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Rough Water

Posted: Mon Jun 13, 2011 7:49 pm
by Ron Burgundy
I took the family for a cruise to the islands yesterday and we had a great time. After hangin' on the beach for a while and eating lucnch we decide to cruise around a little bit. We head south along the sandbar towards the larger island named Anclote Key. These barrier islands offer some protection from the waves created out in the open Gulf. The islands are surrounded by a shallow sandy bottom of only a foot or two in spots. Between the big island and the small island there is a natural 'deep water' channel that is about 18 feet deep. This is where most of the larger fishing boats go when they are heading out for a day of Grouper hunting.

Anyway, I head around the bend and motor into the channel. I've done this before. It's usually no big deal. Today was a little bit different. The tide was dropping very fast. Earlier when we were anchored at the sandbar it felt like we were walking in a river the water was moving so fast. Imagine how it was moving through this small deep water channel. It was creating some standing waves about two feet high. On top of that there was a fresh breeze blowing from the NW that was kicking up a couple feet of wind waves. On top of that a 40 foot deep sea fishing boat is heading out going probably 20 knots kicking up at least a three foot wake. Waves were coming from all directions...some converging and jacking up in front of us.

It was a little bumpy to say the least. It never got to the point where I thought the boat was in danger, but I think I pushed it to the limit.


My boat anchored at the sandbar before we hit the Rough Water.

Image


Sandbar was jam packed.

Image

Re: Rough Water

Posted: Mon Jun 13, 2011 8:17 pm
by GregF
We talked about this before. Those passes can get pretty nasty.
Be careful out there. Sometimes you have to just slow down and stick your nose in a big wake and ride it out.
We try to stay inshore in the bay on days like that. If you are poking around in the mangrove in 2 feet of water, you won't be getting any big boat wakes but you might get a good laugh if they see you there and think it will be OK for them.

Re: Rough Water

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2011 5:48 am
by Ron Burgundy
GregF wrote:We talked about this before. Those passes can get pretty nasty.
Be careful out there. Sometimes you have to just slow down and stick your nose in a big wake and ride it out.
We try to stay inshore in the bay on days like that. If you are poking around in the mangrove in 2 feet of water, you won't be getting any big boat wakes but you might get a good laugh if they see you there and think it will be OK for them.
I usually stay inshore also, but I was surprised this time. It didn't seem that windy. I think the tide dropping so quickly was what made the difference...and the 40 Trawler heading out.

I still haven't dug the nose into a wave yet. How does the boat handle during a situation like that? Any tips for riding it out? I assume I would slow down and wait for the water to run off the deck.

Re: Rough Water

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2011 6:56 am
by playcat
Works for me. The times it happened the boat was on the back side of the first or second wave and the next wave came over the rails. Both times it was due to a much larger vessel (one was a 500 foot container ship) wake as we met in a narrow channel. I slowed way down but if the boat were shorter we would have rode it like a duck, about ten feet longer and we would have crested the waves. Poop happens

Re: Rough Water

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2011 10:10 am
by GregF
Ron, those outgoing tides can really pile up a lot of water in the passes.
You are dumping 10 or 15 square miles of water out of a few small holes. In fact in a storm it can actually blow a new hole through those barrier islands. All it needs to do is over top a low spot and that spot then becomes the new pass. That is the down side of living in a sand box. The up side is you can shoot a 20' pipe under your driveway with a hose ;)

Re: Rough Water

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2011 11:00 am
by Ron Burgundy
GregF wrote:Ron, those outgoing tides can really pile up a lot of water in the passes.
You are dumping 10 or 15 square miles of water out of a few small holes. In fact in a storm it can actually blow a new hole through those barrier islands. All it needs to do is over top a low spot and that spot then becomes the new pass. That is the down side of living in a sand box. The up side is you can shoot a 20' pipe under your driveway with a hose ;)

Yep. Between Caladesi Island and Honeymoon Island there is a pass named Hurricane Pass. Formed during a hurricane.

Re: Rough Water

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2011 1:53 pm
by GregF
Yep. Between Caladesi Island and Honeymoon Island there is a pass named Hurricane Pass. Formed during a hurricane.
I know of at least a half dozen of those along the Gulf coast. Near me we have "New Pass" and "Redfish Pass".

We also have Blind Pass (not the one on St Pete Beach) that is going the other way and closing up.

SanCap road was the only thing that kept Charley from blowing a hole across Captiva Island around Tween Waters Inn. Most of the sand was gone.

Re: Rough Water

Posted: Fri Jul 29, 2011 6:38 pm
by Ron Burgundy
I finally got my film processed. Yes, I still use film. You know that obsolete stuff we all used to put into our camera's. Anyway, I have a photo of the boat I passed that threw me for a loop.

I took this photo in open water, but we passed in a narrow channel with deep water (18 feet is deep for this area) on a fast outgoing tide. The islands are sheltering the waves in these photos, but it was choppy in the pass.

Good learning experience...don't think I'll do it again. :puke


Image


He wasn't on a plane so it was pushing a pretty big wake.
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Re: Rough Water

Posted: Sat Jul 30, 2011 3:16 am
by johnathan
Beautiful photos Ron !

Re: Rough Water

Posted: Sun Jul 31, 2011 6:24 am
by Ron Burgundy
johnathan wrote:Beautiful photos Ron !

Thanks.

Re: Rough Water

Posted: Sun Jul 31, 2011 11:05 am
by DonCabo
Gorgeous boating out there! The water looks beautiful; great photos. I didn't realize the Gulf was so shallow.

I've hit some big wakes recently... 36". Hitting them on a 45 degree angle or almost dead on, and with a 24' toon, I seem to get up and ride the rest of the wake waves and it seems like it's usually just the initial wake that causes a splash and the boat to be effected.

Coming from my conventional 24' cruiser, this 'toon handles the wake and waves seemingly better.

Re: Rough Water

Posted: Sun Jul 31, 2011 7:22 pm
by GregF
Yep this whole coast is a mile wide and a foot deep. If you look at the chart, you can be a mile or two offshore and still only in 15-20 feet of water. Back in the bays it can be wading depth just about anywhere.

http://esteroriverheights.com/docks/boa ... ro_bay.jpg

Re: Rough Water

Posted: Sun Jul 31, 2011 7:26 pm
by DonCabo
I grew up in salt water and tides, etc. I'm somewhat glad I'm on a lake now! I don't worry about anything. If I get below 25', I start getting paranoid. :drool

GregF wrote:Yep this whole coast is a mile wide and a foot deep. If you look at the chart, you can be a mile or two offshore and still only in 15-20 feet of water. Back in the bays it can be wading depth just about anywhere.

http://esteroriverheights.com/docks/boa ... ro_bay.jpg

Re: Rough Water

Posted: Sun Jul 31, 2011 7:45 pm
by kryptonite
We just got home from lake of the ozarks. It was the roughest water ive ever been on so far. The toon took waves bigger than i expected. Took some 3-4 footers and barely got any water on the floor. If they are short waves its no problem. If the waves are longer thab the boat it got interesting, but never scary.

Re: Rough Water

Posted: Sun Jul 31, 2011 8:05 pm
by Ron Burgundy
GregF wrote:Yep this whole coast is a mile wide and a foot deep. If you look at the chart, you can be a mile or two offshore and still only in 15-20 feet of water. Back in the bays it can be wading depth just about anywhere.

http://esteroriverheights.com/docks/boa ... ro_bay.jpg

We are even more shallow up here. The island I go to is about 4 miles out and the depth is between 7-9 feet all the way. I can look over the side of the boat at full speed and see the grassy sandy bottom.