Guided Discovery: Hingham to Sarasota: Crossing Florida on the Okeechobee

Reader Note: You may have noticed that I have caught up. This is the direct benefit of being in lovely weather with calm waters and a competent crew. Thank you Dick and Phil.

We departed Sunset Bay Marina (Stuart) at 6:33 AM on Tuesday and headed west on the St Lucie River. The weather forecast for the two day 135 nautical mile trip on the Okeechobee Waterway was for sunny skies with moderate winds our of the northwest. We were in for two perfect days of cruising. Time to use the flybridge, which up to now was only used for docking.

Today's destination was the city of Clewiston at the south end of Lake Okeechobee.

The day got even better and very quickly. Dick noticed a large Hatteras cruiser astern and suggested we call and find out if they have local knowledge. Turns our the folks on the Hatteras had the same idea but for a different reason. They wanted to keep pace with us so as not to get delayed at locks.

80 foot Hatteras following us in the St.

We connected with them and agreed to cruise together. The yacht, Vegas Girl out of Miami, was a 1998 80 foot Hatteras captained by Capt. Jim Ellinor. He had a crew of two and was headed north to Sarasota. Jim indicated that he had crossed the Okeechobee Waterway at least a hundred times. We agreed that he would take the lead.

Garmin MFS configured for running the Okeechobee

Vegas Girl takes the lead

More good luck. The St Lucie Lock was open and we cruised right in at 7:40 AM. St Lucie lifted us 14.5 feet into the canal. The process took 40 minutes and the lock master was friendly and helpful.

Vegas Girl and Guided Discovery approach the St Lucie Lock

Vegas Girl entering the St Lucie Lock

Explanatory Note: Their are 5 locks on the Okeechobee Waterway. From east to west there's St Lucie, Port Mayaca at the eastern edge of the lake, Moore Haven, Oronto and Franklin at the beginning of the Calooshahatchee River. These are clean and extremely well run locks. The lock masters were friendly, informative and helpful. Negotiating these locks was actually a pleasure.

Okeechobee Locks and Lift:

St Lucie: Up 14.5 foot into the canal
Port Mayaca. Up 1 foot into Lake Okeechobee
Moore Haven:Down 4.5 feet
Oronto. Down 8 feet
Franklin: Down 2 feet into the Caloosahatchee River

We traversed the Port Mayaca Lock at 11:40 AM and entered Lake Okeechobee. Winds were out of the northwest with 1 foot waves. The cruise across the lake took 2 hours and 30 minutes. The route is well marked which makes handling the tricky waters off Clewiston very easy.

Earlier, after consultation with Captain Jim, we decided to bypass Clewiston and continue of to Moore Haven. The docking situation there is first-come-first-served on the City Dock. Jim agreed to let us raft with Vegas Girl if there turned out to be no more room at the inn.

Moore Haven Lock

We ran from Clewiston to Moore Haven in an hour and 25 minutes. The Okeechobee canals are wide and almost completely debris free. We negotiated the Moore Haven Lock at 3:40 PM and by 4:05 PM we were tied up at the Moore Haven City Dock. There was plenty of room and there was 50 AMP power. Note: A representative from the city came by and collected the one dollar a foot docking fee.

Guided Discovery at the Moore Haven City Docks

Jim and his crew mates, Melissa and Charles, joined us on the aft deck for drinks. Then we gave them a tour of Guided Discovery and they reciprocated with a tour of Vegas Girl. The crew ate on the boat owing to the fact that there was no restaurants or, for that matter, any other useful stores nearby.

Statistics:

Distance Today: 61.1 NM
Total Trip: 1,321.8 NM
Locks: 3
Fuel Consumed: 56 gallons

On Wednesday morning we departed at 6:37 AM for the Moore Haven to Captiva leg of the trip. Our plan was to stay at South Sea Resort on north end of Captiva and there connect with friends. I had planned a dinner with Jerry and Cathy Swerdlick who live on Captiva. They are my oldest friends (circa 1968). By sheer luck a group from Bird Key Yacht Club, where both Dick and Phil are members, were holding a rendezvous at South Seas. Phil had arranged dockage at the club rate. This was great as Jerry and Cathy live no more than a mile from the resort.

Again the weather was perfect, the canals were wide and deep (relatively speaking) and the locks were easy. We drove from the flybridge all day. It was glorious.

Cruising on the Okeechobee Canal

At 11:45 AM we departed the Franklin Lock and continued west on the Caloosahatchee River. The Caloosahatchee is wide with lots of shoals. However it is well marked. The navigation is straight forward until you get to the "miserable mile," which while clearly marked is very narrow. We traversed this segment late in the afternoon with the sun in our eyes. Actually the stretch, which allows you to make a direct line to the east side of Sanibel is considerably longer than a mile.

Skinny water at the junction of the ICW and the Caloosahatchee

At 4:30 PM we departed the Gulf ICW and turned west toward the channel that leads to Red Fish Pass. The entrance to South Seas' harbor is just before you get to Redfish. This channel is particularly narrow with a tricky turn at R20.

We arrived at the beautiful South Seas harbor at 4:45 PM. It was truly the fitting end to an extraordinary day of cruising.

Statistics - Moore Haven to Captive:

Distance Today: 75.3 NM
Total Trip: 1,395 NM
Locks: 2
Fuel Consumed: 55 gallons

Guided Discovery at South Sea Resort

Now started the evening's activities. Phil had invited his sister in law, Sue Miller, and her husband, John, to tour the 63. Shortly after they arrived my friends Jerry and Cathy arrived. Turns our the Millers knew the Swerdlicks and there was a joyful reunion.