Longest Round Trip Tow

[THEFERMANATOR]

Having spent most of yesterday running around gasparilla island, another thing to keep in mind is the actual boating on the water. Are you prepared to lose a prop or lower unit? There is alot of boating to be done down that way, but there are also ALOT of water hazards down there as well. There is also a ferry that does non stop trips all day long from ELDRIDS marina to GASPARILLA ISLAND. Also on another note, it is just plain STOOPID that they have a ferry to bring your car over to the north side of the island, but no roads to connect it to the southside of the island because they decided to make the middle of the island part of Don Pedro Island State Park. Also if you do come down here to boat, I STRONGLY reccomend you have a hand held GPS or something with accurate charts in it. This area can go from deep water of 10-12 feet in the channels, to nothing in less than 3 feet. The ICW isn't marked the best in all areas anymore, and it is sandbars on either side of the channel through much of it.

If you do bring your boat with you, I would strongly suggest stepping up to a tandem axle trailer. Yes the tolls through the socialist north will eat you alive, but the safety factor is nice in having 2 tires on each side in case of a blowout. And when you come down, let us know, I may be able to break away and take the wife and kids to the inlaws in Port Charlotte and bring the skiff with me. Still trying to learn how and where to fish in the area as it is COMPLETELY different than what I am used to up to the north.

[phatdaddy]

don't know if that area is as bad as the keys (remember, that chain of islands was founded by people who took advantage of stranded travlers in peril), but trailer storage can be costly as well.

we rented a house in key colony(marathon) and had to pay a $50 a week storage fee to the key colony police force to store a trailer in their yard, other option was a $25 a day fine for keeepin it at the rental house.


apparently their attitude has not changed in 300 years

[THEFERMANATOR]

Check with ELDRED'S MARINA. They are located right at the bridge to BOCA GRANDE, and do long term storage. The ferry boat to GASPARILLA ISLAND runs from that marina over. They have an older ramp(but still good) along with a large parking lot and several boat slips to park at.

[SkunkBoat]

First off, go for it. An adventure is an adventure even if (especially if) something goes wrong.

All this talk about trailers and no one has mentioned sh#$ brakes and f#$%@& lights...

You'll probably be driving in the dark so make sure your brake lights work with your running lights on. clean & tighten light bolts so they get a good connection. same with the white wire on your truck & trailer. make sure all your little side lights work and your license plate is lit.

I hate trailer lights...
I hate trailer brakes and don't have them but I would if I were driving I95 to Florida with my V20 baby loaded with 2 weeks of crap

[Destroyer]

Originally Posted by THEFERMANATOR

If you do bring your boat with you, I would strongly suggest stepping up to a tandem axle trailer. Yes the tolls through the socialist north will eat you alive, but the safety factor is nice in having 2 tires on each side in case of a blowout.

Actually, if he has EasyPass there is NO charge for a trailer, single or tandem. If he goes thru the normal toll lanes you're right, they charge by the axle and he'll pay thru the nose. But the Easypass lanes just charge by the vehicle. Just read the info on their site. I've had Easypass for many years and I love the ease and the reduced fees. Well worth getting.

Originally Posted by Phatdaddy

we rented a house in key colony(marathon) and had to pay a $50 a week storage fee to the key colony police force to store a trailer in their yard, other option was a $25 a day fine for keeping it at the rental house.

You have got to be kidding me. They fine you for keeping a trailer in your driveway????? It's a legally registered vehicle according to law and should not be subject to any fines. And the people down there let the police get away with that crap? That's nothing less than extortion.

Originally Posted by RWilson2526

Even "Captain Cautious" (AKA Destroyer) was saying go for it

There's a reason I reached my 71st birthday Rob. I've never said don't have fun. I just say be careful you don't kill yourself while doing it.

[THEFERMANATOR]

Originally Posted by Destroyer

Actually, if he has EasyPass there is NO charge for a trailer, single or tandem. If he goes thru the normal toll lanes you're right, they charge by the axle and he'll pay thru the nose. But the Easypass lanes just charge by the vehicle. Just read the info on their site. I've had Easypass for many years and I love the ease and the reduced fees. Well worth getting.



