Sailing an AquaCat 12.5 in Sarasota, FL

[Kermit]

Wife and I will be in Sarasota, FL this coming June. We decided not to take our Hunter 23. (Dang I'm gonna miss it!) We have an AquaCat 12.5 that is lots of fun in moderate wind and easy to set up and put away. My only concern is where to put it in and sail it.

The owner of the condo says the ICW might be a good place to sail but is concerned about us trying to sail it in the ocean. We sailed it once in Charleston, SC between Ft. Moultrie and Ft. Sumter. Extremely challenging conditions for us but we're glad we did it. (Or at least I'm glad we did it.)

Can anyone give me some thoughts about sailing our little boat in Sarasota?

Thanks!

Kermit

 

[soling42]

Sarasota Sailing Squadron. http://sarasotasailingsquadron.org/
Bay sailing from an easy beach launch site just to their South. Check google earth. Sarasota is a diverse area so where is your base in town? 10th street boat ramp is our main (busy) ramp downtown on the mainland. Lido beach is relatively near the squadron. The other main island, Siesta key only has one ramp on the south end of the key at Turtle beach. From there the bay is nearby and well protected but down a canal that you'd need to motor.

June is usually light so the gulf/beach is real easy too(and beautiful/NOT challenging except in the passes). That's what I'd do if you can find parking.

Have fun. Mike

 

[Kermit]

Thanks for the link! I really wish I felt better about trailering my Hunter 23 there. But that's just not something I feel comfortable with. I will try to contact the squadron.

Kermit

 

[Bill1565]

Give us a shout when you are in town. Charlotte Harbor is about ahour south of sarasota bay. I can show you a couple of places to put in here.

 

[seadaddler]

Why Not

Why not trailer her to Sarasota just take your time.
We will be sailing up that way around April 2 from Charlotte Harbor with our H-36 and many more other sailboats from the Punta Gorda Sailin Club,never been sailing up that way before so looking forward to the trip.
Soling42 maybe we will see you out on the water.
Nick

 

[Joe]

I thought those type of boats were designed to be launched right off the beach, anywhere. You should be able back up to the sand and pull the thing off the trailer, then, if you can't carry it, put a rubber fender under each hull and roll it down to the water..... egyptian pyramid builder style.... piece of cake. That's what I used to do with my Nacra 5.2, a much larger vessel, when launching off the beach. Or you could buy some of those expensive beach wheels.

 

[Kermit]

Why not trailer her to Sarasota just take your time.
Nick

Thanks for the encouragement. After thinking about all the reasons that I don't need to post here, it all boils down to one thing - inexperience. One day I hope to feel comfortable with that.

Thanks again!

Kermit

 

[Kermit]

I thought those type of boats were designed to be launched right off the beach, anywhere. You should be able back up to the sand and pull the thing off the trailer, then, if you can't carry it, put a rubber fender under each hull and roll it down to the water..... egyptian pyramid builder style.... piece of cake. That's what I used to do with my Nacra 5.2, a much larger vessel, when launching off the beach. Or you could buy some of those expensive beach wheels.

Yes, these boats are lightweight, easy to trailer, easy to roll on the beach. I've never been to Sarasota and have no idea what's cricket and what's not. Sure would hate to spend a night in the pokey or pay a fine. After putting in and taking out in Charleston, we found out after the fact that everything we did to put the boat in the water was fine except for using our car. Turns out we could have really been in trouble for that.

Kermit

 

[soling42]

Kermit, keep it simple on your first visit and scope out the area for a return if if fits your style. The beaches are best on siesta key but with that comes crowds after 11am at the main beach. If your boat is small you should be able to heft it to the water at siesta public beach but unless it's calm there'll be a shore break on the gulf side of Turtle beach. The bayside launch at city island by the sailing squadron is an easy launch and gives you the whole bay. There is a great public boat ramp (my personal fav)just around the corner from there too.

Mike

Seadaddler, sent you an email.