I jumped in on a bobbing hull barely north of JP on Tues 05-12, and didn't like what I saw. It was a catamaran bow and some dangling debris barely caught on the edge of the JP sand bar.
It was fairly low tide and there was about 20' of broken up glassed over wood panels, twisted rope, electrical wiring and plastic tubing all hanging from the splitting apart bow of the cat, in about 12' of water. I recognized the glassed wood, it was the same as a table top sized piece I fished out of the bay a few days before. The whole thing looked like it was about to break free and float into the incoming tide at JP.
I tied some old lines to it and gave it a little tug west... while I bumped it in an out of gear to take up the slack, it came off the bar instantly at idle. That's when I realized I had an extreme restricked ability to manuever problem on my hands. My first thought was to short rope tow it into JP and get one of the cranes to fish it out, but it took me a 1/4 mile to turn it towards marker #1. No way would I try to navigate the narrower than ever JP in current.
USCG St Pete advised to find a place to cut it loose and they would list it as a hazard to navigation. I told them I would tow it away from the pass and try to stick it shallower on the sand bar.
Beach fishing is now better than ever about a mile north of JP, in 6' of water. I hope it stays there. Still was after high tide this afternoon. I doubt it will for long though, so drive carefully.
Dive Report: Continued out to spearfish on the St Pete Beach Artificial Reef 7 miles to the SW. I could see the barge & tanks from the surface until the afternoon tide changed. It dropped from about 25' visibility to maybe 15'. Got hot & had to ditch my wetsuit... a shorty would be the ticket! More in the Times Sat.
Chad
It was fairly low tide and there was about 20' of broken up glassed over wood panels, twisted rope, electrical wiring and plastic tubing all hanging from the splitting apart bow of the cat, in about 12' of water. I recognized the glassed wood, it was the same as a table top sized piece I fished out of the bay a few days before. The whole thing looked like it was about to break free and float into the incoming tide at JP.
I tied some old lines to it and gave it a little tug west... while I bumped it in an out of gear to take up the slack, it came off the bar instantly at idle. That's when I realized I had an extreme restricked ability to manuever problem on my hands. My first thought was to short rope tow it into JP and get one of the cranes to fish it out, but it took me a 1/4 mile to turn it towards marker #1. No way would I try to navigate the narrower than ever JP in current.
USCG St Pete advised to find a place to cut it loose and they would list it as a hazard to navigation. I told them I would tow it away from the pass and try to stick it shallower on the sand bar.
Beach fishing is now better than ever about a mile north of JP, in 6' of water. I hope it stays there. Still was after high tide this afternoon. I doubt it will for long though, so drive carefully.
Dive Report: Continued out to spearfish on the St Pete Beach Artificial Reef 7 miles to the SW. I could see the barge & tanks from the surface until the afternoon tide changed. It dropped from about 25' visibility to maybe 15'. Got hot & had to ditch my wetsuit... a shorty would be the ticket! More in the Times Sat.
Chad
