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Author Topic:   Boating Alternatives to Great Lakes

PeteB88 posted 01-27-2013 11:16 AM ET (US)
Here's my dilema: [Because of low water levels in the Great Lakes, should I go to the] West Coast or Florida [for boating]?
contender posted 01-27-2013 04:06 PM ET (US)
Fla. no state tax, more lakes than Michigan, Most public ramps are free (some you pay to park) Year round boating, year round fishing, year round swimming, Two big downsides are the hurricanes and the state can not figure out how to count your votes yet....You pick
Jefecinco posted 01-27-2013 04:27 PM ET (US)
Coastal Alabama is far less know but pretty nice regardless.
I believe JimH spent some time here not long ago. He seemed to like it but he is so tactful he may have just not wanted to say anything negative, or ugly as we say down here.
Very low taxes here. The 190 Montauk costs $25 and the 13 Sport is $16 per year for registration. Boat trailers are not registered. There are many free public ramps but also lots of private ones. I use a private ramp at a bait shop near home because it saves me a lot of fuel. The fee is $4 which includes parking and the latest "bite" information.
We like Florida, also, and zoom over there to fish and sight see often. The state line is about 30 minutes from our condo by car but we often just go by boat which takes about 45 minutes from a ramp we like to use.
The entire Gulf Coast is pretty wonderful now that we have almost fully recovered from the BP fiasco.
Come for a visit and I'll show you some good fishing spots.
Butch
jimh posted 01-28-2013 04:43 PM ET (US)
With the building to two very large automobile assembly plants in Alabama, and the announcement that AIRBUS will built an aircraft assembly plant there, the job prospects for Alabama sound very good, so that one might not only be able to vacation there but also work there.
PeteB88 posted 01-28-2013 06:50 PM ET (US)
Alabama.
David Pendleton posted 01-28-2013 07:43 PM ET (US)
We have good friends in Mobile and they have a place in Gulf Shores. Last time we were down there we visited both.
I love Mobile. Pascagoula (MS) is a cool place too.
masbama posted 01-29-2013 08:28 AM ET (US)
Mobile/Baldwin County is horrible. You don't want to come here. (smirk)
Jefecinco posted 01-29-2013 08:40 AM ET (US)
David,
Mobile is fun. Mardi Gras is in full swing this week. Many prefer our celebration to the one in New Orleans because ours is more family friendly. Most folks down here believe Mobile began a Mardi Gras tradition before New Orleans decided to get in on the fun.
The winters are mild but we do get the odd freeze. Hurricane season is a downer. We bought an 8Kw generator Friday for the inevitable day we will lose power for two to four days, or more if it is really bad. We've only needed a generator twice in our 19 years here and our RVs filled the need for hot water and power both times. We plugged our home refrigerator and freezer into the outside convenience outlets on the RVs. The RVs are gone now and as I approach my mid-seventies my tolerance for roughing it is diminishing, thus the largish generator. It wont be able to manage our heat pump but it will handle the water heater with a little load management. It will also have enough capacity for a portable window air conditioner for the bedroom. We hope to rough it in relative comfort.
Y'all come on down, hear.
Butch
MarthaB posted 01-29-2013 09:03 PM ET (US)
Lower Alabama is a great place. Have been going there since 1995 (not every year) January weather can be a little iffy at times, but the good news is there isn't snow. On occasion it does get down to 32 degrees, but when the SUN comes out the daytime temps get up to the 50's or 60's. Here in northwest Michigan, if we see the sun in January, we do a happy dance. I would be there right now if I could just retire.
White sand beaches, fresh shrimp, lunch at LuLu's, lunch a Jessie's in Magnolia Springs, Sunday brunch at Point Clear Grand Hotel, oh my, there are so many great things to do along with exploring Perdido Bay, Weeks Bay, Mobile Bay and the ICW in your BW. The snow birds go there because it is less crowded and the cost of living is lower than "real" Florida. The Florida panhandle is nice too.

