Naples, Florida: Tide and Bridge Clearance; Fishing, Cruising, and Sight Seeing

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Author Topic:   Naples, Florida: Tide and Bridge Clearance; Fishing, Cruising, and Sight Seeing

RandyV posted 11-22-2009 09:30 AM ET (US)
I will be vacationing south of Naples for a couple of weeks this winter and will be taking my Montauk or if I get a different boat, possibly a 23' Conquest. Where I will be staying is upstream from US-41 on Henderson Creek. I am curious about the bridge height of US-41 over Henderson creek and if there is tidal influence at that location and am not sure where to look.
Looking at a chart for that area, I see channel markers part of the way up the creek but they stop short of where I will be staying. I know there is a dam just upstream of where we will be staying and I have seen pictures of boats about 21-feet long without T-tops in that area, which makes me want to find out this information on the bridge and tides there.
Also, anyone with experience in the 10,000 islands and Naples are, I am open to advice for island exploring, beach combing, hiking, fishing, cruising, nature sighting. I'd like to figure out what not to do as well as what to do while we are there.
jimh posted 11-22-2009 09:54 AM ET (US)
NOAA publishes the COASTAL PILOT for that region. See
http://www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/nsd/coastpilot/files/cp5/ CP5-37ed-Ch04_5.pdf
You can download the COASTAL PILOT for various regions from
http://www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/nsd/cpdownload.htm
RandyV posted 11-22-2009 03:52 PM ET (US)
Thanks Jim. I already downloaded the Coastal Pilot #5 for that region and it does not address the inlet / creek and the bridge I am concerned with. After a closer look at Bing Maps, the road which crosses Henderson Creek is actually Collier Blvd (951).
It looks like if I can't find anything on line, I will have to find someone local that can help me.
tmann45 posted 11-22-2009 09:11 PM ET (US)
If you have Google Maps, there is a picture taken under the bridge. It does not look like a lot of clearance, but there a lot of slips north of the bridge.
Tom
John W posted 11-24-2009 07:55 PM ET (US)
I live on Sanibel, north of Naples, and I'm not very familiar with areas south of Lovers Key, down to Marco island. However, I have fished & boated in the 10,000 islands area around Everglades City & Chokoloski for years. If you plan to trailering to Everglades City, stop at the Rod & Gun Lodge for lunch or dinner...very cool place. If you are planning on boating into the 10,000 islands from Marco Island, I'm not much help there...other than to say make sure you have a mapping GPS. People can get lost for days in the mangrove islands.
The beaches are beautiful in the Naples area, I'm sure you'll have a good time. Good luck,
John
L H G posted 11-24-2009 08:37 PM ET (US)
You can get under that bridge in Naples with a Montauk. I have been under it with my 18 Outrage. Can't make it with my 25 Outrage and radar arch.
There is a Marina just upstream of the Red Roof Inn (used to be Holiday Inn) where you can dock the boat overnight for a reasonable fee. They have a launching ramp also.
You are really going to enjoy the boating all around that area. Offshore is generally pretty calm also. Lots to see and explore by boat.
Nushlie posted 11-25-2009 10:58 AM ET (US)
Randy V,
Your trip sounds great. As previously reported the Naples / Marco Island area is perfect for boating. There is a boat ramp on the road to Marco as well as a boat ramp on the south end of Marco.
Make sure you visit the Isle of Capri via the water, tie up, and have lunch at Pelican's Bend.
Nushlie
RandyV posted 12-01-2009 06:25 PM ET (US)
Thanks for all who took the time to help. I received a return e-mail from the Collier County Road Comission Engineering Dept stating the 1986 design plan for the bridge was 36 feet horizontal clearance and 6.75 feet vertical clearance.
That would make a 1999 23' Conquest close as long as I don't have a tower or hard top on it but a Montauk will be a no brainer.
Russ 13 posted 12-02-2009 02:09 AM ET (US)
Living in the Ft. Myers area, I would go with the Montauk, as the Florida waters are shallow. The Montauk will get you around the area fine. File a voyage plan before you go, bring a good GPS, and enjoy the ten thousand islands. They are beautiful.
jimh posted 12-02-2009 07:53 AM ET (US)
Randy--It was very resourceful of you to contact the highway department to discover the design specifications of the bridge and its clearance.
RandyV posted 12-03-2009 11:38 PM ET (US)
Thank you Russ for the advice on taking the Montauk. As much as I'd like to take the larger boat, I will probably take your advice. If I want to do any fishing in open water and the weather is too much for the Montauk, I'll just rent a charter or find other activities - I am sure there is not a lack of things to do in that area. The last time we were down there was for a week rental on a 42' houseboat out of Ft. Meyers. It was a good experience as I had never piloted a craft (box) that large.
Jim, thanks for the compliment. Having owned my own business for many years, I have learned to never have tunnel vision on how I solve problems. Bridges aren't built by government departments that are concerned with water travel so with striking out on being able to find a nautical source for the information, I figured the road comission was where I'd score & I was right.
As a side note, I was able to splash the Montauk in Lake Erie one last time for the season yesterday (12/3/09). It was a beautiful 32 degrees before light when we hit the water and by 2:00pm when we pulled the boat, it had gotten up to about 45 deg. We were able to catch 2 really nice Walleye and 2 rather large Small mouth bass. A good last fishing trip in Erie for the 2009 season. Winds were calm and the lake was flat - any day is a nice day on the water even if there is ice on the deck.
John W posted 12-10-2009 10:09 PM ET (US)
RandyV, the winds were calm the last few days in Southwest Florida today as well...but the temp was 83 degrees. Come on down, the rest of the midwest population seems to already be down here.

