- GSL-Marina - mailman.xmission.com

Weather Warning this Afternoon
by gslharbormaster 20 May '08

20 May '08

Weather Warning A Gale Force Warning has been issued for the Great Salt Lake Marina area and the Great Salt Lake for this afternoon. Strong and gusty southerly winds are possible this afternoon and evening. Winds will be gusty from the south starting this afternoon and building while switching to the northwest later this evening. Winds will begin to diminish after midnight. A storm warning may be issued late tonight and into tomorrow depending on sea and lightning conditions. Dave Shearer Harbormaster Great Salt Lake Marina Have you checked your docklines lately?

1 0

Marina News
by gslharbormaster 19 May '08

19 May '08

Marina News For Week of May 19th 2009 Current Conditions Lake Level 4195.9 (Evaporation seems to have us in its clutches) Lake Temperature 72 degrees Snowpack 110% Lake Analysis The outlook for the lake level is not looking so hot anymore. The runoff is so late this year and the lake and air temperature is getting warm enough that evaporation may keep up with inflow. We have taken a couple trips up the lake to where the rivers flow in. With the exception of the Goggins Drainage, the currents are pretty week. Flow is just not getting here yet. The encouraging news though is that in 1983 the floods didn't begin until Mothers Day and Memorial Day Weekends. If we don't see significant flows by the end of next week I think our lake level situation may be quite grim. Brine Shrimp Hatch We have had a couple hatches this spring just to have them die off when the lake gets cold again. We finally had a decent hatch this week. I don't thing we will have another significant cold spell that could kill this hatch off. This means that the lake should start clearing up quickly as the brine shrimp begin to eat the algae. Spider Spraying We will begin to spray for spiders starting tomorrow. This first spray will concentrate on the breakwall rocks and parking lot where the baby spiders hatch. After this weeks series of storms we will do another spray on the docks. Spider Control The spiders are just beginning to hatch. You, as a slip renter, can greatly reduce the spiders around your slip. The most effective means is to put a pressure nozzle on a garden hose and then spray water underneath your slips and docks. Get around all the floats and braces and spray off all the egg sacks. This is what I have done on my slip on 'K' dock. I usually spray off my slip, the slips on each side of my boat, and the slips across from my boat. I do this once a week for about three weeks. It cuts down on the amount of spiders greatly. Another method of getting rid of the spiders is to spray them with with Black Flag Ant and Roach Killer. This comes in a green can and can be purchased at any grocery store. "Hot Shots" also works well. Also spray along the edges of your dock. Orb Weavers The spiders that are most common in the Great Salt Lake Marina are called Orb Weavers. This means "Web Spinner". Although they can bite they are quite harmless. Most bites will be no worse than a mosquito bite. Orb Weavers are not agressive to humans. And they do have one benefit; They are very agressive towards other species of spiders, namely the Black Widow. Black Widows are very common on the Islands and shores of Great Salt Lake. We do have them in the marina too but not in as large of numbers as Other areas on Great Salt Lake. Slip Payments A few of our slip renters seem to be sending their payments to the wrong address. The correct address is: Great Salt Lake State Marina PO Box 16658 Salt Lake City, Utah 84116 Some of you are sending the checks to the main Natural Resources address which is: P.O. Box 146001 Salt Lake City, Utah 84114 Sending checks to the DNR address could slow down payment processing by months. Please check the address you or your bank is sending payments to. Bill Garcia Memorial Trophy It is that time of year to award the Bill Garcia Memorial Trophy. For those who do not know who Bill Garcia was he was a gentleman who was very much a part of the Great Salt Lake community. He was always unselfish with his time and contributed greatly to the sailors out here. Bill and his wife Leslie owned an advertizing company called Scopes Garcia Carlisle. Back in 1996 Bill was killed in a plane crash in Idaho with several others including Coca Cola executives from Swier Coca Cola. Each year, during Sail Fest we award the Bill Garcia Memorial Trophy to an individual in recognition of an outstanding acheivement in sailing, contribution to the sailing community, or in recognition of an attitude that exemplifies the community spirit of sailing. I am looking for nominations for this year's presentation. If you have a nomination please email me at gslharbormaster(a)hughes.net The Reef Yes, there is still a reef out front of the marina. Thank you, to all those who have recently run aground and confirmed this. And thank you, again, for helping us keep our "Vessel Assist" numbers up. Memorial Day Weekend This weekend is the first big holiday weekend of the boating season. Early forecast charts showed an unsettled or stormy weekend. Now they are trending to some nicer weather by friday with slowly climbing temperatures. The marina could be busy. Weather Warning Looking at the current weather charts I expect we will be issuing either a Gale Force warning or a Storm Warning sometime tomorrow. Chances of lightning and thunderstorms on Wednesday. Dave Shearer Harbormaster Great Salt Lake Marina Have you checked your docklines lately?