pcrussell50 posted 01-29-2013 09:23 PM ET (US)
Sounds like near endless exploring of calm waterways by boat. Wonderful. The cold rough Pacific is much more stark. With so much less to explore, boaters have to find other things, like fishing... which is tough to break into for a mid-40's dad who didn't grow up doing it.
-Peter
Hoosier posted 02-02-2013 10:38 AM ET (US)
We'll be there, just south of Point Clear, from 16 Feb to 16 March; with a boat.
PeteB88 posted 02-02-2013 06:05 PM ET (US)
East Lansing ran Nick Sabin out of here and he wound up in Alabama - they can run me out of here too - but not sure about Alabama - Where's Buckalew??
bluewaterpirate posted 02-03-2013 09:15 AM ET (US)
Checkout the Pensacola Fl area great place to live and boat. The panhandle of Fl is totally different than the rest of Fl.
jay18 posted 02-03-2013 09:33 AM ET (US)
Seriously? Pondering not boating a a beautiful FRESHWATER environment because of low water levels? Buy a sounder, learn your waters and just be more cautious. Lake Michigan is 925 ft. deep, do you draw more than that?
Dave Sutton posted 02-03-2013 09:53 AM ET (US)
I'd prefer boating in a beautiful saltwater environment any day of the week, because there isn't crap to see in the lakes if you don't count the shipwrecks (which AFAIK I'm the only one here looking at). The fishing, by comparison to salt water fishing, sucks. The biomass is lower than the average desert and the diversity of species is nonexistant.
The Difference between looking into a life-filled ocean that has it's next shore on the coast of Africa and looking into one of the lowest biomass places on earth with it's next shore being Michigan... well..... there's a huge difference.

Dave
.
jimh posted 02-03-2013 10:22 AM ET (US)
The difference between saltwater and freshwater angling became apparent to me one afternoon while down in the Sanibel, Florida area. We were walking on a pier, and at the end of the pier there were several groups of people angling. Each group was catching a different species of fish. They explained to me that they were setting their lures at different depths. It was quite amazing to me to see how many different species they were catching just by changing the depth a few feet, and how much life there was in the sea below me.
I think that perhaps three hundred years ago there was a much higher density of fish in the Great Lakes. There are reports that Whitefish could be caught just be scooping them up with wicker baskets. Even 100 years ago there were strong commercial fisheries in the Great Lakes. And even 50 years ago I remember visiting places like Leland where a fleet of commercial fishing boats operated, and seeing big catches of fish being hauled in daily.
The Great Lakes are much smaller than the oceans, so it took man only a few hundred years to catch all the fish.
Binkster posted 02-03-2013 01:02 PM ET (US)
Pete are you looking to relocate? If so, the Ft. Myers/Cape Coral area has the best boating in Fl. bar none. Downside is it becoming expensive, crowded, and its a long car ride to go anywhere. I lived there for 30 years. The best fishing in Fl. is SE Fl., if you want to live there, crowded, expensive etc. There are a lot of things to do in Central Fl. other than go boating, and who goes boating in 40-50 degrees in the winter, and the fishing stinks, especially where I live on the Nature Coast. As far as living on the coast in N. Fl./Al. forgetaboutit, if you ain't from there you won't fit in as a resident. They will love you as a tourist though.
rich
prj posted 02-03-2013 03:21 PM ET (US)
If you intend to live somewhere as a retiree with a primary goal of fishing or boating, move to a warmer climate, on saltwater, near the mouth of a major estuary or delta, like the Chesapeake or Alabama.
If you value other aspects of life such as the arts, a pristine environment, education, government services and public institutions, Alabama may not be the place for you.
I lived in Alabama as a child and subsequently moved to Turkey. Even at a young age I was surprised how third world Alabama seemed in comparison.
Jefecinco posted 02-03-2013 07:04 PM ET (US)
I wont argue the relative merits of Alabama, clearly I like it here. I have to agree that government services are not generous everywhere in the state. Some areas have more wealth than others. The services there are pretty good considering the incredibly low taxes. Personally I like the trade off. I would rather pay for the services I want and not pay for the services of others, that's just my position.
Having spent a few days in Turkey I believe I'll continue to stay here.
