Grayton Beach access
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Posted: Apr 18, 2010 - 11:38 AM
I'm renting a house in June at Grayton beach on Pine Street...does anyone familiar with the area ..let me know how and where I can launch my Prindle 16..I've never been there before.. is there a hard sand launch?I drive 2 wheel drive F150...do I need a permit or what??Just some info would be great ..thank Glenn -
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Posted: Apr 18, 2010 - 10:52 PM
Hey Glen,
Your lucky. Grayton beach is one of the few places left that allows you to drive to the beach, but with a permit. You won't get one, and it ain't worth the cost unless you live there. But, you can ask someone to help you by pulling your boat out for you. Even simpler, is to launch on the lake using the provided public ramp and sail the boat to the beach, which is very easy to do then move the boat into the Gulf. I've done it a bunch. It is the simplest way. Make sure you go to Red Bar!!
Good day for me today. After racing yesterday, today I pleasured sailed 35 miles in the Gulf of Mexico on what was a perfect day.
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Philip
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Posted: Apr 18, 2010 - 10:54 PM
let me add, it is very soft sand, your truck wouldn't be able to pull the trailer even if it with 4 wheel drive. Again, the lake is the answer.
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Philip
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Posted: Apr 19, 2010 - 09:47 AM
wasn't so wonderful in my part of the gulf on sunday! I had to break down in a downpour, but sat rocked! -
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Posted: Apr 19, 2010 - 07:11 PM
I sail there every weekend. Send me your email addy, I can help you out.
You'll just have to wait until I setup my Hobie to free the trailer up (trailers need permit as well).
I assume your prindle will fit onto my trailer without any problem.
BTW, regardless of what another poster said, you don't wanna launch at the public boat ramp into the lake to get to the beach. IT'S A LOTTA WORK! Been there done that.
There's a narrow winding channel to the beach and the wind tends to be in your face the whole way and you end pushing your boat. If it happens to be opened to the gulf you'll be fighting tides as well.
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Posted: Apr 19, 2010 - 08:33 PM
Well yeah, but you got the permit. . . duh. Hence my first advice to find someone to take him.
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Philip
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Posted: Apr 19, 2010 - 10:41 PM
I've only launched through the lake once with my Hobie 18 and wasn't going to contradict Philip since he's done it more. But the one time I launched there (with my 74 year old father as crew) I was really worn out by the time we got the boat on the beach.
My plan was to launch from the ramp, then paddle the boat across the lake (about 300 yards) to the channel that leads most of the way to the Gulf. I had my beach wheels sitting on the hulls ahead of the mast and two paddles. I didn't raise that main, it was rolled up on the tramp, I did setup the jib and furled it. Seemed so easy a cave man could do it.
The problem was that a south wind (light breeze) came from the south and after 20 minutes of hard paddling we were no closer to the channel than when we started. The Hobie 18 (with wings) just had too much wind resistance to paddle direct upwind. I gave up and unfurled the jib and combined with hard paddling and a half dozen "tacks" we got to the channel.
The channel is overflow from the lake and how much water is there depends on recent rainfall. When I was there it varied from ankle to waist deep. Trudging knee deep in water on soft bottom while towing a Hobie 18 and your father is exhausting. Although it was pretty entertaining when we walked the boat past the dozens of children playing in the shallow water along the way.
The last obstacle is when you run out of channel you are faced with a dune of varying size, it was proably 15 feet high I did it and if you haven't been to the Florida Panhandle Coast you don't understand how soft the sand is.
Luckily there were a lot of young folks around and I have no shame over rounding up a bunch of them to drag the boat up and over the dune.
Below is a picture of the location, Hotz Ave run right into the lake, the white dotted line is the lake and channel path, the black dotted line represents getting the boat over the dune.
If there was no wind, the lake part would have been a lot easier, but who wants to go sailing without wind? If I did it again I would raise the sails and sail instead of paddle.
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Damon Linkous
1992 Hobie 18
Memphis, TN
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Posted: Apr 20, 2010 - 11:44 PM
Just noticed this topic is in "Events" and belongs in "Sailor Talk", moving it now.
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Damon Linkous
1992 Hobie 18
Memphis, TN
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Posted: Jun 09, 2010 - 10:58 AM
What's up..heading off to Grayton beach on Friday...bringing the cat..I hope I won't be sailing in oil..let me have your number again if your still up for launching me..I am stayin on Pine street got the family down...finally got to sail...nasty weather in this part of Gainesville...got hammereed by a huge storm front..wasn't quick enough got flipped but was up and going pretty fast..it took a bit for me to pull her back up by myself....I was lake sailing hope the ocean will be nice Glenn
