Archive for the ‘Marinas’ Category


Posted on April 20, 2014 - by

Rialto Marina Is No More

We’re sorry to say that one of our favorite hideaways has decided to hang it up. Rumor is, the owner is retiring.

It’s such a pretty spot, maybe someday…

Here’s to safe and happy cruises,

Bob


Posted on April 20, 2014 - by

Marina Jack’s, Sarasota, FL

We’ve never been to Sarasota before, we always passed it by while heading south as fast a possible, but we’d always heard good things about Sarasota. We came to Marina Jack’s for business and were pleasantly surprised by what we found.

This is a world class marina that’s located adjacent to the downtown sector of a world class city.

Management and staff at Marina Jack’s are some of the most professional and friendly folks we’ve ever ran across at a marina. They operate Marina Jack’s like a fine hotel — Think upscale hospitality.  The restaurants onsite are very good and the sunset views are killer. It’s location, in the shadow of and just a short walk from downtown Sarasota, makes this marina a day, week, or long term destination. Within a couple of blocks you have a Whole Foods and on the way down Main St. you’ll pass some more great restaurants, barber shop, spas, hair salons, and everything else one would imagine a world class downtown has to offer.

Marina Jack’s offer’s everything a boater would need; from divers for under the waterline to marine electronics above it, all onsite.

The WiFi is, in my biased opinion because my company installed it, is the absolute best marina wifi I have ever experienced. I’m not making this up… it’s really good.

onSpot wifi has just finished installing the most technologically advanced WiFi hotspot to be found in Florida or anywhere else on the east coast of the USA.

We stayed at Marina Jack for almost 2 weeks and it is on the top of our list of the most fun and interesting marinas and cities we’ve been to.

Our opinion of Marina Jack’s is an excellent one.  If you haven’t been, you should go there, I promise you’ll enjoy it too.

Here’s to safe and happy cruising,

Bob


Posted on August 20, 2013 - by

A bad report regarding Green Cove Springs Marina

Dave from Driftaway endured a bad experience with these guys. I’ll repost his comments:

Green Cove Springs Marina WARNING!

In preparation for our departure north, we needed to find a good place to leave Drift Away for the many months we’d be gone.  Cost was an issue and we eliminated all the expensive marinas.  We didn’t care about amenities since we wouldn’t be there anyway.  We also wanted a do-it-yourself yard to perform some needed maintenance,  like painting.  We narrowed our list down to a few.  Green Cove Springs Marina looked good, relatively close by to Brunswick Georgia where we were docked, just south of Jacksonville.

I gave them a call to make sure they could accommodate us.  They asked the size, weight, and beam, and then confirmed that they could easily haul Drift Away.  Pam and I even took a road trip there to talk to the staff in person.

We arrived at Green Cove Springs Marina on May 10th, tying up to their wall.

Not the prettiest marina we’ve been at, but the cleats were adequate.
We were there for a few days and made arrangements to rent a U-Haul for our trip north.  The marina owner and office manager came by in a golf cart and we chatted a bit.  They both seemed like nice folks.
I prepped the boat for long term storage, putting loose things in the Whaler and covering it with a tarp.  I turned off everything on the boat, both 110V and 12V.   The shore power didn’t work on the dock and so we ran our generator to keep our food cold and water hot, but no big deal.  The only things running would be the bilge pumps, so I hooked both batteries together with booster cables to double the battery capacity for the pumps.  I couldn’t just turn the battery switches to “all” because the engines won’t start that way.
On the day of our departure, I stopped by the office to check out.  I paid for hauling, bottom cleaning, pump out, blocking, and three months storage in advance.  I asked that our boat be hauled as soon as possible.  I didn’t like leaving a 33 year old boat in the water without someone reliable to watch it and check on it.  I was told that it would be hauled within a few days.
A couple of days passed and Pam and I were almost in North Carolina when the cell phone rang.   It was the marina.
“We can’t haul your boat.”
“WHAT?  Why not??”
“It’s too big.  We can’t do it.”
“When I called, you assured me that you could!”
“Well, we can’t.  It’s too tall.”
“So now what do we do?  We’re on our way north towing a U-Haul and almost in North Carolina.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it.  I’ll have it hauled by Holland Marine and then stored at Reynold’s Park Yacht Center right next to us.  They charge more than we do, though.”
“When can you do this?”
“I’ll make the arrangements right away and get it over there.”
“OK, do it.”
After I hung up the phone, I was extremely aggravated.  I found it incredibly unprofessional that they didn’t take a few minutes to size up Drift Away in the few days I was there.  Plus, it would cost me half again as much as I planned on.  If I knew there was a problem hauling Drift Away at Green Cove Springs, I would have taken it someplace else.
Days passed and I heard nothing.  I called.  Drift Away was still in the water.
“I just have to get on Holland Marine’s hauling schedule.  I’ll get it out in a few days.”
A few days turned into a few weeks.   Another call.
“Your broker said to leave your boat in the water because it shows better.”
“What?  No way.  Look, it’s MY boat and I want it hauled.  Why would you take instructions from a boat broker?”
And then a couple of months went by.  Finally, on the 12th of July, I had a call from Holland that Drift Away was hauled and at Reynold’s.
I called Green Cove Springs and asked about refunding what I paid them.  I spoke to Crystal, the manager.
“I’ll talk to Bob, the owner.”
“Fine,” said I.  “I’ll pay for the few days we were there on the boat, and I’ll pay for the pump out you did, but I don’t expect to be charged for the two months my boat sat tied up to your wall.”
“I’ll have to talk to Bob about that.”
Several telephone calls and emails went unanswered over the next few weeks. It was apparent to me that they had no intentions of refunding me anything.  I guess they figured they could continue to play games since I’m in New York and they’re in Florida.  They were wrong.
I filled out paperwork and sent it to my bank to have my debit card charged back the full amount I paid them, $773.
Now the tables are turned and it’s their turn to wait.
A word to the wise.  Always put major expenditures on a charge or debit card.  You can always have the card charged back if goods or services are not delivered.
Avoid Green Cove Springs Marina.

