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I'm on the West Coast and just got word that I'm moving to Oklahoma for a couple years. I have a 6ft draft Rafiki 37 and I'd like to put her in a marina as near Houston as possible. Really, any Galveston Bay / Trinity Bay Marina could work. Just somewhere I can drive down and spend a week here and there on her. Can anyone give me a recommendation? I'd like to keep the mast up and be able to sail when I can. Thanks for any suggestions y'all might have.
We had our boat at Watergate Yachting Center for a couple of years. I would highly recommend it. Very affordable if you ask me - and GREAT amenities. It's a really nice place, is well protected, and just up the street from West Marine and Home Depot.
I'll second smack's vote for Watergate. It was our home port for several years too.
If you want more isolation, but a great marina, check out Harbor Walk Marina. We just spent 8 or 9 months there. It is closer to the Gulf, and much quieter than the Kemah/Clear Lake area. It just depends on your preference.
Depends a bit on your sailing preferences. Clear Lake is a day away from open water, while it's just a bit farther by car to drive on down to Galveston, so you might want to keep that in mind. With 6' draft, I wouldn't go any further into Clear Lake than Watergate/Waterford Harbor though. The Boardwalk gets you into the Bay with about half the motoring.
I left before the hurricane hit, so don't know how much things have changed, but to me, Galveston Bay is basically just a big lake without any real destinations (lots of shallow water). Fine for daysails, but just the first and last leg of multi-day trips. If you're gonna be on Clear Lake though, Watergate would probably be your best choice.
You can also find marinas on the nautical charts in the Navionics app by going into your app and using the little search icon in the upper left. You can search marinas and then see what the draft is in that area. Many of them also include information about the marinas such as the information you're looking for.
There are many marinas in the Kemah/Seabrook area leading to Galveston Bay. Waterford Harbor Marina has some of the nicest facilities of a marina in this area and is a great hurricane hole. But, the channel out of the marina needs dredging to get to published depths. Even under the best conditions, in summer at MHHT, we will plow through the marina entrance to the Clear Lake channel. Last winter, with northers blowing the water out, our 6'3" draft boat would sit in the slip with the keel in the muck. For the weekends we came down, we never could get out of our slip or into the Bay. This winter, we've moved to Seabrook Marina. Watergate Marina is the preferred channel adjacent to Waterford and I think it has a little more water. Both Seabrook and Kemah Boardwalk Marina have plenty of water in their marinas and respective channels. Portofino Marina has some slips for sale but getting into the marina is problematic for your draft, since there's a pipeline cutting across at an angle and the pipeline owner discourages the marina from dredging. If you're interested in the high end, Lakewood Yacht Club is adjacent to Seabrook and has good water.
Thanks for all the replies thus far. Watergate and Seabrook seem to be the recommendation for the area. Since I'll only get to the boat on weekends and holidays it might make sense to suck it up and drive down to Galveston area. Only an extra hour on the road from what I can tell.
Anyone have recommendations on marinas in that area?
Thanks for all the replies thus far. Watergate and Seabrook seem to be the recommendation for the area. Since I'll only get to the boat on weekends and holidays it might make sense to suck it up and drive down to Galveston area. Only an extra hour on the road from what I can tell.
Anyone have recommendations on marinas in that area?
If you can only spare a weekend or so a month, then the extra hour to Galveston is a waste of your time. Sure, Galveston is on open ocean, but you're not going to be sailing off to the Florida Keys for the weekend. Galveston Bay is plenty big enough for a weekend of fun on the water.
I had a cheap slip at the Blue Dolphin Marina in Clear Lake for a couple of years back in the 90's. Not sure what it's called now. It was convenient because it was the first marina upon entering Clear Lake proper, which made motoring in and out a breeze, as opposed to marinas further up the lake. I, personally, enjoyed being so close to the Kemah waterfront. And, the Turtle Club, a floating barge restaurant/bar with free waterfront slips, serves up one hell of a Bloody Mary.
We stayed at Harbor Walk Marina in Galveston/Hitchcock for a few months. It's an awesome, quiet, marina. But you are in the middle of nowhere. Still, if you have a car to get around, it's no big deal. Much quieter than Kemah/Clear Lake. Great pool. Really clean restrooms and showers on each dock, along with washers and dryers. Friendly staff and management (which isn't always the case in Kemah). It's where the Kemah boats come for a weekend away. $340.00/month for a 36' boat, and no liveaboard fees. Oh, and really nice floating docks. Just my 2 cents. Marina - HarborWalk
The main reason I suggested Galveston is it's a good start point for weekend trips in open water. If you just want to daysail, then Clear Lake is the better choice.
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