Cruising Expert to Punta Gorda: "Number 1 Thing Punta Gorda Needs to do to Become a Great Cruising Destination"

"Promote the Waterfront," Claiborne S. Young, Editorial Director of "The Salty SouthEast" and Cruisers' Net and a well-known and respected cruising expert,  told a large group of Punta Gorda city officials, Team Punta Gorda members, Boating Club members and citizens today.  Mr. Young said "the number one thing Punta Gorda can do to establish itself as a "cruising friendly destination."  He noted the many draws of Charlotte Harbor pointing out that the area around Pine Island Sound and the mouth of Charlotte Harbor was "the most cruising rich section of the Southwest Florida coast." 

Mr. Young's talk focussed on four other coastal towns on the East Coast that turned their respective communities into top cruising destinations, some going from almost deserted locations on a weekend morning to bustling, thriving tourist draws.   He reviewed the challenges faced by Georgetown, South Carolina, for instance, that has two unattractive, industrial sites near their waterfront, i.e., a paper mill and a noisy scrap metal plant. "They built a harbor walk." he noted.  Sound familiar?  They introduced dingy dockage.  They promoted their historic area with home visitations and events.  "Almost nobody cruising along the intercoastal waterway misses this stop."   The two Beauforts (pronounced differently) one in South Carolina, the other in North Carolina, were also cited as waterfront success stories. 

Another town, somewhat off the ICW akin to Punta Gorda,  is Washington, North Carolina 25 nautical miles from the Atlantic intercoastal.   "They had many challenges to make a success of their waterfront destination for cruisers," Mr. Young noted.  "They made in easy to come into their location, with dingy dockage, managed dock facilities, and they advertised."

When asked what were the key things boaters expected in a waterfront destination, Young told the audience, "mooring fields, destination anchorage, easy-to-get-to dingy docks, wet-slip dockage, good restaurants and shops, shower and laundry facilities, WIFI throughout the harbor area, provisioning."  He thought one of the top things Punta Gorda could do was "built a mooring field on the downside of the bridges (west mooring field)".

Mr. Young also discussed the tough regulatory environment in Florida for cruisers.  Florida only accepts state registration for boaters.  He stressed watching local regulations on boaters noting how easy it was to turn off cruisers.   He agreed with an audience member about the desirability of Charlotte Harbor as a place for sailboaters to take time from journeying to do some fun sailing noting that one can "sail on an unimpeded body of water straight up Charlotte Harbor to the Punta Gorda waterfront."

Mr. Young's talk was organized by Team Punta Gorda.

Punta Gorda Master Plan Continues to Unfurl -- East Mooring Field Construction to Start

More than six  years ago after Hurricane Charly, I remember sitting at a series of planning charettes and participating in dreaming exercises of what  Punta Gorda could look like and be.  At the time we were still surrounded by the devastation of a major hurricane that took out along with much of our beautiful landscaping and cherished historic buildings some of less attractive structures of Punta Gorda.  The hurricane crisis also provided for an opportunity to reflect on some of the old charm of the City that  had been lost long before the storm and some ways to capitalize on the strengths of a location on an extraordinary waterfront.

Not so slowly over the last years we've witnessed the City evolve into a place closely matching  those dreams -- a boating paradise where people can moor or dock their boats and wander about the town enjoying cafes, restaurants and shops.  This week another project that I recall as part of the vision back there is starting... construction of a mooring field on the east side of northbound 41.   The need for places for day visitors to park their boats to visit and help support our downtown was one of the major missing elements recognized at those planning sessions.  Soon part of that gap will be filled with the construction a  field with places for 42 boats.

Charlotte Harbor Regatta ready to Set Sail February 3 -- Headquarters Fishermen's Village Punta Gorda

The Second Annual Charlotte Harbor Regatta is set to sail  February  3 – 6, 2011, in Charlotte Harbor, FL., which was recognized in 2004 by SAIL magazine as one of the top 10 greatest places to sail in the United States. The four-day event will include races in various boat classes, awards to the top three finishers in each class, and a variety of social mixers. Event organizers anticipate up to 100 participating boats and more than 150 sailors hailing from New England to Florida and California to the Outer Banks. Spectators will be able watch the action at harborside parks, such as Bayshore Park in Charlotte Harbor and Gilchrist Park in Punta Gorda and at several waterfront restaurants around the upper harbor.