1 0

Crane Day
by Dave Shearer 18 May '08

18 May '08

CRANE DAY Monday, June 2 Great Salt Lake Marina (This date is approximate. It may float to a day later due to a boat that is traveling from Florida) For anyone needing use of the crane Please reserve your crane spot in advance. Share the Crane costs with others! CALL DAVE SHEARER FOR MORE INFORMATION 801-209-9142 Or email dshearer(a)gslyc.org

1 0

Marina News 5-13-08
by gslharbormaster 13 May '08

13 May '08

Marina News For The Week Of May 13, 2008 Current Conditions Lake Level 4196.1 (finally some upper movement) Water Temperatures 58 degrees (should heat up rapidly by the end of the week) Snowpack for GSL 113% Navigation Issues Navigation Notice #1 May 13, 2008 The red light on buoy R4 has been out for a few weeks. The new light has been ordered. We have just been waiting on it to arrive. We hope to have the new light here and installed by the end of the week. Otherwise, when sailing at night, find the first red buoy (R2) then head straight for the Kennecott smokestack. This will take you right to R4. Navigation Notice #2 May 13, 2008 Deep Channel Bouy G11 floated away last night. We have retrieved the buoy and are repairing the ground tackle. This may take a day or two. Until G11 is back in place head for R12 before turning down the Deep Channel. Parking Lot Issues The parking lot is now getting quite busy on weekends. Most of our regular slip renters are being great about parking in a designated stall. But I would like to remind some of the trailer sailors and others bringing in larger vehicles during the weekend to park in regular stalls or if your vehicle and trailer do not fit in a stall, to park in the Day Trailer Parking area. Please do not park trailers and vehicles so that you are taking up several parking spots. Antelope Island Antelope Island is a great day destination by boat or by car. Please remember though, if traveling by boat, that the majority of the west shore is a wilderness area designated by the Division of Wildlife Services (not State Parks). This means it is illegal to go to shore except for White Rock Bay, Bridger Bay, and the Antelope Island Marina. White Rock and Egg Island are designated bird rookeries and should not be trespassed on. Antelope Island State Park rangers are working on "Free Days" and group days where you may go to shore on other western beaches. I will keep you posted on the details of this. The best anchorages are Indian Bay and Picture Rock behind the Miera Spit sand bar. White Rock Bay and Bridger Bay also make good anchorages but are a bit of a sail for a day anchorage. A couple notes though: Stay far from shore. It is very shallow along Antelope Island right now. The previously mentioned anchorages are the areas where you can get the closest to the island. Watch your depth and anchor in the sand. There is some tufa reef near these areas. The other issue is that all these anchorages are exposed to northerly and southerly swells. Antelope Island Marina I took a trip to the Antelope Island marina last Saturday. Much of the marina is very shallow. Depths in the useable part of the marina range from 3.5 to 5 feet. We will be doing some sounding up there in the next few weeks to find a viable path and docks. If our runoff looks good this year, this marina may be useable for shallower draft boats by early to mid June. The Great Salt Lake Marina has made arrangements for reciprocity with the Antelope Island Marina. This means if you are a slip renter at the Great Salt Lake Marina you may go up to Antelope Island Marina and use one of their slips for up to a week free of charge. Please call the Antelope Island Marina in advance to make arrangements though. This will prevent you from pulling into a pre-rented slip. It will also allow you to get information on available slips, depths and access to the gate if coming or going after hours. Sanders Marina on Stansbury Island Please remember that this is actually a private marina. Also, there are two very large boulders in the marina. One is located just inside the entrance. The other is located near the sea wall. The marina is also very shallow and should only be used as emergency protection. OSI Marina near Badger Island This marina is privately maintained. It is also very shallow and takes local knowledge to get through the dredged canal. Only the smallest draft vessels would be able to use this in an emergency. The marina is closed for the season. The gate on the road is closed and posted 'No Trespassing' Promontory Marina This marina is privately maintained and should only be used for "Safe Harbour". It does have a deaper channel than some of the other marinas on the lake but should only be used in emergencies. Sanders Marina at Lakeside High and Dry "Safe Harbour" Safe Harbour is a legal concept. It allows a boat in distress to use a marina that would not normally be open to them. A good example of this is the Great Salt Lake marina. This marina is primarily a recreational marina. Commercial