Butch

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Author	Topic: Boating Alternatives to Great Lakes
PeteB88	posted 01-27-2013 11:16 AM ET (US) Here's my dilema: [Because of low water levels in the Great Lakes, should I go to the] West Coast or Florida [for boating]?
contender	posted 01-27-2013 04:06 PM ET (US) Fla. no state tax, more lakes than Michigan, Most public ramps are free (some you pay to park) Year round boating, year round fishing, year round swimming, Two big downsides are the hurricanes and the state can not figure out how to count your votes yet....You pick
Jefecinco	posted 01-27-2013 04:27 PM ET (US) Coastal Alabama is far less know but pretty nice regardless. I believe JimH spent some time here not long ago. He seemed to like it but he is so tactful he may have just not wanted to say anything negative, or ugly as we say down here. Very low taxes here. The 190 Montauk costs $25 and the 13 Sport is $16 per year for registration. Boat trailers are not registered. There are many free public ramps but also lots of private ones. I use a private ramp at a bait shop near home because it saves me a lot of fuel. The fee is $4 which includes parking and the latest "bite" information. We like Florida, also, and zoom over there to fish and sight see often. The state line is about 30 minutes from our condo by car but we often just go by boat which takes about 45 minutes from a ramp we like to use. The entire Gulf Coast is pretty wonderful now that we have almost fully recovered from the BP fiasco. Come for a visit and I'll show you some good fishing spots. Butch
jimh	posted 01-28-2013 04:43 PM ET (US) With the building to two very large automobile assembly plants in Alabama, and the announcement that AIRBUS will built an aircraft assembly plant there, the job prospects for Alabama sound very good, so that one might not only be able to vacation there but also work there.
PeteB88	posted 01-28-2013 06:50 PM ET (US) Alabama.
David Pendleton	posted 01-28-2013 07:43 PM ET (US) We have good friends in Mobile and they have a place in Gulf Shores. Last time we were down there we visited both. I love Mobile. Pascagoula (MS) is a cool place too.
masbama	posted 01-29-2013 08:28 AM ET (US) Mobile/Baldwin County is horrible. You don't want to come here. (smirk)
Jefecinco	posted 01-29-2013 08:40 AM ET (US) David, Mobile is fun. Mardi Gras is in full swing this week. Many prefer our celebration to the one in New Orleans because ours is more family friendly. Most folks down here believe Mobile began a Mardi Gras tradition before New Orleans decided to get in on the fun. The winters are mild but we do get the odd freeze. Hurricane season is a downer. We bought an 8Kw generator Friday for the inevitable day we will lose power for two to four days, or more if it is really bad. We've only needed a generator twice in our 19 years here and our RVs filled the need for hot water and power both times. We plugged our home refrigerator and freezer into the outside convenience outlets on the RVs. The RVs are gone now and as I approach my mid-seventies my tolerance for roughing it is diminishing, thus the largish generator. It wont be able to manage our heat pump but it will handle the water heater with a little load management. It will also have enough capacity for a portable window air conditioner for the bedroom. We hope to rough it in relative comfort. Y'all come on down, hear. Butch
MarthaB	posted 01-29-2013 09:03 PM ET (US) Lower Alabama is a great place. Have been going there since 1995 (not every year) January weather can be a little iffy at times, but the good news is there isn't snow. On occasion it does get down to 32 degrees, but when the SUN comes out the daytime temps get up to the 50's or 60's. Here in northwest Michigan, if we see the sun in January, we do a happy dance. I would be there right now if I could just retire. White sand beaches, fresh shrimp, lunch at LuLu's, lunch a Jessie's in Magnolia Springs, Sunday brunch at Point Clear Grand Hotel, oh my, there are so many great things to do along with exploring Perdido Bay, Weeks Bay, Mobile Bay and the ICW in your BW. The snow birds go there because it is less crowded and the cost of living is lower than "real" Florida. The Florida panhandle is nice too.
pcrussell50	posted 01-29-2013 09:23 PM ET (US) Sounds like near endless exploring of calm waterways by boat. Wonderful. The cold rough Pacific is much more stark. With so much less to explore, boaters have to find other things, like fishing... which is tough to break into for a mid-40's dad who didn't grow up doing it. -Peter
Hoosier	posted 02-02-2013 10:38 AM ET (US) We'll be there, just south of Point Clear, from 16 Feb to 16 March; with a boat.
