Florida Hurricane Safe Marinas

[Marjane]

When looking for insurance the cheapest areas to leave a boat were St. Augustine and Tampa. That says these areas have Not been hit as hard by hurricanes as other areas in Florida. We are in St. Augustine!

[Kita]

[QUOTE=flagatorclearwa;3186551]

Originally Posted by Kita

Curious how far up the Suwannee you went and did you have plenty of depth the whole way? I live on the river and I'm toying with the idea of buying a cat that needs lots of work and bringing it here to do the work behind my house. I'd need to remove the mast (or buy one of the demasted hurricane boats) to get this far north (bridges at Fanning Springs and Old Town), but I'm talking about a refit that would take 4-6 mos., so could be worth it.

It was a couple miles upriver at a small marina in the town of Suwannee, my boat draws less than 3ft & had to sneak in at high tide & once in the river we were good! Had to dodge a few trees getting into what was normally a houseboat marina but hey! Was a storm! They were building a restaurant when I was there a bit over two years now

[sailorboy1]

There aren't any hurricane safe harbors in Florida. Lets be real, it is just a matter of whether the hurricane hits "wherever".

[MicHughV]

yep, not much point on belaboring this issue....there are no safe hurricane harbors, ports, marina's, locations, spots, etc, anywhere in Florida, end of story.

Folks used to think the Abaco Islands, Hope Town harbor, Man-o'-War, Green Turtle White and and Black sound, and even Marsh Harbor, and some other area canals would provide some kind of "safe" hurricane refuge. Same goes for boats that were hauled out in area yards. Hurricane Dorian proved conclusively, that all these previously considered "safe" hurricane holes and haulout yards were hopelessly outgunned by hurricane Dorian.

That should set the example for anyone thinking there might be a "safe" hurricane refuge in Florida..there are none !!

You throw the dice, do the best you can, but after that.......

[Davy J]

Everyone that lives here knows..........

The west coast of Florida is protected by Indians........ probably the safest place in Florida...........

https://www.heraldtribune.com/articl...s/605217769/SH

[jimbarnebee]

Can anyone suggest a marina, without a fixed bridge to the ocean, well protected from storms, on the east coast of FL between Ormond Beach and ft Pierce?

[pianopraze]

Originally Posted by Sailing August

Green Cove Springs just South of Jacksonville is good. Affordable too.

Just called them today and sooo confused.

They list "Catamarans charged 1½ times standard rates."

Yet they said they couldn't hall out our Prout Snowgoose 35 which is only 15' wide which is not very wide for a Catamaran.

????

[PM2017]

Hi David. Do you still keep your boat in Loggerhead?

Originally Posted by Davidhoy

There's really no such thing as a hurricane safe marina anywhere, far too many factors play into it. But, as someone else mentioned, try to find one that is surrounded by land to minimize wave action. Any open stretch of water, or fetch, will allow the storm force winds to pile up big waves, and it's the waves that do the majority of the damage.

That said, the marina where I live on my boat meets my personal criteria for a hurricane "safer" marina, as it has only a narrow inlet off the intracoastal, no open stretches of water, and is also far enough from major inlets to reduce the effects of storm surge. No guarantees, but short of a major cat 4-5 storm, it should help reduce the likelihood of damage. The marina is Suntex Hollywood (about to be renamed back to Loggerhead Marina). I like it, both for the relative safety, and the amenities and people.

-David

[gonesail]

Originally Posted by CaptRory

Harborage Marina in St. Pete is as safe as you are going to get in Florida. Surrounded on three sides by land, and the seaward side (Tampa Bay not the open Gulf) is protected by a 15 foot seawall. The concrete floating docks are floating on 13 foot concrete pilings. I haven't seen an open slip in a while, but this is the season where everybody shifts. Give them a call.

yep good place. no storms have hit Tampa or St. Pete. yet