Places to boat in your state.

[FUJIMO]

...i hear the boating around new smyrna beach florida is pretty nice...all year 'round......

[Will hedrick]

Ky lake in middle tn is my favorite pickwick through ky dam, but got to know where you at around the duck river north as when tva flooded it there is rock and timber/ stumps if you leave the channel, summer- winter pool varies about 6 ft. Which covers a lot of obstructions on the flats

[JBS]

As a kid, my family went all over different lakes in Georgia and Alabama . We also did a lot of boating in the Gulf and the South Atlantic all the way up to Cape cod. After 55 years of being on the water commercially and recreationly, I keep it simple. I run the Paramount on the ICW in Savannah. We have a cabin on Lake Martin in Alabama where I keep a skiff on a lift our dock. The V21 is going to live over there soon

[mr fun]

THA KEYS , everything after that takes succeding step's down. you can candy coat your favorite nook up the creek ,,, the crystal clear water's of the keys cannot be topped. Fun Out

[FUJIMO]

THA KEYS , everything after that takes succeding step's down. you can candy coat your favorite nook up the creek ,,, the crystal clear water's of the keys cannot be topped. Fun Out

...agreed...

[H2OPERF]

Finding a place to launch and park is anther story.

[JBS]

Finding a place to launch and park is anther story.

The Keys and south Florida has beautiful waters,just too many people.When I was younger,that was great,now not so much.

[H2OPERF]

We were on the boat last Friday and my wife said the same thing... We have wanted to retire in the keys our entire life and now we both are done with the crowds and inconsiderate people on the water down here these days. We are looking at st johns area now. The ramps at Black point and Matheson are full by 9am every weekend and are a total shttt show.

[Instigator]

Agreed on Fla.
We saw it when we lived there.

Niw post pandemic….., can’t even imagine.

I hate it for you guys that are true “Crackers” or have been down there a long time.

[Instigator]

Lets add an ingredient to the equation.

Its not just “where”, but how.

I had this discussion many times, w/my Cracker ass brothers, while we lived in Fla, ( and everywhere else) and that is, “the perfect weekend”.

For me, the definition of that is:

your **** runs good, and doesn’t break

you and your spouse (etc) get along

you and your friends that joined you, get along

their **** runs

the weather is good

you all are one the same economic level
aa in, let’s go to dinner etc

etc, etc…..

My debate was always, all the boxes checked, I’d take the Lake Erie Islands over the Fla Keys.
For my preference of boating.


Funny too, after 9 yrs in Fla, I only had one or two of those weekends in the Keys.

After being back in Ohio for 7 yrs, ain’t had one yet.
This weekend coming….., maybe.

So, what we remember/think Vs reality, I think, is also part of the equation.

[sonicss33]

I now live in Lower Keys and the waters are perfect, but night boating for me are nonexistent. I lived on the Chesapeake Bay all my life and could go anywhere day or night with just a compass and depth finder. Down here you need a good GPS/chart plotter which I’m still learning how to utilize. If the winds are out of the east conditions are less than ideal for myself but with boat out back on lift and me being retired I have nothing but time on my hands.

[Lake X Kid]

"A compass and depth finder" is all you need also, traversing the bays of the Florida Panhandle.
However, if you venture out into the Gulf, then it might be a little more challenging on a low visibility day.

In the 70's when I water-skied in Fort Walton, the bay's coves were almost like a private playground. Very little boat traffic. Most of the boaters were going fishing out by Destin.

The intercoastal connects the 3 big bays from Pensacola to Panama Beach. I recommend the area for boating, and the Gulf beaches are clear water and white sand.

[Instigator]

If you have a boat in the Keys, that draws more than a foot…,you need to be following someone that knows the area!

Even after 9 yrs in Fla,and w/a good, mapping GPS in my last 24’ Sonic down there, I never got used to it.
I would miss a cut, that I had been through 5 times, and logged on my GPS from previous trips!

I now live in Lower Keys and the waters are perfect, but night boating for me are nonexistent. I lived on the Chesapeake Bay all my life and could go anywhere day or night with just a compass and depth finder. Down here you need a good GPS/chart plotter which I’m still learning how to utilize. If the winds are out of the east conditions are less than ideal for myself but with boat out back on lift and me being retired I have nothing but time on my hands.

[mr fun]

I now live in Lower Keys and the waters are perfect, but night boating for me are nonexistent. I lived on the Chesapeake Bay all my life and could go anywhere day or night with just a compass and depth finder. Down here you need a good GPS/chart plotter which I’m still learning how to utilize. If the winds are out of the east conditions are less than ideal for myself but with boat out back on lift and me being retired I have nothing but time on my hands.

we'll be in your hood in november, like to stop by and give a hello , Fun Out

[JBS]

Most of my boating is during the week when it's less crowded. No more running at night unless it's an emergency.There was a trajic boating accident here last week when a fishing boat was leaving out about 4am and hit a day marker. The collision killed one of the fisherman.