You have got to be kidding me. They fine you for keeping a trailer in your driveway????? It's a legally registered vehicle according to law and should not be subject to any fines. And the people down there let the police get away with that crap? That's nothing less than extortion.



There's a reason I reached my 71st birthday Rob. I've never said don't have fun. I just say be careful you don't kill yourself while doing it.

We don't have easypass down here, and it isn't retroactive with the sunpass we have, so no point in me getting one or even really knowing about one with as little as I go up nawth(you guys can keep that area. My wife has family up there, so we only go OCCASIONALLY to visit). As to the fine, many areas down here are VERY congested, and if they allowed you to park your trailer, the whole area would back up. Or it could have been a deed restricted community like my inlaws live in where everybody is from up nawth where they like being told what they can and can't do. They already know they will have a notice in the mail next week about my boat being parked in front of the house Wednesday and Thursday night, and Friday(only allowed to park your boat here Friday night to Sunday afternoon). Most of the people who live here are from Jersey and New York, and love it like this.

[Destroyer]

Originally Posted by THEFERMANATOR

We don't have easypass down here, and it isn't retroactive with the sunpass we have, so no point in me getting one or even really knowing about one with as little as I go up nawth(you guys can keep that area. My wife has family up there, so we only go OCCASIONALLY to visit). As to the fine, many areas down here are VERY congested, and if they allowed you to park your trailer, the whole area would back up. Or it could have been a deed restricted community like my inlaws live in where everybody is from up nawth where they like being told what they can and can't do. They already know they will have a notice in the mail next week about my boat being parked in front of the house Wednesday and Thursday night, and Friday(only allowed to park your boat here Friday night to Sunday afternoon). Most of the people who live here are from Jersey and New York, and love it like this.

I know Easypass is retroactive to a lot of different states. Don't know about Fla though.
As for the trailer thing, if I park my car and trailer in my own driveway, it's no ones else's damn business. I'm not congesting any road, and if someone doesn't like looking at it they can turn their fk'ing head the other way. Not sure about the comment about people from the North liking being told what to do. Where'd you ever get that idea?.. Sounds strange coming from an area that doesn't allow people to park their trailer in their own driveway. And when I visited my aunts in Naples, I never got any hassle about parking my trailer in their driveway. So I guess maybe it's a local extortion?.

[THEFERMANATOR]

Originally Posted by Destroyer

I know Easypass is retroactive to a lot of different states. Don't know about Fla though.
As for the trailer thing, if I park my car and trailer in my own driveway, it's no ones else's damn business. I'm not congesting any road, and if someone doesn't like looking at it they can turn their fk'ing head the other way. Not sure about the comment about people from the North liking being told what to do. Where'd you ever get that idea?.. Sounds strange coming from an area that doesn't allow people to park their trailer in their own driveway. And when I visited my aunts in Naples, I never got any hassle about parking my trailer in their driveway. So I guess maybe it's a local extortion?.

It's called deed restriction down here. Not very popular with the actual southerners, but very popular with our transplants.

[phatdaddy]

yep, part of the covenants of the neighborhood. no trailers in the front yard. homeowners get to park theirs free in the lot, only rental trash gets dinged.
not all neighborhoods are like that d. oh yea, $15 to launch a boat also at the "city" ramp.
people in florida figured out a long time ago, it's easier to pick tourist than to pick oranges

as far as sunpass, they count axles ,just not always accurately.

we stopped at some friends house in stuart. they lived in a gated community. we arrived about 9:00 that night, condo commando in the golf cart was banging on the door at 7 the next morning, couldn't live in a place like that.

[randlemanboater]

I have towed my V-20 to the Keys and back several times...1800 mile round trip. I pull it with my RV and don't know its there, weight wise or mpg wise...I do notice it navigating non-truckstop gas stations though.

Before I did it the first time, I bought a nice new dual axle trailer with surge brakes.

Check the reviews of the rental companies, crunch your numbers, check your rig over, and make an informed decision that suits you best.