Monthly Archives: May 2022

Clear Waters From Ground to Above

As I mentioned in my previous post, “Ed is on a roll…”

Yesterday, 5-24-22 around 11:30 am, my husband took the Maverick to the Sailfish Flats area and the sandbar that forms at low tide off of Sailfish Point. Next, at 2:30pm he took a ride in the RV to view from above. Beautiful.

Rainy season usually officially begins on June 1st. So if you can enjoy the clear waters near the St Lucie Inlet before the rains…

I wanted to share these photos so we can compare.

~On the ground

-Seagrass with Gracilaria, a common macro-algae in the Lagoon according to Mark Perry

~In the air

-RV: Sailfish Flats and Sailfish Point, Hutchinson Island, near St Lucie Inlet on March 24, 2022, around 2:30pm. The exposed sand in these aerials is the sandbar Ed walked on and took photos of above.

Thank you Ed, for being my eye in the sky.

Aerials Sailfish Flats- St Lucie River/Indian River Lagoon May 2022

Ed is on a roll!

Yesterday, 5-23-22, at around 3:30pm, these aerials were taken of the Sailfish Flats, the confluence of the St Lucie River/Indian River Lagoon between Sewall’s Point and Hutchinson Island.

The water looks great and I have had reports of seagrass-although sparse-growing in some parts of this region. KEEP THE LOCKS CLOSED and thank you Ed for documenting the St Lucie!

Mind you, the entire river is not this color. The water gets more tannin and darker as you approach the locks and upper reaches of the forks. These were once fresh and clear. In a hundred years, things have drastically changed…

As you can see, the proximity to the St Lucie Inlet allows for flushing/cleaning of this area. Since repeated blue-green algae laden discharges starting in 2013, and then again in 2016 and 2018, the grasses have become sparse mostly due to poor light penetration. The inlet cannot flush when high discharges from Lake Okeechobee and area canals are pouring through for long periods of time.

Some of the shading you see is macro-algae not seagrasses. It takes years for seagrass to recover. With three good recent years they seem to be recovering. Things are looking up so long as Mother Nature and politics don’t get in way. Please continue to advocate for our waters!

I am including all photos- although similar- so you may compare and get the feeling of

~Flight~

1977 aerial below by Chris Perry for historic comparison.

Aerial of seagrasses in 1977 in and around Sailfish and Sewall’s Point.

 

Lake O’s Edge to Pal Mar/St Lucie Inlet

Greetings. Ed and I have just returned from three weeks of touring Florida’s west coast in our trawler, Adrift. It was awesome!  I am nowhere close to being back in gear (I am recovering one could say) but my husband Ed is…

Yesterday, 5-22-22, around 1pm, Ed took the RV for a spin and got some great aerials. I wanted to make sure to share. I will be writing more soon. Hope all my readers are doing well and enjoying the water!

~Flight~

-C-44 Canal at S-80, St Lucie Locks and Dam. No algae at S-80 but we did see some bubbling up in our wake in Lake O.

-Sugarcane burning near Lake Okeechobee…

–Pal Mar’s lands  are under siege as you may have read about

-Light plume from rains, St Lucie Inlet at Hutchinson Island, Sailfish Point. Water is looking great after three years of no major discharges from Lake Okeechobee.-Sailfish Flats as viewed over Hutchinson Island. Pretty with seagrass “budding back.” Let’s keep those discharges at bay so it can grow, grow, grow!