktails at sunset with those who have never experienced it. It is a romantic impression they do not forget. So much so, that many come back on their own to the areas where they first climbed aboard our vessels. We may have cruised on to another destination, but they will fly in and stay at your hotels and remember “when.”
May those making regulatory decisions about the future of anchoring in Florida’s waters also remember “when.”
Charmaine Smith Ladd
SSECN Special Correspondent, Florida Keys
“Bringing you the low down from down low!”
csmithladd@marinersbarr.org
Well said Charmaine! Over the course of many years of visiting Florida we have often had guests fly in to visit us aboard, while often staying at hotels ashore for part of their trips too. In fact, we too have stayed in hotels, rented cars, eaten at restaurants, gone to amusement parks, visited museums and zoos, purchased things in stores, and spent money on all sorts of `normal’ tourist attractions while being based on our boat in Florida. However, we prefer to anchor out and we don’t go to places we can’t anchor. It is not just the mooring field that will not get our money if they force us away.
John Kettlewell
Well said, Charmaine. Keep it up.
Steve and Sheila Kamp,
S/V Carolina, Southbound
Well said and true. I am lucky enough to own a home on a canal in Key Largo. I purchased this home so that I could sail whenever I wanted.
As a resident, taxpayer and boater I think we are lucky to have such a vibrant live aboard community.
I frequently stay at different anchorages and 99% of boaters are respectful and kind. They are outgoing and would give you the shirt off their back.
Let’s never treat them (me) as second class citizens in any way, shape or form.
Jason McPeak, S/V TwoCan, Key Largo, FL
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Nov 4, 2011by: Claiborne Young No Comments
Great Listing of Grocery Store Access by Dinghy in Western Florida
Captain Mary Dixon has created a wonderfully useful list of grocery stores available to dinghy access, along the Western Florida Coastline. Click the link below to check out this excellent informational resource:
http://dinghytogrocerystorewestfl.blogspot.com/
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