me00351

I've been launching from Maximo Park for over 20 years and although it gets crowded sometimes, I've always been able to get in & out until last Saturday.
I arrived at 7:30 and a park employee waived me off and said that the park was completely full.
After the shock of the bad news faded, I decided to try Fort DeSoto and luckily it had plenty of room to launch & park.
We were able to go out and catch some nice red grouper and lane snapper.
The Coronavirus isolation is motivating lots of boaters to get out and enjoy the beautiful Florida waters.
I wish that some of them would stay home.

Still Stoked

That’s the new norm countywide. Weekends ALL ramps full and closed shortly after sunrise!

thejeepguy87

I have not been back to Maximo since March. It is incredible how busy the ramps are down here.

WarrEagle

Have the same situation at Bay Pines ramp, fortunately if you don't mind idling through the narrows, Park blvd ramp always seems to have parking available.

shoeman

Same exact situation in northeast Florida! That was the main motivation to buy a new home in a waterfront community with a private boat ramp. In fact, just closed on it about 30 minutes ago! 6 mile run to the ocean. Going to love the convenience.

Smoothwater

Jungle Prada before sunlight!

kpaulhus

Its been busy since March. Get out of bed or you gotta go launch somewhere else.

WarrEagle

Too shallow for my tastes, and the parking spaces are way too small for my rig and trailer.

tesilential

yeah Maximo has been full by sunrise since March. One weekend I was literally at the stop sign coming off the highway when a LEO blew by with lights on and blocked the entrance.

3 saturdays ago I go to Maximo at 6:52am and it was packed! I barely got a parking space.

Desoto is an absolute circus too if you try to arrive after 9am. Hour or more to get over the last bridge and into the ramp.

WarrEagle

^^^ this is why I chose to dry-stack over keeping it on the trailer at a covered storage yard. Show up, its in the water in less than 10 minutes even on a Saturday after 9 AM. My costs went up $50 a month for dry storage and $90 a month to keep my trailer at a no-frills outdoor space. Conversely, I make some of that back up in less tow vehicle fuel usage when pulling the boat between ramp, house to wash and maintain, and storage yard.

Bergertime

If you think its bad now, wait until that lot across the street from the Palmetto ramp sells... Even more pressure on South Pinellas and others since that ramp is basically useless unless your are the first 5-6 people there with out more parking.

dreaminphp

I've been going to JP for a few years and I love it, but it seems like all of the crazies have started going there. Just a few weeks ago some yahoo hit my truck and left his rig parked like this so I couldn't get out.

WPBTH

zero school activities
zero sports on tv
take the boat out

swampr

Clearwater Seminole St and Belleair have been running at 130% capacity too. I think they have put a cop at Sem St to stop the illegal parking and overflow but I believe Belleair is still the Wild Wild West with double and triple parking.

WarrEagle

Man, did you have to wait for said yahoo to return? What was his response to the WTF question?

Bergertime

I am also curious and without words on that total f-up.

dreaminphp

Yep, had to wait for him to return. He told me there was no way he hit my truck because his friends personally lifted up the trailer and put it like that instead of him backing it in. I asked him why in the world would they leave it like that if they actually did pick it up and move it? He didn't have a good answer to that, except to accuse me of hitting his trailer with my truck and saying it was my fault (even though I got there before him???). Currently battling it out with his insurance now trying to get them to pay up for the damages.

thejeepguy87

I only park like a dick with my trailer when someone parks in a trailer parking spot without a trailer

Fiberglass1 Inc

Same issues here in Palm Beach County. But I have a question - why is it that the absolute rudest and least considerate people seem to be the jet skiers? Last weekend i waited for 15 minutes while some idiot messed with the ski ON THE RAMP! My girlfriend, who was waiting with our boat, finally said something to him and he launched and moved the truck, slowly. I was the next in line so started to back down where he had been and another damn jet skier pulled in behind me! Backed down as close as i could get and the lady driving the Lincoln SUV asked me to move. Told her to **** off, I wasn't going to get cheated again, go around me. Then explained to her that if there's an empty trailer sitting there and a boat in the water then they are next.

At a freshwater ramp a few months ago there were 4 or 5 punks with a double jet ski trailer sitting on the ramp and they were on the dock smoking herb and drinking beer. Waited for them to move and finally realized they were using the half wet trailer as a dock when they returned. They sat there all day!
F-in' ASSHOLES!

thejeepguy87

Yup. Jetskiers that used to be at Maximo are now at grandview and do the same thing. They're doing rentals and leaving the truck and trailer in the way.

I want to figure out who to call about them running a business out of a city park.