For this new study, the researchers tapped into a network of free-drifting instruments, known as Argo floats, to measure the movement of water up to a depth of 2,000 meters. Although faster currents were observed in 76 percent of the world’s ocean waters, the most dramatic changes were seen in the tropics.
Climate change models predicted ocean currents would speed up – but not this soon
NBC News
Argo Floats
NOAA
Argo float
There is always plenty to do around Charlotte Harbor, especially during early Spring. When you are berthed at Fishermen’s Village Marina, A CRUISERS NET SPONSOR, you will enjoy your visit to beautiful Charlotte Harbor.
FISHERMEN’S VILLAGE TO HOST ANNUAL ST. PATRICK’S DAY CELEBRATION
Punta Gorda, FL—Fishermen’s Village will play host to a St. Patrick’s Day Celebration, Tuesday,
March 17, 2020 with festivities beginning at 12 noon and continuing until 9 pm. The event is free and the public is encouraged to attend.
Originally from Boston, Eddie Dillon is a multi-instrumentalist – guitar, mandolin, banjo & bass
blended with a little Irish wit! Singer/Songwriter Mark Fitzpatrick has toured with Ireland’s famous folk singers, The Clancy Brothers.
Village Restaurants will feature Irish food specials (call for details/reservations)
Fishermen’s Village is located off Marion Avenue, Punta Gorda, FL. 941 639-8721 www.fishville.com.
Kathy Burnam
Marketing/Events Manager
Fishermen’s Village
mkting@fishville.com
1200 W. Retta Esplanade #57A
Punta Gorda, Florida 33950
P 941 575-3007
M 941 258-1327
F 941 637-1054
Click Here To View the Cruisers Net Western Florida Marina Directory Listing For Fishermen’s Village
Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of Fishermen’s Village
A voice from the past, Claiborne Young, founder of Cruisers Net, posted this 2010 editorial regarding Florida anchoring regulations and thus joined the battle between state bureaucrats and cruisers over restrictions on anchoring rights. To read the entire posting and the resulting comments from fellow cruisers, see Salty Southeast Cruisers’ Net Anchoring Rights Editorial Reprise. For more from Claiborne on anchoring rights, see Florida Anchoring Rights/Regulations.
A Salty Southeast Cruisers’ Net Editorial by Claiborne S. Young
Almost everywhere I go, one question keeps popping up time after time; some variation of, `Claiborne, where are all these Florida anchorage regulations coming from?’ Well, I am going to attempt to answer that question within this article/editorial, AND why I think most of these proposed prohibitions are unnecessary and probably harmful.
First, let’s dispose of two less than savory reasons why Floridian anchorage regulations have made an appearance, stretching all the way back to the early 1990’s.
1. Local and county governmental officials see anchorage regulations as a way to expand their department’s authority, or, in bureaucrat-ese, “expand their turf.”
2. There are a group of very wealthy Floridians, who, by virtue of their finances, have more than their fair share of political influence. And, they simply do not want to walk out in their backyards, and see anchored boats on the water. I once heard one property owner of this ilk testify that whenever he was on the water, he ALWAYS saw cruising craft dumping untreated sewage and trash overboard. Talk about a bald faced lie if I ever heard one!
Those favoring anchorage regulation for one of the above two reasons are beneath my contempt, and that of the entire cruising community. Haven’t we had enough of self-serving government officials and overreaching, wealthy property owners? Enough said!
Then, there are concerns about `noise pollution’ and trespassing. Who among us has not dropped the hook in some quiet corner of the world, only to have another vessel show up across the way, and proceed to play loud music into the small hours. Not a fun night.
I, myself, have watched, on rare occasions, as less than sanguine cruisers pull their dinghies onto someone’s back yard, and then gaily go off to the grocery store, as if it was their right to land the dink wherever they pleased. No wonder some waterside property owners have erected large `No Trespassing’ signs.
