Thank you all for the input. I fly back into St Pete late Thursday evening through Sunday evening. If anyone is interested in lunch or dinner around Sarasota or Fort Myers area, I would definitely listen to what you have to say - my treat. I'm just looking for as much input as I can get.

Thanks,
Chad

They talk about red tide just about every day on the local news...but, in the 8 years that I've lived here, there has only been two instances that my wife and I actually felt the symptoms. Itchy, scratchy throat and it kind of temporarily takes your breath away. As soon as you get out of that area, the symptoms go away. No big deal as far as I'm concerned and we do A LOT of boating. Now for the tricky part... We all know that the news influences how people think and we do have some people who we know that swear that they feel it every time that they leave the house and some of them have even stopped boating because they are convinced that the evil red tide is gonna kill them! LOL

You don't notice it so much being out on the boat as you do on the beach especially when you get surf breaking and driving it into the air.

First couple weeks.in January you couldn't breathe at the beach down in Naples if there was anything but a east wind.

No dinner or drinks need to be bought. Scott and I are on the back deck of the Pencil Pusher after we get out of the bilge theses days. C-dock in front of Parrot Key At the end of Main Street down by the Shrimp boats

Lots of good people and laughs, grab whatever your drinkin and come on board.

Depends if you have a North or south wind. Once it gets up in in Boca Grande in the summer it just brews.

No disrespect to Old-school but he has only been here a few years and doesn't live nor spend time on the beach, I was in and out of the parasail business for 25 years in Bonita and Naples and lived a 1/4 mile from the beach when not working on it everyday.

Redtide is Real. Covid is a Scam. A good chemical mask would actually be effective on a good rough water Day on the beach when redtide is present.

Has there been any discussion at the state level on how to perhaps reduce the levels of it or the frequency if it is even possible? Nature is going to do it's thing but I have read that depending on inland rain fall & water levels at inland lakes as well that release into the gulf they may be able to limit it. . We had a zebra muscle scare here at LOTO a few years back when they found there way into the water and now its not a problem, they found that higher water temps kill them in the summer and if temps are not high enough the annual spring draw downs (lowering lake level) kills them as well so we have had no issues. Certainly aware there not gonna lower the water levels in the ocean !!

There is a huge problem here with Okeechobee dumping into the water way that connects both sides, the water is loaded with Nitrogen running into the water from all the Sugar Cane fields.

Has Florida "talked" and studied the issues with that and the issues we have on this side with the Lagoon. Sure have,,,,, even raised taxes to pay for stuff.

Very little gets done.At least on this side, it moves as fast as a glacier.

EDIT: I was on a web presentation about the poor quality of water and lack of sea grass over on the east coast. Its been bad for many years. But now something may happen because Manatee's are dying from a lack of food since all the sea grass is gone. There is a collation that is trying to get the governor to declare a emergency.

Thanks for the info all, timely thread with the migration taking place within your state with all the new folks heading south, I would be one of those !! I hate being stuck in traffic, air & water quality would be tops of course.

Hey fellow PG resident! For us, PGI was one of the last places on the Gulf coast you could buy a nice house on the water without breaking the bank. It still is.........IF you can find anything for sale. We got luck and moved here a year ago when there was a ton of inventory and got the pick of the litter. Didnt read the whole thread but Sarasota and Ft Myers is a little too urban for me, and thats coming from a guy who came from Los Angeles. But to each their own. We just wanted a recently built house on the water with a boat parked out back.....and the Snowbirds make great neighbors. Hell....most of the women on the block bring me baked goods!

Good to have neighbors that are keeping you Baked.