activity such as brine shrimping operations are not allowed in the marina. That means the brine shrimp vessels are not allowed in the marina. Yet, if the weather becomes dangerous to their vessels or one of their vessels is in distress, we are obligated to give them Safe Harbour. This concept works for all. That means you, as a recreational sailor are not allowed in the privately or commercially operated marina's without prior permission. Yet, if you are in distress or your boat is in danger due to weather and sea conditions, you are allowed, by law, to access these marina's. If you want to visit one of these marina's as a recreational boater, please contact us and I will give you the office number for the private/commercial marina you may want to visit. A phone call to the operator may just gain you unhindered access and valuable information on how best to get in there. Other Cruising Information Boating season is now upon us. There are some great sailing destinations on the Great Salt Lake. In the coming weeks I will try to highlight some of these. If you have a favorite spot or observation please let me know and I will try to include it. No-See-Um's Those pesky bugs I was mentioning in last weeks issue? Well, they are quite active now. They are not as bad at the marina as some other areas. All of the islands of Great Salt Lake are infested with them right now. Trips to the island will produce massive amounts of welts, itching and discomfort. They should be through their feeding cycle in the next few weeks though. Dead Head Season Spring brings us many different seasons; It brings us the end of the Frontal season (weather). It brings us the beginning of the Monsoon season (weather). It brings us the Spring Runoff season. It brings "Radio Check" season. And the most hazardous season to navigating on Great Salt Lake is Dead Head season. As the water begins coming down the mountains the lake begins to come up. The currents begin to run strong. The combination of these two is what causes Dead Head season. The rising water pushes large logs/pilings off the islands of Great Salt Lake. These pilings then get caught in the currents of the lake and begin to flow down towards the Great Salt Lake Marina. These pilings are mostly the left-over debris from the 1903 railroad trestle. Some of these pilings will float right along the surface of the water. Most, though, will be just like an iceberg where almost the whole piling will be resting vertical below the surface with only a few inches breaking the surface. The bottom of the piling may even lodge into the mud bottom of the lake and become even more of a hazard to boats if hit. Many of these piling have spikes or nails protuding from them. These Dead Heads can be anywhere on the lake but the heaviest concentration of them are along the causeway and on the western portion of the lake floating down from Carrington and Stansbury Island. Keep a sharp lookout for these deadheads. They can do serious damage, if not hole a boat. Please take a gps coordinate of the Dead Head and then notify the marina office. We will attemp to remove the Dead Head. Dead Cow Season Another, most unpleasant obstacle that may be encountered on the lake during spring are dead, floating cows or sheep. Cattle and sheep grazing are quite common along the west shore of Great Salt Lake and on Stansbury Island. Every once in awhile these animals succomb to whatever element and become floating debris. If you spot one, please take a GSP coordinate and notify the marina office. We will do our best to remove the offensive animal. The Thermals One of the more pleasant aspects of spring is the early morning and evening thermals. When there is a substantial temperature difference between day and night a very pleasant thermal will blow outside the marina from Magna during the evening. This thermal will usually switch and come out of Tooele valley in the early morning and blow until mid morning. It is some of the best sailing of the season. Upcoming Events May 14th Wednesday Night Race #1 GSLYC May 17th & 18th Spring Regatta #2 GSLYC May 17th First Aid Classes Great Salt Lake Row May 21st Wednesday Night Race #2 GSLYC May 24th Reynolds Cup (80 Miler) GSLYC May 28th Wednesday Night Race #3 GSLYC May 31st June 1st Spring Regatta #1 Makeup GSLYC June 4th Wednesday Night Race #4 GSLYC June 6th Junior Sailing Program GSLYC June 7th Solo Endurance Race GSLYC June 7th Women's Sailing Program GSLYC June 7th Learn to Row Day Great Salt Lake Row June 11th Founder's Cup GSLYC June 11th-15th SAIL FEST 2008 Hosted by GSLYC but open to all June 18th Wednesday Night Race #5 GSLYC June 20th Junior Sailing Program GSLYC June 21st White Rock Cruise GSLYC June 21st Utah Summer Games Great Salt Lake Row June 25th Wednesday Night Race #6 GSLYC June 27th Junior Sailing Program GSLYC June 28th Pepsi Cola Cup GSLYC June 28th Wine & Cheese Social GSLYC Thank You Dave Shearer Harbormaster Great Salt Lake Marina Have you checked your docklines lately?