In populated regions, noise pollution and trespassing are real problems. However, I have a very simple solution for these two anchorage concerns.
There are already trespassing and `disturbing the peace’/noise pollution laws on the books of virtually every municipality and county in America. One local water cop enforcing these regulations should solve the problem nicely.
And, that brings us to the issue which I think is front and center in what I will term as the `honest’ attempts to regulate anchorage (as opposed to the `dishonest’ #1 and #2 reasons listed above). Can you guess what this issue might be?
I won’t keep you in suspense. Abandoned vessels and what I will term, live-aboard `hulks,’ are, without any question in my tiny mind, the #1 threat to anchoring rights throughout Florida for the rest of us. We’ve all seen vessels at anchor which have been sitting in the same spot for months on end, without anyone being aboard. And then, most of us have also gazed in wonder at `boats’ which look as if they are going to sink any moment, and then we see someone come on deck. Have you, like me, asked yourself, `Does someone actually live on that thing?’
Abandoned vessels and live-aboard hulks are safety and health risks, not to mention being more than a little bit unsightly. They often break free during bad weather, and impact other vessels or private property. And, as to the untreated waste being dumped overboard from the hulks, best not to think too closely on that topic.
Think this isn’t a serious issue? Consider the two e-mails below which I received shortly after publishing my last `Anchorage Rights/Regulations Analysis:’
Dear Claiborne,
Thanks for the update and more than that, the great service you provide boaters. On the subject of anchoring rights however, I feel you and others in the cruising community need to take a more balanced stand.
I live near Sarasota so see almost on a daily basis the derelict or near-derelict boats moored off the city waterfront. They are ugly, dangerous – occasionally coming adrift in bad weather – and in many cases unoccupied. For those that live aboard I suspect the concept of a pump out is totally alien. Then try anchoring overnight in the Boca Grande basin. My wife and I were there a couple of months ago and, contrary to your 2006 article it seemed virtually all occupied by “long term” cruisers ( I use the term charitably), many in dilapidated condition. Again, I wonder about frequency of pump out for some of these boats.
Most of us are responsible cruisers, for whom a limitation of several days, perhaps a week, in one location is not a large imposition. I feel we would be better served by meeting local communities half way and working towards a compromise that retains the ability of the cruising majority to cruise, while dealing with the minority that give all of us a bad name.
Peter Morris
Or, this one:
Hi Claiborne,
I am an advocate for anchoring rights. But I have to point out that many places in California have had severe restrictions on anchoring for some time. Long Beach Harbor used to allow overnight anchoring behind some oil platforms but that “right” was taken away a number of years ago. Marina Del Rey, Redando Beach, and San Pedro have no anchoring. Newport Beach has a small restricted area, but you are not allowed to leave the boat unattended. Dana Point also has this restriction. San Diego has restricted anchorages, and most require a permit to use. Even Catalina Island has defacto lack of anchorages, by the massive mooring fields and harbor masters who will not allow anchoring in many parts of the harbors–so that at the Isthmus and Avalon, you have to anchor in more than 100 feet, and often in areas of poor holding and subject to weather.
I did discuss the anchoring situation with our local marine resource officer in Pensacola, and there is no plan for restriction, as long as the vessel is outside of the navigable channel. I asked about the mooring field, and was told that the stipulations put on this were so great by the state that they would not be practical economically–I tend to agree. I do believe it is more for control, than to provide a service or help the mariner.
A bill introduced this week in Washington, D.C., aims to phase out certain single-use plastic products and hold corporations accountable for wasteful products they produce. Such legislation is good news for wildlife and inhabitants of our southeast coasts where plastic has become so invasive.
Bill Phases Out Many Single-Use Plastics
Coastal Review Online
This staff report is on the FWC February agenda and includes details outlining restrictions on anchoring in Florida waters. These setback distances are pertinent in light of Georgia’s recent extreme setbacks.
