A frequent question I receive is whether Burnt Store Isles (BSI) is a sailboat community with adequate water depth. If you take a drive around the neighborhood you will certainly see plenty of sailboats! However, not nearly as many as Punta Gorda Isles (PGI). There are a couple of reasons for this:
- PGI has long been known as a deeper water location for sailors.
- BSI has long been misunderstood as to what the actual water depths are with bad information circulating around town and with realtors.
- Alligator Creek is the exit waterway for Burnt Store Isles. In reality it is a river not a creek by most northern standards. Alligator Creek is a tidal environment with tides that over time create soft bottom shoaling and requires periodic dredging.
The short answer to whether Burnt Store Isles is a good option for sailors is YES! Historically, the main worry was water depth in Alligator Creek (please refer to my sounding measurements taken this year and prior to that). I have consistently found 5 feet mean low water (MLW) in my sounding measurements. Better yet, a recent dredging project was to increase the water depth to 6 feet MLW. This project was recently completed and I will verify that the dredging company truly established this water depth throughout the creek. With that said, Alligator Creek is a yes for sailors.
When addressing BSI, the canal depths overall are plenty deep ranging from 8 to 15 feet or more regardless of tide. In recent years however, the rim canal, which is the mangrove shoreline that many canals exit into, which then traverses into Alligator Creek, has had areas that have filled in. The good news is that a dredging operation began on June 6, 2017 with anticipated completion in September 2017. I have yet to read what their water depth dredging target is but guessing a minimum of 6 feet MLW. Once completed, I would expect the City of Punta Gorda, which oversees this effort will assure all boaters they have 6 feet MLW from all of Burnt Store Isles out to the harbor which obviously includes Alligator Creek.
Another navigational consideration for BSI is the lock section which is a non-functional lock but creates a narrowing as you leave BSI to enter Alligator Creek. It is a concrete sided passageway that has recently been reinforced with rip-rap for integrity. This opening is 17 feet. Upon entry to this area you are required to sound a horn to notify other boaters of your entrance into the old lock, which is actually a very short length. With a 17 foot opening, catamaran style hulls are pretty much eliminated. Burnt Store Isles is a sailing community for mono-hull sailors and power boats.
What to expect in the future? This is strictly my opinion but I have seen the City of Punta Gorda in recent years be more attentive to the water depths in Alligator Creek with more frequent dredging. With the possibility of another section of PGI, known as the Bird Section having a proper entrance created to allow ingress into Alligator Creek with sailboat water depth, the emphasis on water depth becomes even more of an obligation for the city to keep up with any shoaling that might occur. Many years ago the city allowed Alligator Creek to develop some shallow spots that had boaters with a draft of 5 feet to have concern and making it necessary to watch the tides especially in the winter months. This resulted in common thinking that Burnt Store Isles was not a sailing community. Hopefully, any misinformation that you have heard while investigating the area has been dispelled and that you will feel comfortable as a boater with current water depths and navigational information.
