Any Catalina 22 Sport owners in/near Fort Myers, Florida

[Cyb3rSail3r]

Looking to go out sailing, but I'm not familiar with the water yet. I have a 22' Catalina Sport MKII with a retractable keel docked 1/2 mile from the San Carlos bridge, rigged and ready to go. I want to take it out but am told the depths, currents, and places to go can be tricky depending on the destination. I'm very curious to know where do people usually go? What is there to explore? How do you navigate, like what are some of the best apps given the area? I currently have Windy, and should I get Navionics by Garman? Grab lunch sometime? Mainly, it'll just be my wife and I for a day trip (4-5 hours), prefer calm days, light wind.

 

[Grotto]

I like to start any sailing in a new area by pouring over nav charts reviewing army corps of engineers sounding (inlets and ICW) to get “the lay of the land” once I have an idea of depth anchorages etc I’ll haunt the marina or boat ramp to “run into” a local sailor compliment their boat, and ask the local waters questions. Or on a nice 5-10kts day just go out and sail