MEMORANDUM
To: Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commissioners
From: Colonel Curtis Brown, Director, Division of Law Enforcement
Date: February 20, 2020
Subject: Staff Report – Anchoring and Mooring Pilot Program/Derelict Vessel Report
Purpose:
Provide a report on the results of the 2009 Anchoring and Mooring Pilot Program and the status of the
Derelict Vessel removal efforts.
Why:
How vessels are stowed, parked, and moored in Florida waters is a topic of great public interest across
Florida and staff want to ensure Commissioners are kept apprised of current activities in this area and the
most recent information on Derelict Vessel removal efforts.
Top Points:
1. The 2009 Anchoring and Mooring Pilot program resulted in the capture of best practices in order to
recommend statewide changes to address issues legislatively.
2. Legislation was passed in 2017 as a direct result of a 242-page report sent to the Florida Legislature
and the Governor in January of 2017.
3. The status of FWC Derelict Vessel removal efforts is good, with the Grant Program receiving a
marked increase in participation after FWC grant rule changes went into effect on November 29, 2019.
Affected Parties:
The general boating public, local residents and waterfront property owners and many county and municipal
government partners responsible for derelict vessel removals within their jurisdiction
Summary:
The Anchoring and Mooring Pilot Program began as an effort to address growing conflicts between the
enjoyment of Florida’s waterways and the activities of anchoring and mooring upon state waters. This effort
began in 2006 when stakeholder concerns were brought to the Commission. Staff sought the advice of the
Florida Boating Advisory Council (BAC) in April 2007. The BAC suggested that the Commission seek
clarification from the Florida Legislature on the appropriate roles of local and state authority to regulate
vessels.
At the June 2007 Commission meeting, staff was directed move forward with requesting clarification from
the Florida Legislature as recommended by the BAC. Public input on anchoring and mooring issues was
collected through 6 public meetings throughout the state attended by 273 stakeholders and a number of
common concerns were identified. Further stakeholder engagement with over 700 additional stakeholders,
resulted in a final recommendation which was approved by the Commission at their December 2008
meeting. This recommendation was submitted to the Legislature during the 2009 Legislative session and as
a result s.327.4105, Florida Statutes (F.S.) was enacted establishing authority to conduct an Anchoring and
Mooring Pilot Program.
FWC was required to submit a report on the pilot program findings and recommendations to the Governor,
the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives by January 1, 2014. The pilot
program and all ordinances adopted under the program would have expired on July 1, 2014; however, it was
reenacted and extended by the Legislature with a new expiration date of July 1, 2017, and a requirement for
an updated report to be submitted by January 1, 2017. The 2017 legislative session produced s. 327.4109
F.S., which regulated anchoring or mooring by:
• Establishing a 150-foot setback for anchoring around marinas, boat ramps, boat yards and other
vessel launching or loading facilities;
• Establishing a 300-foot setback from anchoring around any superyacht repair facility;
• Establishing a 100-foot setback from anchoring around the outward boundary of a marked public
mooring field. Anchoring within a public mooring field was prohibited outside of the established
exemptions within the statute.
• Prohibited tying to an unpermitted object attached to the water bottom (to prevent the proliferation
of unpermitted moorings statewide).
• Making all of these new violations noncriminal infractions punishable for a first offense, up to a
maximum of $50, for a second offense, up to a maximum of $100, and for a third or subsequent
offense, up to a maximum of $250, and included them in the list of mailable citations.
In addition, other legislative changes included the addition of the effective means of propulsion for safe
navigation test as a way to reduce the change of a vessel becoming derelict and increasing the penalty
section for expiration of vessel registration to require a mandatory court appearance and a $500 fine for
second and subsequent violations after 6 months. Local governments were also given authority to
implement a proof of pumpout ordinance for vessels at anchor in a public mooring field for a period of 10
consecutive days of more. This provision was contingent upon the availability of pumpout facilities within
the jurisdiction establishing the program. Finally, changes were made to the derelict vessel statute to allow
for actual notification of a derelict vessel in person as opposed to notification by certified mail and the
ability to freeze the title of a derelict vessel to prevent the sale of the vessel while in a derelict condition.
