Moorings in the Tampa Bay

[Cyane]

Hi all. Just wanted to ask where the best mooings were in the Tampa Bay area. Well I should say the most affordable also. Plan to liveaboard A Morgan O/I 415 but don't want to pay the price of a slip. Any suggestions?

[skipmac]

Why not use your own anchor? Totally free.

[Rakuflames]

Originally Posted by Cyane

Hi all. Just wanted to ask where the best mooings were in the Tampa Bay area. Well I should say the most affordable also. Plan to liveaboard A Morgan O/I 415 but don't want to pay the price of a slip. Any suggestions?

First of all, I disagree with the advice of using your own anchor. We can get bodacious thunderstorms here, and I have mentioned one we had here a year ago April, where 8 boats broke loose from their anchors one way or another and were driven aground.

That said, I know of two places where you might be able to do this. There is an informal mooring field off Davis Island (part of Tampa). There are live aboards out there. Get to know people and they watch out for you. I have a friend who keeps a boat there. He took the outboard off his boat and had a call within 12 hours from a live aboard out there that his outboard was missing. Make yourself a good mooring if you stay there.

The other place is on the other side of the bay, at the Vinoy Basin which is now a mooring field. I don't know who runs it or what the charge is and even whether or not they allow live-aboards. There are places to stay away from, and one of those would be the basin behind Bay Pines/Veterans Hospital. It has the reputation of drawing less "savory" boat owners.

If you can do it, my preference would be the Vinoy Basin site. To me, anything that gets you closer to the Gulf of Mexico is better because sailing around Tampa Bay will get pretty boring pretty fast.

[Rakuflames]

Oh PS -- those 8 boats I mentioned were all in one very small corner of Boca Ciega Bay, a relatively sheltered area.

[Sand crab]

Someone posted here that they owned land in the Sarasota area, I think. The land actually includes a portion of the water there. i don't know if it was bay or what. They invited cruisers to anchor there for free. That post had the survey plat showing the exact location. I'm not sure about long term or the details. Maybe someone here remembers that thread and where it was on the forum.

[skipmac]

Raku,

Respectfully, in general for a long term home for my boat I would trust my own anchor much more that a mooring unless I knew the type and size of the mooring, how it was installed and I had inspected it personally or knew and trusted the person who had done so, regularly and recently.

If boats drag their anchor in anything less than a major storm then 99% of the time they were not using enough scope, the proper gear or were anchored in an area of poor holding which should have been evaluated by the captain. The main exception is when other boats drag down onto your boat, then all bets are off.

[Cyane]

Thanks for the info. I have so much to learn. Can't wait to get on the water.

[Hudson Force]

Originally Posted by skipmac

Raku,

Respectfully, in general for a long term home for my boat I would trust my own anchor much more that a mooring unless I knew the type and size of the mooring, how it was installed and I had inspected it personally or knew and trusted the person who had done so, regularly and recently.

If boats drag their anchor in anything less than a major storm then 99% of the time they were not using enough scope, the proper gear or were anchored in an area of poor holding which should have been evaluated by the captain. The main exception is when other boats drag down onto your boat, then all bets are off.

I agree, proper scope and location are big factors. In addition, mooring fields are not a common in Florida compared to the northeast USA. The last time I was in Gulfport (near St. Petersburg) the town was considering a mooring field. I don't know the outcome, but you might want to check it out,- 'very nice place!

[Eddien]

St Pete has a basin just north of the city marina. They recently installed real moorings. Not sure about the cost.

[svHyLyte]

Vinoy Basin has 13 moorings that are managed by the St. Pete Muni Marina. They are priced at $13 (for under 40') to $18 (40' and above) per night, hence are largely intended for transient use as the monthly cost is comparable to marina fees but absent the amenities. One cannot anchor in the Basin any longer. The south basin is still open for limited use--limited being the operative word. For anchorages, refer to ActiveCaptain.com

FWIW...