1 0

Weather Warning
by gslharbormaster 11 May '08

11 May '08

GSL Slip Renters and Marina Users Although wind and weather patterns look favorable for most of this Mother's Day Sunday, I am expecting we will be issuing a Gale Force Warning by late afternoon to mid evening for the Great Salt Lake Marina area and possibly the Great Salt Lake. I would advise you watch and listen to all weather information sources if you plan a boating excursion later today. Moderate to rough seas accompanied by blustery wind gusts are possible later today. No warnings have been issued yet. If you have internet access I would monitor www.wrh.noaa.gov/slc/curent/meso.wfrnt and watch the GSL Marina and Hat Island sites. Thank you Dave Shearer Harbormaster Great Salt Lake Marina

1 0

Weather Warning
by gslharbormaster 09 May '08

09 May '08

Small Craft Advisory for the Great Salt Lake Winds will be blustery at times today with gusts in the 30's as storm cells cross the lake. Seas will be moderate to rough at times. There is a chance of lightning associated with the storm cells. Thank you Dave Shearer Harbormaster Great Salt Lake Marina

1 0

Buoys on Great Salt Lake
by gslharbormaster 08 May '08

08 May '08

GSL Slip Renters and Marina Users The two attachments are lists of buoys on the Great Salt Lake. One attachment describes and gives coordinates for buoys maintained by Great Salt Lake State Marina, Utah State Parks The other attachment describles and gives coordinates for buoys maintained by the Great Salt Lake Yacht Club. Thank you Dave Shearer Harbormaster Great Salt Lake State Marina

1 0

Weather Update
by gslharbormaster 07 May '08

07 May '08

GSL Slip Renters and Marina Users Due to the scheduled GSLYC race tonight, I have had a few requests for a weather update this afternoon. Current Radar is showing an active cell system approaching the lake from the West Desert. Radar is tracking three active thunderstorm cells that should be crossing between Hat Island and GSL Marina around 3:30pm this afternoon. Another active wave of moisture will approach the marina area around 6pm. It is too early to tell how much energy this second wave will have but it covers a larger area than the 3:30pm system. Winds should not be significant with the 6pm wave unless thunderstorm cells develop. If thunderstorm cells do develop this afternoon it could bring strong downbursts and lightning. The current forecast shows thunderstorms developing in the Tooele Valley area around 7pm. We will keep an eye on the radar watching whether this second wave develops or weakens. Thank you Dave Shearer Harbormaster Great Salt Lake Marina

1 0

Weather Warning
by gslharbormaster 07 May '08

07 May '08

Weather Warning A storm warning has been issued for the Great Salt Lake area. Thunderstorms are possible at times today, mostly this evening. Althought the wind throughout the day is not predicted to be excessively strong, these thunderstorms may have lightning and strong microbursts associated with them. Sea conditions could be moderate at times today. Moderate to strong thunderstorms are passing over the northern part of Great Salt Lake at 9am this morning. This storm warning is for all of Great Salt Lake Have you checked your docklines lately?

