SHOALING ALERT
UE TO SEVERE SHOALING, Moriches Bay Buoys 17, 17A, 18, 20, 21 had to be
removed. Danger buoys are placed east and west of the removal site to
warn mariners of the dangerous conditions. Mariners are advised to use
caution and observe safe speeds when transiting Moriches Bay and Inlet due to the unpredictability of shoaling around the area. Any mariner who has transited Moriches Bay knows that, in several places, it can be and will be very unforgiving if you stray from the channel. In some places, such as between buoys 26 and 27 east of the US Coast Guard Station on Tuthill Point, it can be unforgiving while in the channel. The USCG Local Notice to Mariners has noted for years that depths of 18” (that’s inches) have been reported there. Now, as they did in ’08 and in ’11, the US Coast Guard has created a “back channel” around those shoals. The US Coast Guard has established a new channel with these GPS coordinates:
MOR-new-01 40-d 47.043’ N 072-d 44.531’ W (SE of CG Station Tuthill Cove)
MOR-new-02 40-d 47.321’ N 072-d 44.296’ W
MOR-new-03 40-d 47.396’ N 072-d 44.320’ W
MOR-new-05 40-d 47.474’ N 072-d 44.326’ W
MOR-new-07 40-d 47.557’ N 072-d 44.366’ W
MOR-new-08 40-d 47.675’ N 072-d 44.313’ W
MOR-new-09 40-d 47.833’ N 072-d 43.966’ W
MOR-new-10 40-d 47.762’ N 072-d 44.063’ W
MOR-new-12 40-d 47.799’ N 072-d 43.712’ W
MOR-new-14 40-d 47.589’ N 072-d 43.147’ W (NW of CG Buoy 30, Moriches Bay)
D
New Buoys in Moriches Bay – Head Up!
Vincent Pica, Commodore, First District, Southern Region (D1SR)