Marinas around Charlotte Harbor (Punta Gorda)?

[RKsailsolo]

Considering move my Jeanneau 349 shoal draft and house buying efforts to SW FL. Any experience in the area is helpful.

[svHyLyte]

Originally Posted by RKsailsolo

Considering move my Jeanneau 349 shoal draft and house buying efforts to SW FL. Any experience in the area is helpful.

Click over to ActiveCaptain.com, register (it's free) and use the interactive cruising guide (Live Map) to view the area you are interested in. All of the marinas will appear together with reviews/comments by other cruisers.

FWIW...

[BeachbumKW]

Burnt Store Marina, Fishermans Village Marina, don't think you can make it under the 75 bridge to Laishley Marina

[RKsailsolo]

Originally Posted by BeachbumKW

Burnt Store Marina, Fishermans Village Marina, don't think you can make it under the 75 bridge to Laishley Marina

Yes, I see that my 51' air draft limits my house/slip search to areas west of both bridges. Bummer.

[BeachbumKW]

Oops I meant the 41 bridge. Tons of canal homes in Punta Gorda but not all are sail boat access. Pirate Harbor is a community off Charlotte Harbor but you will have draft issues there. With that said Charlotte Harbor is a wonderful sailing area, wife and I raced there. Might want to check out the Punta Gorda sailing club for some info as well.

[RKsailsolo]

Originally Posted by svHyLyte

Click over to ActiveCaptain.com, register (it's free) and use the interactive cruising guide (Live Map) to view the area you are interested in.

Thanks. We are excited about sailing Charlotte Harbor.

[svHyLyte]

Originally Posted by RKsailsolo

Thanks. We are excited about sailing Charlotte Harbor.

Fortunately you have the shoal draft version of the 349. The 6.5' full draft model would be a bit of a push for that area. That said, the Charlotte Harbor area is quite lovely. The next time you are visiting, you might want to stop by the Charlotte Harbor Yacht Club. It's a good club and I have no doubt members of the Sail Fleet would welcome you and be happy to fill you in on the area and sailing there abouts.

[rognvald]

Originally Posted by RKsailsolo

Thanks. We are excited about sailing Charlotte Harbor.

I would gladly trade my slip on Lake Michigan for one in Charlotte Harbor. However, there's better sailing in the Gulf of Mexico than you'll find in CH. The harbor is not that large with lots of thin areas around the edges. The water is largely murky until you get near the harbor mouth. However, the fishing is great, especially if you're a Tarpon specialist. There's some good anchoring on the Intercoastal to the SW. Anybody say "Cheeseburger in Paradise?" Good luck and safe sailing.

[rockDAWG]

Originally Posted by svHyLyte

Click over to ActiveCaptain.com, register (it's free) and use the interactive cruising guide (Live Map) to view the area you are interested in. All of the marinas will appear together with reviews/comments by other cruisers.

FWIW...

Bingo....

Some people don't like AC, not sure why. To me they are a Godsend. They provide the most up-to-date and centralized local knowledge for sailors. This is particular true in the East Coast and Caribbean sea.

Whenever I seek a safe harbor or look for Plan B and C options, Active Captain is my first go to. Their App are permanent resided in my iPhone and iPad.

Like everything else on the net, one needs to read careful, all of them and when the comments was made. With all that, one makes one's conclusion.

I hope more and more chart plotters will include AC in their program.

[RKsailsolo]

Rognvald, how thin? I mean, are there broad enough expanses of deeper water to sail?

[svHyLyte]

Originally Posted by RKsailsolo

Rognvald, how thin? I mean, are there broad enough expanses of deeper water to sail?

"Charlotte Harbor" is, generally, the body of water extending from Boca Grande Pass extending northeasterly to the mouth of the Peace River between Hog Island and Charlotte Park. The community of Port Charlotte is situated on the north side of the River to the east of Tamiami Trail/US Highway 41. Depths are normally in the range of 12 feet until well into the River mouth where depths drop to 8 feet or less in some areas. One does not need to travel very far from Port Charlotte to be in quite deep enough water for fun sailing.

Folks from other locales are often, if not universally intimidated by the shallow waters of southwest Florida, as was I when we first moved here. Where I came from, we had 20 feet of water under our keel when sitting in our slip at our yacht club so, coming here and having only 3 or 4 feet under our keel was quite nerve wracking at first. One does become accustomed to it however so long as one can reconcile oneself to the idea that one will run aground, sooner or later. Fortunately, however, the bottoms are generally soft mud or sand and usually quite flat and a grounding does little damage to other than one's ego most of the time.

To get a better idea of the area, click over to ActiveCaptain and use the Live Map. Selecting the "Nautical" display option will allow you to view the current chart of the area in great detail. As you will see, with your draft you shouldn't have much difficulty save in a few areas that you can easily avoid and/or transit via marked channels. The Charlotte Harbor/Pine Island Sound area and off-laying Keys are a great cruising ground that many pay small fortunes to visit for a few days or so each year. You will be most fortunate to live there if you choose to do so.

FWIW...

[sv Winterlude]

We sailed Charlotte Harbor for many years with a 5 1/2' draft. It's basically 10 miles E to W and 10 miles N to S. So no matter what the wind direction, you can sail Charlotte Harbor. And if the seas outside are big, CH is more like a lake. The waters have manatees and dolphins plus lots of fishing (we're not fisherpeople, but the fishing boats used to come back regularly with dinner). Our base was Burnt Store Marina -- it was the best option for our draft and being able to sail in 10 minutes - no motoring for a half hour or more to get to sailable water. But BSM is in the middle of nowhere, no easy transportation and a 20 minute+ drive to reach either Cape Coral or Punta Gorda. But nice pool/s and greenways for biking/walking, a good farmers market every Saturday during the season and whatever the bar/restaurant that used to be called Portobellos is called now. Right on site.

[Caribbeachbum]

A very good friend has his Cal 2-46 at Gasparilla Marina. It's a really nice facility, and the surrounding area -- Placida, FL -- is also quite nice. It does take a half-hour of motoring through a quite narrow channel to get out into sailing waters, though.

[rognvald]

Originally Posted by RKsailsolo

Rognvald, how thin? I mean, are there broad enough expanses of deeper water to sail?

RK,
The Northern part of Charlotte Harbor is a fairly narrow finger with thin edges and you'll be tacking quite a bit if you're daysailing. The Southern part of the harbor, closer to Boca Grande inlet, is more circular and has a bit more room but again you'll be tacking frequently(avoding shoals) with any considerable wind. This area is very good for a small keelboat (22 feet and under) but, for me, it is not a preferred sailing area for larger boats. If you look at Chart 11426 (see: NOAA's free online chart viewer) you can get a good feel for the area. The first time we sailed that area, we paid close attention to our charts until we felt comfortable that we knew how far we could tack in any direction. I'm certain there might be others who feel otherwise, but you'll find out once you're on the water. However, if you're at the top of the harbor(North), it's a nice sail South and out the inlet past the R "2" bell sea buoy and into the Gulf--my preferred daysail if I lived in that area. There's also some good gunkholing/anchoring on the east side of Gasparilla Island, Pelican Bay and the Cabbage Keys. We once sat out a lengthy 50 knot blow to the west of Usseppa Island in 8-10 feet of sand and gravel just off the main channel and were very protected. Hope this helps. Good luck and safe sailing.

[RKsailsolo]

Fantastic info, thank you all for your insights!