2 1

Marina News
by gslharbormaster 05 May '08

05 May '08

Marina News May 5th 2008 Current Conditions Lake Level: 4195.9 (and still steady) Water Temperature 60 degrees Snowpack 120% (highest percentage of the year) Porta Potty Rinse Station The repair continues to hold right now. The porta-potty rinse station is working. Hopefully it will hold out until a replacement can be installed late July. Parking Lot Lights Still working on getting the lights turned around in the parking lot. This will hopefully be done this week. Playground The playground has temporarily been removed so it can be beefed up and resurfaced. Unsupervised Kids Ok, this is not coming from me. I have been directed by upper management to remind people of this park rule. Rule R651-630-1 states "Children under 16 must be supervised. Allowing children under 16 years of age to be unsupervised within the park system is prohibited." I'm guessing what prompted this message is that there may have been too many kids playing in the marina office this past weekend while the park rangers were trying to conduct park business. Reef Channel Buoys The 'Reef Channel Buoys' were dropped back in the lake yesterday. These buoys have changed from last year. The two reef channel buoys are now green can buoys to properly reflect what side they should be passed on. The two red buoys: R-R2 and R-R4 have been removed. The green can buoys are R-G1 and R-G3. the coordinates are as follows: R-G1 40d 44.600m x 112d 13.120 R-G3 40d 44.330m x 112d 13.000m When leaving the marina these buoys should be passed on your starboard side. Use these buoys at your own risk. The recommended path is still the Deep Channel Buoys as opposed to the Reef Channel Buoys. Boats with a draft of 4' or less should be able to use the Reef Channel Buoys. REMEMBER to use these buoys. Crossing over the reef can be very damaging to your boat as one of my crew members found out at 2:45am this morning when he borrowed MY boat. My boat used to draw about 5'. I now probably draw about 4'. Opening Day for Great Salt Lake Yacht Club Opening day activities were very successful. The boat parade was well attended and the barbecue was awesome. Congratulations and thank you to the Great Salt Lake Yacht Club for a successful event. Boat Registrations I have been reminded by the Park Rangers that they will be walking the docks the first of June checking for proper registrations. Remember any vessel with a sail or motor must be properly registered. Also, some of you have commented that your registrations have gone up this year. Your fee base is the same. But your registration fee did increase accross the board. There has not been a fee adjustment in 25 years. Fees were no longer keeping up with the cost of fuel and other expenses. Unlike your fee based structure, the registration fee does go to operating state parks boats and paying for the boating program and other parks programs. Another note about registrations. Many of you have commented that you are being assessed high fees compared to past years. Make sure, when you pay your registration, that it says sailboat. Many of the registrations for sailboats are stating Personal Water Craft. This is a much more expensive fee. Be forceful with the tax commission that your boat registration needs to reflect "sailboat" Round-The-Lake Road Trip Just another reminder that we have another outreach program in August. Like the Spiral Jetty trip, this is hosted by State Parks and is open to everyone. The august trip is on the 23rd and 24th. It is a road trip around Great Salt Lake. We will be driving past the Golden Spike Monument, making stops at Monument Rock, Locomotive Springs, the ghost town of Kelton and drive down the west shore to a beach adjacent to Dolphin Island where we will camp for the night. The next morning will continue our trip down the west shore for a view of Gunnison Island, down the Hogup mountains, Ladyfinger point, Hogup siding, Buenaventura canal, the pump station, down the causeway to lakeside and then down the bombing range back to I-80 and Great Salt Lake marina. Please put this event on your schedule. Interesting and Annoying Facts These little bugs that have recently come out and have been bighting people are called No-See-Um's. They love to bight you in the head near your hair or hat line. Most No-See-Ums never fly more than 350 feet from their breeding area. Only the females bite and suck blood. They need the protein in this blood to make their eggs. Male no-see-ums are nectar feeders and do not bite. The larvae of these pesky bugs can be found in water, mud or moist dead leaves (sound just like the shorelines of Great Salt Lake) They especially like to live in the dying plants along the edge of a salt marsh. Mosquito repellant is recommended to keep them under control. Upcoming events May 7th Wednesday GSLYC Wednesday Night Fun Race May 10th Saturday Utah Crew Brine Shrimp Sprints May 10th & 11th Saturday & Sunday GSLYC Miera Spit Cruise May 10th Saturday GSLYC Double Handed Offshore Race May 14th Wednesday GSLYC Wednesday Night Race #1 May 17th & 18th Saturday & Sunday GSLYC Spring Regatta #2 May 21st Wednesday UHP Dispatch and Salt Lake County Search & Rescue Mtgs at GSL (Parking lot may be crowded) May 21st Wednesday GSLYC Wednesday Night Race #2 May 24th Saturday GSLYC Reynolds Cup (80 Mile Race) May 28th Wednesday UHP Dispatch mtg at GSL (Parking lot may be crowded) May 28th Wednesday GSLYC Wednesday Night Race #3 Thank you Dave Shearer Harbormaster Great Salt Lake Marina

1 0