Talking About Adventure In Small Boats
http://www.oceanepics.com/tex/?p=746
The above is a link to a fisherman's page which has a nice video of traveling through Crocodile Dragover. I notice channel markers flying by, so Florida Bay Guide chart 33E is wrong when it indicates Crocodile Dragover isn't marked. Wish he'd also posted his lat/lon tracking points.
DaveOnCudjoe
Member
As a sailor I'm not sure when a Croc Dragover would be a best bet. Dan and Dave like it for the scenery. Perhaps a wind just south of SE, still leaves a long beat to Sunset Bay. If you can get through Tin Can you can do Twisty Mile and once through Jimmy under those conditions it would be an easy ride to the finish. It's hard to know unless you're there. Dave
I looked at the past 10 years of NOAA data, and the winds in Florida Bay blow predominantly from the North (26%) and East (49%) in March. From one day to the next there's a 75% chance of a veering wind, unless it's from the East, in which case it'll most likely be from the East again tomorrow. There's an 82% chance of a veering wind if it's currently a West wind. I'm thinking Crocodile Dragover puts me under the lee of the land at its East end, in a position to take advantage of a veering wind, especially if it's Northerly now. But if it's Easterly at Flamingo and the weatherman thinks it'll veer Southerly, it'll be Twisty Mile, Jimmy Channel, and Manatee Keys.
Jarhead
Member
KB, I just sailed through there last Thur, and I believe the video was taken E to W. The mangroves/land on the right in the beginning of the clip is Madeira Pt, I believe, and the narrow part at the end is where you start by going between the S end of Big Key and a small island just below.
There was a section in the middle, not evident from this video, where the markers seemed to me to have a big gap. Certainly at night you would think so. I sailed straight E from where I lost the markers for a few minutes then spotted them with binos starting up to the ENE near the tip of Madeira Pt.
I liked the route for the scenery and maybe it would be good for a paddler, because there is some land in some of those islands if you needed an emergency stop. It's not much use to a sailor in a challenge because it runs E-W for a long way and is extremely shallow in places. If you can sail E that long, you don't need to to leave the standard route, which I believe would be slightly faster. I could be wrong on that.
Scareman
Member
Hello from Bojangles on I -4.
Entering crocodile drag over you will hug the mangroves on your left and follow a few channel markers before you get to a big unmarked left hand sweeper. But be careful in that sweeper across Madeira Bay. I had pretty high water and had to get back to the channel. I think you pick up a few markers by Madeira Pt.
Hopefully I will have some good pics.
Scareman
Scareman
Member
To note what Jarhead says above, the video is shot "backwards for us" from Key Largo to Flamingo, not the route you should take in the EC if you want to finish quickly.
However, this was also my route heading West this past weekend while completing my loop of Florida Bay. So most of pictures I have going West (backwards for us).
I did try to shoot pictures behind me to reflect the EC route through Crocodile Dragover.
We'll see when I download pictures from my new $60 GE camera that runs on AA's and did better than my Olympus waterproof and Kodak Playsport that died.
I'll dump them on Photobucket and post a link here if I can uplaod faster than 1 bit per eon.
Scareman
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