Reply To: Is this Venice route safe?

[Devin]

Thank you so much for replying to me on this.

So, I ran it yesterday coming south from Port Eads and chickened out just short of 29° 5.925’N 89° 6.054’W, where you can see the exposed sandbar on 9/17/23 imagery, what you posted above.

On my way across I’d periodically come off plane to get a depth reading. Well, just outside of the bayou coming out of South Pass it was 4ft deep. There was a little swell coming in from the Gulf of America, and that helped me detect the water getting shallower toward that sandbar. The waves were beginning to crest. Not break, they were just forming up like it was shallower. That and I could see mullet zig zagging from the boat instead of diving, which indicates it’s shallow. I came off plane in 2ft of water! Then I tried to keep going but things got worse and I chickened out. lol

Also, I saw like no crab traps that way, which is kind of telling.

Then I had to be in Mandeville for 4pm, otherwise I would’ve kept trying. So I turned around.

But looking at my tracks from yesterday it appears that I drifted too far to the east. Perhaps there’s a way to get around it by coming from the north via SE Pass and feeling that out. I think that last path you posted is probably a better route.

Whenever I can get back out there, I will try again.