“The world has taken notice of Charlotte Harbor,” said Brian Gleason, the Regatta’s chairman and editorial page editor of the Sun newspapers, “The buzz from last year’s inaugural regatta spread fast and this year’s registration numbers will reflect that. One of the new classes this year will be the 2.4mR design, which is a Paralympic class. They will be back with two additional classes in January 2012 when Charlotte Harbor hosts the International Association for Disabled Sailing World Championships, Jan. 7-15, 2012.”

Fishermen’s Village , is the host sponsor and headquarters for the Charlotte Harbor Regatta. It is the location of post-racing social events on Friday and Saturday. Regatta gear will also be on sale at Fishermen’s Village both days and evenings. A kickoff reception for the Regatta will be Thursday, Feb. 3, and an awards ceremony is scheduled for Sunday, Feb. 6, both at the Charlotte Harbor Yacht Club.

Several local sailing and boating organizations are involved in coordinating the event. They are Charlotte Harbor Community Sailing Center, Charlotte Harbor Yacht Club, Isles Yacht Club, Punta Gorda Boat Club, Punta Gorda Sailing Club and the Punta Gorda Boaters Alliance. Additional event sponsors are Charlotte County Community Services, Charlotte Harbor Visitor & Convention Bureau, Mosaic, Kitson & Partners, Microtel, Charlotte Regional Medical Center, Peace River Distributing and Sun Newspapers.

Registration and additional information for the Charlotte Harbor Regatta can be found on www.CharlotteHarborRegatta.com.  Also you can follow the Charlotte Harbor Regatta on Facebook and Twitter (twitter.com/charlotteharbor).

Boating Bloggers start their Journeys North

Many Punta Gorda boaters are starting trips north. As I learn of those who may be doing blogs I will be adding them to my follow list.

http://www.persistencetotn.blogspot.com/

The Boat Clubs in and around Punta Gorda

We frequent Mamma Nunzia's back bar -- it's cool, somewhat dark, has high tables and flat screen TVs and is small enough to be intimate and large enough not to be suffocating.

Usually it's pretty quiet in there --- with only a few regulars. Except on nights when Boat Clubs descend for happy hours. And it is on these occasions that I have gotten a glimpse of how fun some of these clubs and their members can be. In fact, we've met boat clubbers at Mamma's, with whom subsequently we have become friends.

A large part of Punta Gorda and Charlotte Harbor is about boating. Even if you boat only irregularly or not at all, boating is pervasive, something you either did, would like to do, fantasize about doing, or talk about doing even if you have no intention of ever doing.

In fact, many boat clubs don't require that you even have a boat or intend to ever get a boat. They are social clubs with varying requirements for membership. Some are restricted demographically others geographically (i.e. you need to live in the neighborhood of the club). Regardless, there is a boat club for most of us. Here's a list of some of them in the area that I will continue to develop over time--plus I plan to do a more elaborate blurb about each of these in future posts.

Burnt Store Isles Boat Club Organizes boat trips with land components for various sizes of boats, social events, and provides frequent boating communications/advice. Limited to Burnt Store Isles residents and anyone who ever lived in BSI and belonged to the boat club.

Mariners of PGI PGICA-sponsored club. See website for specific membership requirements.

PGIslanders PGICA-sponsored club, limited to members of the PGICA. Other membership requirements "can be found on their website. Organize cruises, social events, etc.

PGI Seafarers
Punta Gora Isles Civic Association sponsored, limited to members of the PGICA. See complete list of requirements on their website along with examples of cruise and social events.

Punta Gorda Boat Club Maybe the oldest of Punta Gorda's boat clubs with its own clubhouse nestled on the Peace River.

Punta Gorda Sailing Club

Singles for Sail Group of 45+ singles who socialize and organize sailing trips.

Going Boating? Take a Computer Disk on Charlotte Harbor

At a presentation  made at the March 19th Boaters Alliance meeting,  Major Kaletta of the Charlotte County Civil Air Patrol  said that the Civil Air Patrol flies scheduled "Sundown Flights" over the Charlotte Harbor area Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday's for the purpose of locating distressed boaters.  The flights depart the airport about one and one half hours prior to sundown and fly a predetermined course over the harbor and inter-coastal waterway and  are in contact with ground rescue.

 

He recommended that  boaters carry with them  a computer disk to be used as a signaling device should a problem arise.  The hole in the center of the disk allows proper aiming at the aircraft and by wobbling the disk the reflected sunlight will draw the  attention of a pilot. 

Boats should note that this program is entirely volunteer and pilots pay for their own fuel.  The Patrol welcomes  any donations to assist in offsetting the cost of these flight operations that help provide safety for boaters in Charlotte Harbor.