Port St. Joe, Apalachicola, Carrabelle as destinations or stopovers

[DragonflyBob]

Good day. We are looking for trip planning advice.

As being based on Lake Pontchartrain, we are looking at the western end of the Big Bend of Florida comprising St. Joseph Peninsula, Apalachicola Bay, and St. George Sound as eastern end destinations for coastal trips or stopovers for a longer trip down towards the west coast of the Florida peninsula.

What's the experience and advice on Port St. Joe, Apalachicola, and Carrabelle as:

1. Places to visit
2. Potentially places to leave a boat for a short period of time (a couple of weeks at the longest)

Appreciate any feedback or stories.

Cheers!

[Eventide]

You do NOT want to leave a boat unattended in that area.


But in my opinion that is true for most places around here.



That area of Florida is quite beautiful. It might be the last area in the State that is not over built. Florida is getting 1,000 new residents every day.


You can guess why, eh?


Good luck.




M.

[tkeithlu]

Speaking from the beautiful harbor of Carrabelle, I disagree. Many boats, several hundred at the moment, are here unattended and I've heard (I would) of no boats being stolen from for the last eight out of our ten years here.

Carrabelle has all the marine services, all within walking distance, slips at about $400 a month and more free anchorage than is being used. Groceries, bars, restaurants, hardware stores, and the like are all in walking distance, because the town curls around the harbor. The town has three small museums worth a visit. Often termed "a small drinking community with a fishing problem," Carrabelle has as a major claim to fame the only known Meridian St. that runs due East-West. One of the closer-to-normal citizens rides his lawnmower to the supermarket each week, usually without unhitching his boat first.

Carrabelle has easy access to the Gulf, separated from it by only four miles of sound. It is also the terminus of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (AKA the Ditch), so loopers tend to gather here before jumping to Clearwater.

PM me if you have questions outside the thread.

[Eventide]

Actually I love Carrabelle. I am a little further down the Gulf coast from you.


You did a great job extolling Carrabelle's benefits. C-Quarters is one of friendliest marinas anywhere, and Kim is A+. I would leave my boat at C-Quarters if I could slide a little gesture of my appreciation (beer money) toward someone I trusted to walk by and check on my boat each day. It is not just nefarious characters that concern me. Leaks and failing bilge pumps are much higher on my list.



I never leave my boat unattended. Just me I guess.


All the best.




M.


PS - I had a steel trawler next to me at a marina in the Keys for several years. Each time we saw each other I would ask him how life was treating him he always grinned and said..."rust never sleeps". Is that still true?

[Be Free]

Originally Posted by tkeithlu

...Often termed "a small drinking community with a fishing problem," ...

I thought that was Steinhatchee.

[DragonflyBob]

Thanks for the replies so far. We have a Dragonfly 32 trimaran and we just met another new Dragonfly owner who will be keeping his boat at his house which is on the east end of Choctawhatchee Bay. Our masts are too tall (62') for the Destin Pass Bridge as well as the Brooks Bridge in Fort Walton and the Navarre Bridge (government planning at its best!). He will be using the ICW to access St. Andrews Bay to get to the Gulf. He is from the area and told us that the stretch of coast from Port St. Joe to Carrabelle is well worth spending time around.

It's my understanding that you have to use the ICW from Port St. Joe to Apalachicola if you plan to transit from St. Joseph's Bay to Apalachicola Bay primarily due to the military exclusion zone off the coast around Cape San Blas.

Port St. Joe looks like a good destination to work from into St. Joseph's Bay as long as you have good anchoring tackle and good anchoring areas to handle easterly winds. Apalachicola Bay and St. George Sound look more user friendly for anchorages (and perhaps more interesting but I really am unfamilar with the areas).

[tkeithlu]

Tucking in behind Cape San Blas is a worthwhile stop. The water there is excellent for kayaking and observing marine life.

Going around the outside of Cape San Blas (Panbama city to Carrabelle, basically) is just fine. We've made it a routine passage, just using a safety waypoint for distance off the coast where shallow water extends from the cape.