The update on Derelict Vessels will include an overview of the Grant program including the number of
Grant applications received, executed contracts, vessels scheduled to be removed and the amount of funding
obligated for removal.
Staff Recommendation:
No action is requested at this time, but input from Commissioners is welcomed.
Staff Contact and/or Presenter:
Major Robert Rowe, Section Leader, Division of Law Enforcement, Boating and Waterways Section
News you can use from NOAA Planet Stewards.
Planet Stewards Program – The Watch – February 12, 2020
Our thanks to James Newsome and Ted Arisaka for sharing their mathematical musings on prohibited anchoring acreage contained in Georgia HB 201.
So my friend James Newsome (co founder of Facebook Group “Save Georgia’s Anchorages” https://www.facebook.com/groups/SaveGeorgiasAnchorages/ ) and I were ruminating about the impact of a single structure of a waterfront property owner now taking exclusive control of a huge swath of waterway and prohibiting anchoring.
We believe the structure now causes unreasonable obstruction to navigation and have started discussions with US Army Corps of Engineers as they have a role in administering the permitting process for these waterfront structures under PGP0083 – but that’s a topic for another day.
A semi circle defined by a radius of 1000ft off a waterfront property owner’s structure is 36 acres.
So how can we picture one acre? A football field is approximately 1.32 acres.
(Ref: https://www.stack.com/a/how-many-acres-is-a-football-field)
So 36 Acres / 1.32 Acres per football field = 27.3 football fields!
I’ve heard about unsportsman like conduct when one kid takes the bat and ball and goes home and ends the game for everyone. Looks like this time the one kid is taking the bat the ball and 27 football fields away to end the game for everyone.
For those of you interested in the math:
A semi circle with a 1000ft radius from a structure is equivalent to 36 acres.
Area of a circle = p r2 so 3.14 * (1000ft)2 = 3,140,000 square feet
1 acre = 43560 square feet
So the area of that semi circle = 3,140,000 sq ft / 43560 sq ft per acre / 2 = 36.0 Acres
A football field is approximately 1.32 acres.
(Ref: https://www.stack.com/a/how-many-acres-is-a-football-field)
36 Acres / 1.32 Acres per football field = 27.3 football fields
Bahamas Chatter is produced by Explorer Chartbooks, A CRUISERS NET PARTNER, which has long been the standard navigational supplement for enjoyable, informative, and safe cruising through the beautiful Bahamian waters and island visits.
Bahamas Chatter: Bad Electronic Chart
Posted: 10 Feb 2020 03:18 PM PST
This is from a cruising yachtsman in The Bahamas this month:
Here is another “oops” story!
We met a sailor who has a large power catamaran.
He loves to anchor at the south end of Big Farmers Cay.
He told us he took a short cut to get out of the anchorage and ran aground and had to power through the sand to get out. We couldn’t believe he even tried it. He said his plotter showed 7 feet there and he had a Garmin. We insisted he come aboard and look at the paper Explorer charts (which he had, but left home). He was amazed that the data on the plotter was not the same as the chart. He also said he had his iPad aboard but he had updated it and lost the Explorer charts on the Garmin Blue Charts app.
We included a screen shot of Navionics for that area and he ran aground north of the wreck while trying to jump the bar. Navionics shows 7’.. .
We explained to him that Explorer data was no longer on that Garmin plotter.
We told him he should be using his eyeballs but he trusts his instruments. We explained why that doesn’t work in a Bahamas boating scenario!!!
So much of what is depicted here in this Navionics chart is pure fiction & makes us wonder how this data was accumulated. It is a physical impossibility that a boat had occupied the position north of the wreck & recorded a sounding of 7.7 or 9.2’unless they were there on 10’ high tide & forgot to apply a tidal offset. The Explorer chart shows “Sand nearly dry a low Water”.
