Any updates on pier repairs? Guys living down there seeing activity or progress?
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Any updates on pier repairs? Guys living down there seeing activity or progress?
Still just in the early phases of trying to clear the rubble that Sally left. The weather is making it difficult to get much done. You can check at the Sea'nSuds cam (link below, take control of the cam and choose EAST view). Pier#r has posted that they need a minimum of 36 hours forecast of good weather to move the barge and crane into position to work. I am not optimistic that they will get the "water work" finished by the May 1 deadline - if they don't, that means we are looking at 2025 or later for completion.
EDIT: You can get a wind and wave forecast at the second link. Click on "forecast" in the popup window in the middle of the page and you will have a one day forecast in the window and a mini 7-day at the bottom. Click "7 day" at top left of the second pop-up and you will get a larger 7-day.
https://bamabeachcams.com/sea-n-suds.aspx
https://windalert.com/map#30.021,-87.189,9,1,!51912,2
I'm hopeful for this year sometime , but the way it's already gone just to start .....my plans are still east
The condo rent is hard to beat over there for the month
The way the weather is stacking up so far this month, I wonder if they will get more than 2 or 3 days onsite in January.All total so far since the project got started they have only managed about 8 days onsite.El Nino winters have been VERY weather active in the past!
Is there a guess as to how much of the underwater work has been completed?
I have no idea how much is done, but the barge and crane are in the gap this morning (7:30 am, Sunday, 1/21).
The boom is down. I assume that is the travel position and they are just getting ready to get some work done as waves are forecast to fall to 1 ft or less until tomorrow evening. They are trying, but I am still not optimistic.
EDIT: Well , I see there is a post by Pier#r in the Q&A with way more information than I had. I've been on the road and out of the loop. It is good to see the template piles down, maybe I am too pessimistic.
Progress!!
You can check the end of this thread for the latest post, and scroll up... http://www.gulfshorespierfishing.com...43/#post147424
They have made some positive progress this weekend, but rough weather is coming.
Dude Where did the berm go??🤣 I been watchin em out there - doing good last couple weeks Can’t wait !! Gonna be a ghastly crew
Looks like they’re about to ge t down out there ! Should be good for a couple weeks I wish I had that little orange boat that thing looks keeler🤙
Wow! The jack-up rig should not be subject to the variations in seas like a barge and crane. this gives me hope for next year.
https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid...05265020192083
That's wonderfully optimistic. Sure hope it comes to pass.
Sharks and pelicans🤔
Yep. Sharks and pelicans are what we'd like to be rid of, but they're what the tourists want to see. Using that as a basis, maybe we could lobby for a second pier--one for the tourists and sharks, and one for those of us who are doing what we're supposed to.
Speaking of doing the right thing, I'll never forget one day in the long ago and far off times, when there was a good bite of largish Spanish. Things were intense at the rail as the fish were coming over regularly, and a nice tourist lady was blithely standing in the midst of flying Gotchas, fish and bubble rigs, and said "That looks like so much fun." I think it was Tater who turned his head and said, "Fun, hell. Lady, this is some serious sh!t."
So, we need a place for us serious fishermen (fisherpersons) where we can put each other in harm's way with no recriminations. It may not be serious, but it sure can be intense.
Buckroe Beach VA has 2 piers relatively close together (1/2 mile tops), as you describe -- seems to be no fishing on the sightseeing pier. Only issue is both are inside Chesapeake Bay (so sheltered) and are short by Gulf standards so costs would have been far less.
Are sea turtles incapable of recognizing that in-water construction work might best be avoided? That there have been scientific observations that turtles will blindly swim directly into such activity to their own demise? If so I am surprised that they didn’t become extinct eons ago. What about concerns for crabs, other bottom dwellers, dumb fish and sharks? Just curious.
Is the concern with the nesters or the young?
Turtles are greatly diminished from their historical numbers so losing one is a bigger loss to the population. To lay eggs they have to funnel to land where they run directly into the path of normal human activity. And yes among animals turtles clearly appear not very bright, but there are fossils of turtles from 230 million years ago so how they live seems to have worked.
Compare that to deer. Hunters harvest 6 million deer a year, and another 1.5-2 million are in traffic accidents. That's a much bigger population to be able to sustain those losses every year. (I also just learned that deer are the deadliest threat to humans, killing 440 of the 450 people killed in U.S. wildlife-human interactions in a year by being in so many car crashes, according to somebody's research.)
For a bit of good news about turtles, I have read that their numbers are believed to be rebounding quite dramatically due to conservation efforts, but it takes a long time for them to reach breeding age (20+ yrs IIRC) so the effect is only beginning to show up in nesting data (which is the main method of tracking the population).
Edit: Well, I got curious about the breeding age and found the following:
Edit2: BTW, I was once unpleasantly surprised by a loggerhead eating my LY and hooking itself. They will do that.Quote:
The estimated sexual maturity of sea turtles varies not only between species, but also between different populations of the same species.
Sexual maturity can range from 7 to 13 years for leatherback sea turtles, 11 to 16 years for both species of ridley turtles, 20 to 25 years for hawksbill sea turtles, 25 to 35 years for loggerhead sea turtles, and 26 to 40 years for green sea turtles. Because green sea turtles feed primarily on sea grasses and algae, they usually reach sexual maturity later than the other, more carnivorous sea turtles.
https://www.turtle-foundation.org/en/sea-turtles/sea-turtle-faq/#faq006
Vegans should take heed. You want to have fun? Eat meat.Quote:
Originally Posted by frednic
The turtle lady who lives in the beachside condo with a thousand bright lights will save the day🤣
Feb 17: The jack-up boat is back in the gap this morning. I don't know why it was missing for a couple of days, but they were working with the barge while it was gone. I sure do hope they get the "water work" done before the turtles shut that down.
Thank you Guys for the updates. Please keep them coming !!!
Looking good! Those boys are jammin out there!! Water is excellent Mr. Hand😄 Get down if you can!
I heard it thru the grape vine that the only thing left to do was to repair or replace the elevator. Any better knowledge on this subject?
Certainly there are other things going on as well in the meantime. Stocking shelves and doing inventory, training new employees (at least one position was advertised) plus volunteers. The main thing is getting the parking lot ready for folkses to return. I guess the contractor equipment must e removed along with the temporary buildings. The parking kiosks must be made ready, bathroom equipment, who knows what else. Maybe that will take another month or so? Maybe not?
This rather brief, almost subdued announcement was released late this afternoon @ 4:51pm on AL.com. But it is good news for fishermen!And no, it doesn't say what time Monday ...https://www.al.com/news/2024/08/gulf...-repaired.htmlQuote:
The pier in Alabama’s Gulf State Park is ready for fishermen and sightseers again.Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Commissioner Chris Blankenship said the pier would reopen Monday.
Looking forward to new fishing reports that REALLY make me wish that I was there. Maybe a headcount on spinners and blacktips too.