Posted on June 26, 2013 - by

The Bluffs Marina — Jupiter, Fla.

Over the years we’ve pulled into The Bluffs several times. Last year we found shelter here during hurricane season and The Bluffs offers excellent wind protection from almost any direction.

It’s a quiet marina and mostly used as a place to store your boat until you’re ready for the next trip. There are folks who live aboard and it’s a nice facility for that. It’s close to the beach, grocery store, great restaurants, and all else Jupiter has to offer. The staff’s a nice bunch, but they’re not a full service marina and you might have to tie up your own boat when you come in.

They offer the fastest *internet hotspot of any marina we’ve found in Florida and they give it away. No limitations. Power is reliable, but if you stay long you’ll have to sign up with FPL and pay for it directly.

Deep drafted boats may have difficulty during extraordinarily low tides, we do, but dredging is supposed to begin soon to deepen the whole marina.

Very dog friendly with plenty of areas to walk your pets and the beach, just 1/2 mile away, is a dog friendly beach so take the pups for a swim.

*onSpot wifi is a company I’m personally involved in. onSpot was the installer of the Internet Hotspot at The Bluffs and we did install very high quality equipment. The speed is due to the marina’s decision to subscribe to a very high-speed business grade connection, onSpot wifi is responsible for it’s reliability.

The Bluffs Marina (Ask for Jaci)

1320 Tidal Pointe Blvd

Jupiter, FL 33477

(561) 627-6688

Posted on December 22, 2012 - by

Charlotte Harbor Boat Storage

Passing on a review from Jan at Commutercruiser.com

We hauled a few days ago at Charlotte Harbor Boat Storage, in Placida Florida (just north of Charlotte Harbor/Ft Myers). We’re having the bottom redone (including a small blister problem) doing a bit of work ourselves, repacking the stuffing boxes, replacing a depth transducer & speed transducer, maintenance etc. This place is like landing at home — great facilities, great contacts for everything from soda-blasting (needed for our blistered bottom), fixing a 2001 Tohatsu outboard — anything we ask, they have quality recommendations. THANKS CHBS! Plus nice extras for liveaboards – showers, screened picnic table deck with lots of microwaves, washer/dryer, washing dishes area, TV & wifi. We will be back — hopefully after we splash again and get some more cruising in!

:) Cheers! Jan,

commutercruiser.com

Charlotte Harbor Boat Storage, Inc.
 13101 Appleton Blvd – Placida, Florida 33946
(941) 828-0216


Posted on February 10, 2012 - by

Atlantic Yacht Basin

 

We pulled into AYB last year on our way down from the Chesapeake expecting to stay for a night before heading south. Then Mel got news that her mother was having health issues so she had to hop on a plane and leave Radar and I to fend for ourselves. My friend Peter had also tied up here waiting to head south. Pete had told me these guys were good boat fixers… Expensive but worth it. He was right.

It’s an old boat yard, but you can just tell by looking around these guys know what they’re doing. So I decided to have a few things done while waiting for Mel to return. They also give a special break on dockage if you have work done.
I needed a transducer replaced, which meant I must pull the boat, and I wanted to replace an old display with a new one I had in spares. They had good craftsmen and they did an excellent job of cutting in the new display.

Pulling the boat from the water was an experience. They didn’t let me drive into the lift, they asked me to get off the boat and they literally pulled it into the slings by hand, taking care to not scratch anything. About an hour later the transducer was replaced and the boat was going back into the water. Very quick work. While out, they cleaned my hull and scraped the running gear and keel coolers.
James Taylor, the Service Manager is a good fellow and made sure I had my boat back in the water by Friday so I could leave Saturday.
They had recommended Ayers Marine Electronics to do the wiring for the transducer. Ayers sent a nice young fellow to do the wiring and while there I asked him to look at upgrading the software on my Raymarine gear. He did both of those items quickly and professionally.
(I had problems with Ayers Marine Electronics, but I’ll write a separate review for them later.)

