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Big Pass Information as of October 16, 2011. The course has shifted again to the east southeast and I expect that trend to continue. The course heading out starts 90 yards WNW of Red BP 8 at 27°16.682'N 082°34.344'W and runs .6 nm in a straight line on a course of 197 M to a point in deeper water at 27°16.087'N 082°34.496'W. The reciprocal course is 17 M. As BP1 and BP2 have been repositioned the normal navigation rules obtain. The course appears to have a controlling depth of about 6.2' at MLLW but the slot is increasingly narrower. Traverse this route slowly on a rising tide, mid-tide or above depending on your draft. I have included four pictures of the route below. The first is an overview and the next three show increased detail of the beginning, middle and end of the route. The red solid line in each picture is the route. The pictures are offset so you will have to use the route line to align the pictures. Use this information to make your own decision whether to attempt Big Pass or not. As with any course, changes including shoaling have occurred and will continue. The coordinates were taken with GPS/WAAS, but your readings could be different. Please note that the actual MLLW may be less than the predicted MLLW on any given day. To see how the tide is running you can check St. Petersburg or Port Manatee for an approximation. For the latest weather conditions you can check http://www.srh.noaa.gov/tbw/html/tbw/ and click on the area of the map in which you are interested.In addition, be aware that when the wind has been blowing strongly with any northern or easterly component within the past day or two, that the water tends to get blown out of the pass thereby lowering the water level. Finally, if there is a swell running remember that the trough will be that much lower. Changes, including shoaling, can and will occur. The following LAT/LON list has been updated by Sarasota County on 12/5/11 indicating the new location of the Big Pass BP-1, BP-2 & BP-5 navigational aids. BP-7 & BP-9 have been retired.
Flat Earth Society Big Pass Course as of October 16, 2011 from the Gulf of Mexico to near SYC sign :
 Detailed View     Mike Solum & County Coastal Resources staff repositioning marks in Big Pass
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