Information Thread New Years Day Fun Run - Jan. 1/07 Route, Tide, Weather etc.

[Bobthebuilder]

Route:

Our starting point will be from the south side of the Sanibel Bridge. Boats should assemble around 11 AM and we will leave by 11:15 sharp.
Marco Island boats can meet me at the mouth of the Marco River. We will be at Gordon Pass to meet the Naples boats at 10:15 AM. From there we will head north to meet the main group of boats by 11:00 AM at the Sanibel Bridge. FMB and Bonita boats can pick us up on the way by or go directly to the SB. When we start our run we will go south and make a wide sweep around the bottom end of Sanibel Island [ do not cut the corner as this part of San Carlos Bay is shallow ] eventually going west into the Gulf and then north up the coastline staying a couple of miles offshore. If the seas are too rough, then the alternate route will be to run up the intercoastal. Some of the smaller boats may choose to run the intercoastal in any case. The offshore group will stop at Redfish Pass for a few minutes to wait for the back of the pack. From there we will make our way into the intercoastal via Boca Grande Pass and both groups will meet where Boca Grande Pass meets the intercoastal waterway about 3 miles north of Cabbage Key. From there we will head east into Charlotte Harbor making our way to Harpoon Harry's at Fisherman's Village in Punta Gorda. We should be there by 12:30 PM for lunch. Their docks will be reserved with yellow caution tape for our exclusive use.

Fuel / Distance:

We did not arrange for a fuel truck for this run as most boats should be able to do the complete run if they leave with full fuel.There were also issues with the firemarshall that cound not be overcome in a short time. From the Sanibel Bridge to Punta Gorda and back should be about 110 miles. The fuel dock will be open at Fisherman's Village Marina [ 89 octane ]. Also along the way is fuel at South Seas Plantation with 89 octane. If you need 93 octane fuel to get home please contact Salesmanship [Terry Sobo] as he is making arrangements with Sanibel Harbor Yacht Club. Since they are a private club with no credit fascility you will need to pay cash. There is 93 octane fuel available at the Cape Coral Yacht Club as well.

Food:

We will be ordering from their regular menu.

Communication:

Interboat communication to be on VHF channel 72. My cell number is 239-776-0481. Anyone dropping out after the start should let me know so we do not spend time either waiting or looking for you. Leave a voicemail message if no answer.

[Bobthebuilder]

Info continued,

After Lunch:

By 2:45 to 3 PM latest we need to be on our way. We will make our way back south probably running back in the intercoastal. For those interested there are some possible stops along the way back that can be discussed at lunch. Cabbage Key, Barnacle Phil's, Tween Waters etc. I expect the Marco and Naples boats will not have time to make another stop because of the distance and will continue on their way.

Pictures:

Jayboat will be in Marc's plane overhead taking group and individual pics along the way. They will join us for lunch. Jay will likely ride back south with me getting some water level pics on the way home. Thank you in advance Jay and Marc!!


Tide Information:

Punta Gorda: Low Tide 8:27 AM High Tide 12:19 AM Jan 2nd

Caloosahatchee River [CC Bridge] LT-9:02 AM, HT-12:28 AM Jan 2nd.

Punta Rassa [Sanibel Bridge] LT- 5:45 AM, HT- 10:12 PM

Estero Bay [Coconut Point] LT- 6:20 AM, HT- 10:26 PM

Naples Bay[north end] LT-5:27 AM, HT-12:54 PM, LT-5:18 PM

Marco River LT- 5:27, HT- 1:04 PM, LT- 5:11 PM

[Bobthebuilder]

Info continued:

Waypoints:

Marco Island: N 25 58 38; W 81 46 25

Gordon Pass [ Naples] N 26 05 50; W 81 48 67

Sanibel Bridge N 26 29 00; W 82 00 88

Redfish Pass - [Catch up stop # 1] N 26 33 14; W 82 12 70

Boca Grande Channel [ offshore] - N 26 41 78; W 82 17 90

Where Intercoastal meets Boca Grande - [ Catch up
stop # 2 ] N 26 42 88; W 82 14 62