NOTE from Explorer: If you have a Garmin chart plotter with data before February 2019, (BlueChart G2) that is Explorer data. After Feb. 2019 (G3) is Navionics, NOT Explorer data.
BoatUS has taken up the cause of boaters urging the repeal of an extremely restrictive anchoring law recently enacted by the Georgia legislature. See Save Georgia’s Anchorages.
BoatUS Calls On Georgia Governor to Fix
Draconian Anchoring Law: Asks Boaters to Speak Up Now
Legislation greatly restricts the right to anchor
ATLANTA, Feb. 6, 2020 – In a letter sent recently to Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, Boat Owners Association of The United States (BoatUS) urges the governor to reconsider regulations recently put in place restricting overnight anchoring within 1,000 feet of any structure, such as public and private docks, wharves, bridges, piers and pilings, except in areas near marinas. The national advocacy, services and safety group also asks recreational boaters to send a message now to the state of Georgia regarding the new prohibitive anchoring law.
With 16,000 BoatUS members in the state, BoatUS Vice President of Government Affairs Chris Edmonston says in the letter that the new rule effectively removes from public use a significant portion of the state’s waters, representing a departure from the long-held public trust doctrine.
With little notice or engagement with boating stakeholder groups, the Georgia Legislature approved, and the governor signed, House Bill 201 in the 2019 session. This legislation directs the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to develop rules regarding the anchoring of vessels in estuarine areas of the state. Georgia DNR then proposed a rule that raised significant concerns with the boating community, including BoatUS and the grassroots group Save Georgia’s Anchorages, which was created in response to the draconian law.
Said Edmonston, “This 1,000-foot offset needlessly eliminates anchorages all over the state. It will affect numerous boaters, many of whom transit Georgia waters as part of the annual migration along the Intracoastal Waterway. There is no reasonable safety or waterway-management reason for taking such a significant swath of state waters from the boating public. Boating and fishing are the second largest outdoor recreational activity in Georgia, bringing in well over $500 million a year in economic activity. Eliminating scores of anchorages will put a severe damper on this very important economic driver to many coastal areas that gain from boater spending.”
Edmonston notes DNR did create so-called “Marina Zones” that allow boaters to anchor as close as 300 feet to marinas or facilities that provide fuel, dinghy access, provisions, vessel maintenance or other services, regardless of whether other structures exist nearby. “This can only lead to the conclusion that the reason for the greater offset from privately owned structures outside these zones was to provide waterfront landowners with near exclusive use and enjoyment of our shared waterways,” said Edmonston.
BoatUS believes the final rule runs counter to the public trust doctrine as codified in Georgia Code § 52-1-2 (2015) which states: “The State of Georgia, as sovereign, is trustee of the rights of the people of the state to use and enjoy all tidewaters which are capable of use for fishing, passage, navigation, commerce, and transportation, pursuant to the common law public trust doctrine.” BoatUS notes the anchoring of vessels is an integral part of navigation.
2/12/20 Boating groups blast new anchoring rules as too restrictive
Savannah Morning News
Boats at anchor in Georgia under fire. Great photo by Craig Rowdon, member of FB Group "Save Georgia's Anchorages" who has allowed multiple media outlets to use his photo.
With a closed vertical clearance of 31ft, Ben Sawyer Bridge is the last bridge before Charleston Harbor when southbound. Opened in 1945, the Ben Sawyer Bridge serves as the connection from Mount Pleasant to Sullivan’s Island.
2 Your Roots: The Ben Sawyer Bridge
WCBD News 2
Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of Ben Sawyer Bridge
A number of years ago, we were passing through the bridge. I called the bridge operator and asked if she knew she had been voted the best bridge operator by an ICW user group. She was tickled pink, and I told her it was deserved. We have only passed through the bridge a half dozen times or so on our spring-fall migrations, and it was always a pleasant experience (even when I just missed it a couple of times).
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