Boating question for the locals (Tampa, Fort Lauderdale: condos, home, living in)

[GrasserGreen]

If I wanted to maximize the number of beaches, restaurants, and other attractions accessable by a small boat or jet ski from my home dock or nearby boat slip, which part of St Petersburg would you recommend living in? 26 yo male, single, no kids. Max budget 450k

Thank you kindly.

[Csonka]

Originally Posted by GrasserGreen

If I wanted to maximize the number of beaches, restaurants, and other attractions accessable by a small boat or jet ski from my home dock or nearby boat slip, which part of St Petersburg would you recommend living in? 26 yo male, single, no kids. Max budget 450k

Thank you kindly.

The bay can get rough

Better off if a small boat docking in the "sound" or the intracoastal between the mainland and barrier islands

[GrasserGreen]

Originally Posted by Csonka

The bay can get rough

Better off if a small boat docking in the "sound" or the intracoastal between the mainland and barrier islands

Are there plenty of places I can dock at within the sound?

[Csonka]

Originally Posted by GrasserGreen

Are there plenty of places I can dock at within the sound?

Thee's a number. Lots of people have boats

Also some condos will have their own marina and private developments etc

If you Google satellite view, you can just zoom in and look around at all of them

[KPB]

I'd just get a wave runner untill you figured out where you wanna live.
You can get all over the bay on one and a good way to learn the waters.
(The bay is pretty shallow in most places).

[GrasserGreen]

Originally Posted by KPB

I'd just get a wave runner untill you figured out where you wanna live.
You can get all over the bay on one and a good way to learn the waters.
(The bay is pretty shallow in most places).

Can you cross the bay on a jetski or is it too choppy? I know they're not allowed everywhere. Could you give me an idea where they are permitted anywhere they are not? Thank you!

[LKJ1988]

Originally Posted by GrasserGreen

Can you cross the bay on a jetski or is it too choppy? I know they're not allowed everywhere. Could you give me an idea where they are permitted anywhere they are not? Thank you!

You could take one 50 miles offshore if ya wanted. Bay can get rough but 5 ft is about the max. Most days ray the water is like glass. I would rather have a small speed boat than a jetski.

[Ft Laud Guy]

Originally Posted by GrasserGreen

Can you cross the bay on a jetski or is it too choppy? I know they're not allowed everywhere. Could you give me an idea where they are permitted anywhere they are not? Thank you!

As a transplant from the Fort Lauderdale area a few years ago, I own a jetski that I now use in Tampa Bay. Other than the few posted areas where all powered vessels are prohibited, I have not seen or heard of any jetski-specific prohibitions in the entire area.

So far, I've launched exclusively from the Gandy Blvd ramp (south side of Gandy, just east of the bridge), and therefore all of my trips in the region were either in the main bay and/or "Old Tampa Bay". My longest trip thus far has been all the way down the main bay and under the Skyway, past Egmont Key, north on the outside along Fort DeSoto, in through Pass-A-Grille, back under I275/Dick Misener Bridge, north in the main bay, and did one more loop in Old Tampa Bay up past the Howard Frankland Bridge before heading back to the Gandy ramp. Total track distance for that trip on the GPS was 70.8 miles, and I carried and used up along the way a 5-gallon jug of gas in a crate which is strapped down to the rear platform.

I can tell you that even on "calm" days, the tidal flow between Old Tampa Bay and the main bay still causes some pretty choppy currents where the flow is "squeezed" into the narrow gap between the closest points of the Pinellas Peninsula and the South Tampa Peninsula (~due west of MacDill), and then mellows out once you're into either the larger portion of the main bay or Old Tampa Bay. Mornings tend to be calmer before the afternoon surface-heating causes wind patterns that can chop up the bays. Also, "chop" is relative, and each rider has their own tolerance for the lighter or heavier stuff.

One time I went out in the AM when it was incredibly smooth, headed south toward the main bay, got past the chop in the narrows, saw what I thought were low clouds in the distance, and was suddenly completely enveloped in a blinding thick fog bank in the middle of Tampa Bay. Could barely see the glow of the sun overhead, let alone any other traffic on the water, who definitely couldn't see me either unless they had radar operating. At idling, at best I could hear other boats at power not too far away but had no idea which way they were going. Best I could do was make a 180 with light headway in the opposite direction and play connect-the-channel-markers with my GPS until I was in the clear. THAT was scary.

Anyway, to make a long story long, there's at least 3 reasons why I would advise against a jetski versus a conventional, non jet drive-powered boat:

1) Unlike any other vessel, you can't legally operate a jetski between sunset-sunrise ANYWHERE, even if you add navigation lights. That feels more restrictive the longer you own the jetski, and therefore the longer you'd like to use it on any given day (or night) but can't.