Charlotte Harbor - Green # 5 - N 26 45 71; W 82 04 38

Punta Gorda [ Lunch stop Harry's ] - N 26 56 18; W 82 04 38


Weather/ Sea Conditions: Updated Monnday Jan. 1st, 2007 at 8:05 AM

As per the WEATHER CHANEL: http://www.weather.com
High 81 deg.
Partly to mostly cloudy with scattered showers and T storms developing this afternoon.
Winds S 10 - 15 MPH
40% chance of rain

As per NOAA:
http://www.nws.noaa.gov/
South West winds 10 - 15 knots becoming NW late in the afternoon. Seas 2-4 ft. Bay and inland waters light chop. Slight chance of showers in the morning .... then slight chance of showers and slight chance of thunderstorms in the afternoon.

Will continue to update each morning until 1st. Early morning of the 1st we will also check the weather radar and see what is happening out there. Final weather post will be on the morning of our run between 8 and 8:30 AM.

Safety:

Each Captain is required to operate his vessel in a safe manner and is responsible for his / her crew and their safety. Familiarize yourself with BSAFE [ Boating Safety Association for Events ]. Visit www.boatingsafe.org
When running in the intercoastal be aware that this can be a high traffic area and we ask that other boats be given a wide berth and that the rules of the road be paid attention to. We have an opportunity here to show that offshore boaters can go out and have a fun day on the water and be respectful of others and try and improve our sometimes tarnished image. This should be one of the goals of FMO.

Bob
cell - 239 776 0481
e mail bobthebuilder@rogers.blackberry.net

[NaplesBaja]

Bob,
I will make the usual contacts......John.

[jayboat]

Here's a map of the route-- according to Google Earth, looks like about 60 miles.

While I was looking at the area, the second map kinda jumped out at me as I thought about the Turkey Run and how lucky we are to live in such a great place for boating.

[jayboat]

Some shots of Harry's from a Fun Run back in April- nice deck with a great view of the harbor and plenty of dock space.

[Cig42X]

Hello Guys,

I am in for the fun run but the fuel is reeaal close for me if we are running hard.

Can we arrange a fuel truck at Harpoons or is there anywhere to get at least 93.

Any info will help, and cant wait to see you all again.

MAY ALL OF YOU HAVE A BLESSED HOLIDAY.

John G

[Bobthebuilder]

Originally Posted by Cig42X

Hello Guys,

I am in for the fun run but the fuel is reeaal close for me if we are running hard.

Can we arrange a fuel truck at Harpoons or is there anywhere to get at least 93.

Any info will help, and cant wait to see you all again.

MAY ALL OF YOU HAVE A BLESSED HOLIDAY.

John G

Hello John and glad to hear you can make the run with us. I will see what I can come up with. I was figuring on taking on 100 gals of 89 at HH with some boost to get me home but if I can come up with some 93 would be better. Will let you know.
Bob

[copiercat]

suggestions for trimming some drive time down, as i live in Nokomis (venice) i was thinking about the drive all the way to sanibel to run north 25 miles from my house just to run south again and then drive north again, seems kinda crazy and i was wondering if there was a ramp somewhere in the middle that i could hook up with everyone at, or are other people joining in along the way as well
scott

[Bobthebuilder]

Originally Posted by copiercat

suggestions for trimming some drive time down, as i live in Nokomis (venice) i was thinking about the drive all the way to sanibel to run north 25 miles from my house just to run south again and then drive north again, seems kinda crazy and i was wondering if there was a ramp somewhere in the middle that i could hook up with everyone at, or are other people joining in along the way as well
scott

No ramps mid way that I know of. Pine Island Sound is a long ways from I - 75. One thought might be to launch around 11 at Punta Gorda and run south to meet the group then back for lunch. After lunch you could run with us for awhile and then break off and head back to the ramp. Would save a lot of driving. Maybe some others from up there can join you ? Let us know what works for you.
Bob