Southbound Snowbirds Get Waterway Updates on New Message Board
by SailMiami.com staff
| Southbound Snowbirds Have
New Post-Hurricane Message Board, Marina & Waterway Updates At BoatUS.Com Following a record hurricane season, Boat Owners Association of The United States can help southbound snowbirds find their winter havens with a new "Hurricane Aftermath: Marina & ICW Reports" message board at BoatUS.com. This new service offers a place for ICW cruisers to share advice, ask questions, and spread the word about local conditions. Included are waterway updates by noted cruisers Tom & Mel Neale and updates of hurricane-affected marinas by Skipper Bob. The new "Hurricane Aftermath" information can be found under the "Message Board" area in the "Boater to Boater" section at http://www.BoatUS.comThe Neale's reports include waterway cruising information from boaters currently transiting the ICW, information from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Coast Guard, and their own experiences. Tom and Mel Neale have cruised over 100,000 miles since moving aboard in 1979. They write for major boating publications and a bi-weekly column on cruising, Tom Neale's Cruising for You, also at BoatUS.com, which includes regularly updated East Coast Alerts and tips. "This year Snowbirds will find that planning ahead is very important," said Tom Neale. "In some areas more than half of the marinas are closed for business or offering only limited services -- but that's not a reason to cancel the trip. It will just take a little more effort to find fuel, dockage, pumpouts or other services," he said. The Skipper Bob marina reports pass along information from boaters transiting the waterway and include marina ICW mile markers, operating status, phone number, and diesel, gas and transient dockage availability at dozens of marinas affected by hurricanes. Skipper Bob has traveled over 44,000 miles along the East Coast and ICW and published nearly a dozen cruising guides for those looking to save money while cruising. With information changing daily, BoatU.S. advises snowbirds to check the Hurricane Aftermath message board often - and phone ahead. Currently posted on the message board, BoatU.S. member and commercial ship captain Duane Lang reports that limited transient facilities and shoaling is leading some boaters to anchor dangerously close to busy waterways, potentially putting them in harm's way. "Commercial traffic seems to have increased as barges are bringing in a lot of supplies to rebuild," said Lang, who reports of some close calls at night as boaters have anchored in busy channels or not displayed an anchor light. "Boaters should also take extra care near 24-hour dredging operations which may not be fully lit, and always be on the lookout for floating debris. |