2) There's no easy way to just stand up and stretch, or walk in a tiny circle or whatever...And unlike even on a motorcycle, you can't just easily "pull over" wherever you are to do the same.

3) The jet-drive is highly unforgiving when it comes to seaweed/sea grass, palm fronds, plastic grocery bags, shallow sand, etc etc. Ask me how I know.

4) Lack of virtually any usable/easily accessible storage space, unless you become extremely creative like my crate on the rear platform.

5) Unless there is a cloud between you and the sun (or a fog bank ) , there is no such thing as bring-your-own shade. Obviously, you can forget about a T-top or a Bimini top.

6) You can be the most respectful "boater" on the water, and other operators will still treat you like scum, be it near the ramp, the restaurant, the marina, etc...Yes, there are many bad/unexperienced jetskiiers on the water who "ruin" that for the good ones.

(Okay, that was 6.)

If I had to do it all over again, I would have gotten a small boat...It's just so much more versatile. Just too lazy (and cheap) to trade up .

[GrasserGreen]

Originally Posted by Ft Laud Guy

As a transplant from the Fort Lauderdale area a few years ago, I own a jetski that I now use in Tampa Bay. Other than the few posted areas where all powered vessels are prohibited, I have not seen or heard of any jetski-specific prohibitions in the entire area.

So far, I've launched exclusively from the Gandy Blvd ramp (south side of Gandy, just east of the bridge), and therefore all of my trips in the region were either in the main bay and/or "Old Tampa Bay". My longest trip thus far has been all the way down the main bay and under the Skyway, past Egmont Key, north on the outside along Fort DeSoto, in through Pass-A-Grille, back under I275/Dick Misener Bridge, north in the main bay, and did one more loop in Old Tampa Bay up past the Howard Frankland Bridge before heading back to the Gandy ramp. Total track distance for that trip on the GPS was 70.8 miles, and I carried and used up along the way a 5-gallon jug of gas in a crate which is strapped down to the rear platform.

I can tell you that even on "calm" days, the tidal flow between Old Tampa Bay and the main bay still causes some pretty choppy currents where the flow is "squeezed" into the narrow gap between the closest points of the Pinellas Peninsula and the South Tampa Peninsula (~due west of MacDill), and then mellows out once you're into either the larger portion of the main bay or Old Tampa Bay. Mornings tend to be calmer before the afternoon surface-heating causes wind patterns that can chop up the bays. Also, "chop" is relative, and each rider has their own tolerance for the lighter or heavier stuff.

One time I went out in the AM when it was incredibly smooth, headed south toward the main bay, got past the chop in the narrows, saw what I thought were low clouds in the distance, and was suddenly completely enveloped in a blinding thick fog bank in the middle of Tampa Bay. Could barely see the glow of the sun overhead, let alone any other traffic on the water, who definitely couldn't see me either unless they had radar operating. At idling, at best I could hear other boats at power not too far away but had no idea which way they were going. Best I could do was make a 180 with light headway in the opposite direction and play connect-the-channel-markers with my GPS until I was in the clear. THAT was scary.

Anyway, to make a long story long, there's at least 3 reasons why I would advise against a jetski versus a conventional, non jet drive-powered boat:

1) Unlike any other vessel, you can't legally operate a jetski between sunset-sunrise ANYWHERE, even if you add navigation lights. That feels more restrictive the longer you own the jetski, and therefore the longer you'd like to use it on any given day (or night) but can't.

2) There's no easy way to just stand up and stretch, or walk in a tiny circle or whatever...And unlike even on a motorcycle, you can't just easily "pull over" wherever you are to do the same.

3) The jet-drive is highly unforgiving when it comes to seaweed/sea grass, palm fronds, plastic grocery bags, shallow sand, etc etc. Ask me how I know.

4) Lack of virtually any usable/easily accessible storage space, unless you become extremely creative like my crate on the rear platform.

5) Unless there is a cloud between you and the sun (or a fog bank ) , there is no such thing as bring-your-own shade. Obviously, you can forget about a T-top or a Bimini top.

6) You can be the most respectful "boater" on the water, and other operators will still treat you like scum, be it near the ramp, the restaurant, the marina, etc...Yes, there are many bad/unexperienced jetskiiers on the water who "ruin" that for the good ones.

(Okay, that was 6.)

If I had to do it all over again, I would have gotten a small boat...It's just so much more versatile. Just too lazy (and cheap) to trade up .

Thank you for the excellent advise. You may have just convinced me to get a small boat!

[engineman]

Over some years we had an assortment of small boats. They all lived on trailers which made it possible to go many places that were not doable by water.

For instance when we lived in Treasure Island we could go to Ft DeSoto one day and up to freshwater Lake Tarpon the next. Launching in Tarpon Springs, we could go out to Anclote Key. Caledesi Island is a beautiful state park that can be reached from a number of places.

We even went over the Skyway bridge on occasion.