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Author	Topic: Naples, Florida: Tide and Bridge Clearance; Fishing, Cruising, and Sight Seeing
RandyV	posted 11-22-2009 09:30 AM ET (US) I will be vacationing south of Naples for a couple of weeks this winter and will be taking my Montauk or if I get a different boat, possibly a 23' Conquest. Where I will be staying is upstream from US-41 on Henderson Creek. I am curious about the bridge height of US-41 over Henderson creek and if there is tidal influence at that location and am not sure where to look. Looking at a chart for that area, I see channel markers part of the way up the creek but they stop short of where I will be staying. I know there is a dam just upstream of where we will be staying and I have seen pictures of boats about 21-feet long without T-tops in that area, which makes me want to find out this information on the bridge and tides there. Also, anyone with experience in the 10,000 islands and Naples are, I am open to advice for island exploring, beach combing, hiking, fishing, cruising, nature sighting. I'd like to figure out what not to do as well as what to do while we are there.
jimh	posted 11-22-2009 09:54 AM ET (US) NOAA publishes the COASTAL PILOT for that region. See http://www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/nsd/coastpilot/files/cp5/ CP5-37ed-Ch04_5.pdf You can download the COASTAL PILOT for various regions from http://www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/nsd/cpdownload.htm
RandyV	posted 11-22-2009 03:52 PM ET (US) Thanks Jim. I already downloaded the Coastal Pilot #5 for that region and it does not address the inlet / creek and the bridge I am concerned with. After a closer look at Bing Maps, the road which crosses Henderson Creek is actually Collier Blvd (951). It looks like if I can't find anything on line, I will have to find someone local that can help me.
tmann45	posted 11-22-2009 09:11 PM ET (US) If you have Google Maps, there is a picture taken under the bridge. It does not look like a lot of clearance, but there a lot of slips north of the bridge. Tom
John W	posted 11-24-2009 07:55 PM ET (US) I live on Sanibel, north of Naples, and I'm not very familiar with areas south of Lovers Key, down to Marco island. However, I have fished & boated in the 10,000 islands area around Everglades City & Chokoloski for years. If you plan to trailering to Everglades City, stop at the Rod & Gun Lodge for lunch or dinner...very cool place. If you are planning on boating into the 10,000 islands from Marco Island, I'm not much help there...other than to say make sure you have a mapping GPS. People can get lost for days in the mangrove islands. The beaches are beautiful in the Naples area, I'm sure you'll have a good time. Good luck, John
L H G	posted 11-24-2009 08:37 PM ET (US) You can get under that bridge in Naples with a Montauk. I have been under it with my 18 Outrage. Can't make it with my 25 Outrage and radar arch. There is a Marina just upstream of the Red Roof Inn (used to be Holiday Inn) where you can dock the boat overnight for a reasonable fee. They have a launching ramp also. You are really going to enjoy the boating all around that area. Offshore is generally pretty calm also. Lots to see and explore by boat.
Nushlie	posted 11-25-2009 10:58 AM ET (US) Randy V, Your trip sounds great. As previously reported the Naples / Marco Island area is perfect for boating. There is a boat ramp on the road to Marco as well as a boat ramp on the south end of Marco. Make sure you visit the Isle of Capri via the water, tie up, and have lunch at Pelican's Bend. Nushlie
RandyV	posted 12-01-2009 06:25 PM ET (US) Thanks for all who took the time to help. I received a return e-mail from the Collier County Road Comission Engineering Dept stating the 1986 design plan for the bridge was 36 feet horizontal clearance and 6.75 feet vertical clearance. That would make a 1999 23' Conquest close as long as I don't have a tower or hard top on it but a Montauk will be a no brainer.
Russ 13	posted 12-02-2009 02:09 AM ET (US) Living in the Ft. Myers area, I would go with the Montauk, as the Florida waters are shallow. The Montauk will get you around the area fine. File a voyage plan before you go, bring a good GPS, and enjoy the ten thousand islands. They are beautiful.
jimh	posted 12-02-2009 07:53 AM ET (US) Randy--It was very resourceful of you to contact the highway department to discover the design specifications of the bridge and its clearance.
RandyV	posted 12-03-2009 11:38 PM ET (US) Thank you Russ for the advice on taking the Montauk. As much as I'd like to take the larger boat, I will probably take your advice. If I want to do any fishing in open water and the weather is too much for the Montauk, I'll just rent a charter or find other activities - I am sure there is not a lack of things to do in that area. The last time we were down there was for a week rental on a 42' houseboat out of Ft. Meyers. It was a good experience as I had never piloted a craft (box) that large. Jim, thanks for the compliment. Having owned my own business for many years, I have learned to never have tunnel vision on how I solve problems. Bridges aren't built by government departments that are concerned with water travel so with striking out on being able to find a nautical source for the information, I figured the road comission was where I'd score & I was right. As a side note, I was able to splash the Montauk in Lake Erie one last time for the season yesterday (12/3/09). It was a beautiful 32 degrees before light when we hit the water and by 2:00pm when we pulled the boat, it had gotten up to about 45 deg. We were able to catch 2 really nice Walleye and 2 rather large Small mouth bass. A good last fishing trip in Erie for the 2009 season. Winds were calm and the lake was flat - any day is a nice day on the water even if there is ice on the deck.
John W	posted 12-10-2009 10:09 PM ET (US) RandyV, the winds were calm the last few days in Southwest Florida today as well...but the temp was 83 degrees. Come on down, the rest of the midwest population seems to already be down here.