Our opinion of Atlantic Yacht Basin and it’s staff is another good one. Professional and seasoned veterans on staff. James Taylor is a fine fellow. We had a communication hick-up concerning billing and Ayers Marine Electronics, but all in all, it was a good experience and we hope to tie up at AYB in the near future.


Posted on February 5, 2012 - by

Update: Legacy Harbor Marina… Fort Myers, FL

legacy-harbor-marina

Update: 4/25/14

Legacy Harbour has just allowd onSpot wifi to install a great WiFi hotspot. This marina is now broadcasting a very strong signal all around the marina. If you’re pass through and want to stay at a first class marina with incredibly fast internet delivered wirelessly to your boat, Legacy is the place.

 

The fun part of doing these reviews is writing stories about the nice places, the good boat-fixers, and kind folks we run across while we cruise around. Legacy Harbor is one of these places.

 

We stopped here a few years ago to spend the night and ended up staying a month. It’s a really fine marina and it’s staff is great.
Located right in Downtown Ft. Myers, this is one of the most convenient marinas in the State of Florida. A Publix is a block away, fine restaurants are within easy walking distance. The other boaters who reside there are very nice folks who will go out of their way to help you, loan you a car, or just invite you aboard for a “docktail”, they call them.
A good story: During our last stay there, we had a shore cord plug burn out. Luckily there was a young fellow aboard who was adding freon to our A/C and he had a plug and quickly fixed it. I couldn’t think of why the plug would burn out and while pondering the problem… I remembered an hour earlier smelling something burning all the way up the dock. I had even questioned a few folks about the smell.
So I go into the office and tell Eric, the Harbor Master, about the plug and the smell. He said he would look into it. (I figured that would be the end of that) As I was walking up the dock and saw a friend, I told him about the burnt plug and the smell. He said, “That wasn’t an electrical burn you were smelling, that was Carol roasting coffee.”
I felt really stupid and bad about questioning Eric so I walked back to the office. Walking in, he immediately said he was knocking a hundred bucks off my bill. I told him about the coffee and apologized for questioning him, told him to forget the hundred bucks, but he insisted on reducing my bill.
Nice folks. Nice facility.


Posted on February 1, 2012 - by

Rialto Marina… Paradise found

istaboa-rialto

 

Already written about this marina. It’s truly a unique little Shangri-La in Central FL.
We have a very high opinion of Rialto and the folks who own and operate it. Check the link.
Rialto


Posted on January 31, 2012 - by

Sunset Bay Marina

Sunset Bay Marina

Sunset Bay Marina

Update, 07-2013

All the info below remains the same, but what a difference a year makes. We left Sunset Bay after being dealt with rather harshly. Without going into details, we realized we’d overstayed our welcome there and it was time to move on. Management, in our opinion, treated us and others poorly. We think that being an always full marina put the management staff into a position of perceived power which they take advantage of. This had nothing to do with their rates which are very low for the fine amenities offered.

Also, the current is treacherous and growth in your waterlines and on your hull will reduce the savings of the low monthly rates significantly. e.g. Divers, A/C issues, all circulating raw water related issues.

Still, if you can get in and you don’t mind the long run up the river, the Zebra Mussels, management attitude, and you don’t want to make it home, It’s a fine place.  Read the former review… Stuart is a nice place.

 

Sunset Bay Marina is a little oasis down here in South Florida. It’s location is ideal. A scenic walk away from the old historic downtown Stuart area, restaurants, and shopping. Sailor’s Return, though very busy, is a very good eatery with a great bar outside overlooking the marina. Because of the restaurant’s success the parking was an issue, but they have that under control. No matter what time we come in, we get a parking spot… might have to circle the lot once, but we always find a spot.
If you’re looking for peace and quiet… This marina may not be for you. Sailor’s Return has live music almost every night and on the weekends they rock, but we like to hear the good bands and when we don’t we just shut the doors on Istaboa and their gone. We rarely find it annoying.
Stuart itself is quite nice. Not too big, but large enough to have pretty much whatever you need within a few miles. Stuart, we have always said, is a very boaty little town. Unlike Ft, Lauderdale, which is Yachty. Not that that’s bad… we’ve realized it’s just not for us.
If you’re into mooring out … You’ll love this place. Good moorings and plenty of them. The marina has a lot to offer those in the anchorage; a huge grill in the comfortable common area, great shower and laundry facilities, and a large Captain’s lounge with comfortable furniture and a large screen TV.
The staff here at the marina couldn’t be nicer and go out of their way to be accommodating. We’ve become good friends over the last few years. We call this marina home. See update (that’s all changed)

Sunset

Almost every night we get one of these.