Our “man in the know” in Stuart, Florida, Captain Ted Guy, has just informed the Cruisers’ Net that the operating hours of all five locks on the Okeechobee Waterway are being changed November 13, 2012. Beginning on 11/13/12, the Okeechobee locks will be operating from 7:00 am to 7:00 pm, seven days a week. These five locks and their positions are:

St. Lucie Lock – Mile 15.1
Port Mayaca Lock – Mile 39
Moore Haven Lock – Mile 78
Ortona Lock – Mile 93.5
W.P. Franklin – Mile 121.4

Note that “Statute Mile” markers run east to west (from Stuart, FL to Fort Myers, FL) on the Okeechobee Waterway.

In a Press Release from the US Army Corps of Engineer’s, Lt. Col. Tom Greco, Jacksonville District Deputy Commander for South Florida, states, in part:

“These changes are part of a civil works transformation process that will allow the Corps to deliver the best possible products and services to the nation. The objective of Civil Works transformation is to shape a sustainable portfolio of water resources infrastructure for the nation’s future.”

OK, so listen up all of you out there planning to make use of the very useful Okeechobee Waterway. No transiting the locks before 7:00 am, or after 7:00 pm. Otherwise, it’s business as usual on the Okeechobee Waterway!