PeteB88	posted 02-02-2013 06:05 PM ET (US) East Lansing ran Nick Sabin out of here and he wound up in Alabama - they can run me out of here too - but not sure about Alabama - Where's Buckalew??
bluewaterpirate	posted 02-03-2013 09:15 AM ET (US) Checkout the Pensacola Fl area great place to live and boat. The panhandle of Fl is totally different than the rest of Fl.
jay18	posted 02-03-2013 09:33 AM ET (US) Seriously? Pondering not boating a a beautiful FRESHWATER environment because of low water levels? Buy a sounder, learn your waters and just be more cautious. Lake Michigan is 925 ft. deep, do you draw more than that?
Dave Sutton	posted 02-03-2013 09:53 AM ET (US) I'd prefer boating in a beautiful saltwater environment any day of the week, because there isn't crap to see in the lakes if you don't count the shipwrecks (which AFAIK I'm the only one here looking at). The fishing, by comparison to salt water fishing, sucks. The biomass is lower than the average desert and the diversity of species is nonexistant. The Difference between looking into a life-filled ocean that has it's next shore on the coast of Africa and looking into one of the lowest biomass places on earth with it's next shore being Michigan... well..... there's a huge difference. Dave .
jimh	posted 02-03-2013 10:22 AM ET (US) The difference between saltwater and freshwater angling became apparent to me one afternoon while down in the Sanibel, Florida area. We were walking on a pier, and at the end of the pier there were several groups of people angling. Each group was catching a different species of fish. They explained to me that they were setting their lures at different depths. It was quite amazing to me to see how many different species they were catching just by changing the depth a few feet, and how much life there was in the sea below me. I think that perhaps three hundred years ago there was a much higher density of fish in the Great Lakes. There are reports that Whitefish could be caught just be scooping them up with wicker baskets. Even 100 years ago there were strong commercial fisheries in the Great Lakes. And even 50 years ago I remember visiting places like Leland where a fleet of commercial fishing boats operated, and seeing big catches of fish being hauled in daily. The Great Lakes are much smaller than the oceans, so it took man only a few hundred years to catch all the fish.
Binkster	posted 02-03-2013 01:02 PM ET (US) Pete are you looking to relocate? If so, the Ft. Myers/Cape Coral area has the best boating in Fl. bar none. Downside is it becoming expensive, crowded, and its a long car ride to go anywhere. I lived there for 30 years. The best fishing in Fl. is SE Fl., if you want to live there, crowded, expensive etc. There are a lot of things to do in Central Fl. other than go boating, and who goes boating in 40-50 degrees in the winter, and the fishing stinks, especially where I live on the Nature Coast. As far as living on the coast in N. Fl./Al. forgetaboutit, if you ain't from there you won't fit in as a resident. They will love you as a tourist though. rich
prj	posted 02-03-2013 03:21 PM ET (US) If you intend to live somewhere as a retiree with a primary goal of fishing or boating, move to a warmer climate, on saltwater, near the mouth of a major estuary or delta, like the Chesapeake or Alabama. If you value other aspects of life such as the arts, a pristine environment, education, government services and public institutions, Alabama may not be the place for you. I lived in Alabama as a child and subsequently moved to Turkey. Even at a young age I was surprised how third world Alabama seemed in comparison.
Jefecinco	posted 02-03-2013 07:04 PM ET (US) I wont argue the relative merits of Alabama, clearly I like it here. I have to agree that government services are not generous everywhere in the state. Some areas have more wealth than others. The services there are pretty good considering the incredibly low taxes. Personally I like the trade off. I would rather pay for the services I want and not pay for the services of others, that's just my position. Having spent a few days in Turkey I believe I'll continue to stay here. Butch