Cape Coral waterfront: freshwater vs. saltwater, boating run lengths, direct sailboat access


	TopWaterfrontDeals.com

SW Florida Real Estate

Dan Starowicz, Realtor, Sand Castle Realty, 239-603-6100

Dan Starowicz

and associates

239-603-6100

International 00-1-239-603-6100

Skype: dan.starowicz

Sand Castle Realty Group

885 SE 47th Ter. Ste A

Cape Coral, FL 33904

[ Additional locations ]

Dan@TopWaterfrontDeals.com

Dan Starowicz

and associates

239-603-6100

International 00-1-239-603-6100

Skype: dan.starowicz

Sand Castle Realty Group

885 SE 47th Ter. Ste A

Cape Coral, FL 33904

[ Additional locations ]

Dan@TopWaterfrontDeals.com


		Dan Starowicz & Associates, Sand Castle Realty, (239) 603-6100
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		Cape Coral Waterfront properties including saltwater (salt-water) and freshwater (fresh-water) canal homes (houses) and condos (condominiums). Includes direct sailboat access (unrestricted access) overview and length of boating runs.



		The following section is an extensive tutorial of how Cape Coral’s waterfront canal system works.



	Topics covered in this section:

	Canal types: Overview of Cape Coral freshwater canals versus saltwater canals Gulf access points: Cape Coral entry and exit points for boating access Boating runs: Length of boating distances in Cape Coral to the Gulf of Mexico (ocean access) Unrestricted sailboat access: Cape Coral direct access canals with no bridges, premium locations Sailboat access neighborhoods cont’d: Cape Coral Yacht Club, Orchid, Beach Pkwy, and Savona communities Sailboat access neighborhoods cont’d: Cape Coral’s Palaco Grande, Cornwallis, & Everest communities Sailboat access neighborhoods cont’d: Chantrey Canal (Viscaya), Matlacha pass & Burnt Store Marina communities. Boat lock and lift locations: Cape Coral boat locks and boat lifts locations Bridge locations: Cape Coral map detailing the locations and bridge heights Detailed maps: Southwest Cape Coral map showing all bridges, heights, locations, and directions out


	Cape Coral Waterfront explained

The waterfront canal system through Cape Coral is rather complicated! The following guide should help simplify it,. You may also wish to call me at 239-603-6100 to request a free, highly detailed map be mailed to you. Just ask!

On the following map below you can see that Cape Coral is not quite oceanfront, as the islands to the West provide a narrow barrier. Actually around here we don’t use the term “oceanfront” instead we refer to it as “Gulf” front, since it’s the Gulf of Mexico and not actually an ocean. However, even though it isn’t direct Gulf frontage, it’s very close and much, much more affordable because of it. In fact, Cape Coral has some of the lowest priced waterfront property in all of Florida (and much shorter access to the open Gulf waters than the Punta Gorda & Port Charlotte region to the North)..

Second, take note that Cape Coral includes both saltwater and freshwater canals. Saltwater canals refers to those with Gulf access, freshwater canals do not! The freshwater canal system makes up for this with a large network of lakes and basins for freshwater fishing. However, we will begin this article by describing only saltwater canals.

Next, take note that Cape Coral includes sailboat access canals, direct access canals, and partially restricted access canals. A common misconception is that “direct access” means no bridges are along the path: this is not necessarily true! Direct access means that there are no locks or lifts interrupting the flow of water. Multiple bridges still qualifies as direct access (and bridge heights can vary). If it’s completely uninterrupted canals you want, then you are looking for unrestricted, sailboat access canals. It should come as no surprise that these are the most sought after and typically the most expensive too. Lastly are restricted/partially restricted access canals. These simply are behind either a lock or lift. Don’t automatically strike these areas out though! Because some of the last areas to develop are behind these locks and lifts, many of the nicest areas in Cape Coral are in this category.

Most of Cape Corals access to the Gulf is via the Caloosahatchee River. There is an exception to this is in one area in the Northwest corner, called “Matlacha Pass” (pronounced mat-luh-shay). The map below shows all the major access points. Take note of the Southwest access point too. This point serves all of the Southwest Cape. It is referred to as the Spreader waterway. A little further East is the Bimini Canal which seves as a major access point too. Next (to the East) is the Cape Coral Yacht Club. It has numerous sailboat access canals which we will discuss later in greater depth. Further up river are the neighborhoods of Everest Pkwy, Cornwallis, Palaco Grande, Savona, and Beach Pkwy. These too will be described in more detail below. Last is Chantrey Canal (Vizcaya Parkway area). This neighborhood has the longest run to the Gulf (for direct sailboat access canals), but prices are lower because of it too.


	Should you wish to zoom in one (or more) of the areas referenced above in better detail please use the interactive map link below. It includes active listings too, but they are not limited just to waterfront homes. You’ll have plenty of opportunities later to break away and do specific searches anyway!


	View Current Map Here (Opens in a pop-up window)


	Shortest boating runs: We’ll get back to the different sections in a minute, but next let’s view what sections have the shortest runs to the Gulf of Mexico. Since this is the topic everyone seems to bring up, the following map will help explain. Take careful note because this greatly affects value!


		Next, let’s view a map of the unrestricted, sailboat access property locations:

			UNRESTRICTED SAILBOAT ACCESS:

Refer to the map above and note the South Cape portion. Now note that section furthest to the SW Corner (a bigger map of that section appears below). This is Southwest Cape Coral’s premium, unrestricted sailboat access boating locations. Please note that sections of Cape Coral don’t always have names associated with them, instead some areas go by simply their ‘unit’ numbers. These areas are we are focusing on are a combination of units 64 and part of 67 (broken down in the map below). We are also temporarily excluding mention of some really nice properties further to the west of this section because they fall behind a boat lock (and therefore aren’t unrestricted access, though they can accommodate sailboats).


	The sailboat access portion of Unit 67 is quite simply the best of the best, but prices will show that owners are aware of it! If you were looking at a larger map of the area you’d see this SW location has Cape Coral’s shortest boating run to the open Gulf waters. Combine that with unrestricted sailboat access, wider and very deep canals and you’ve got a premium location. Hint: rather than trying to remember the unit number to this location, simply refer to it as the Sailboat access property around ‘Cape Harbour.’ Cape Harbour is just across the street offering restaurants, a marina, a few shops, etc. Curious to know more about this section? View bird’s eye views of Cape Coral Unit 67 at this link. (Opens in pop-up window so you don’t lose your place on this page).

		Hint: if it just opens an aerial image, click on the ‘birds eye view’ tab. Also be sure to click on the various compass directions (ex: North, East) to rotate the angle of the view and you can zoom in a little bit more too using the + and - tools. Another great resource is Google’s street view images, taken from a drive-by perspective. View Google Street view for Cape Coral Unit 67 at this link. (Opens in pop-up window). And of course if you want to see what’s currently available for sale I keep track of them. You can view ALL properties including, but not limited, to gulf access access properties for sale in, and around, Cape Coral Unit 67 at this link. (Also opens in a pop-up window).


		Unit 64 and part of Unit 67


	The Unit 64 section also noted above (just a little higher up) is also in a choice boating location. Homes are typically a bit cheaper here versus Unit 67, and a great characteristic of this section is that almost every single home is a direct sailboat access property. That gives a very nice conformity to the neighborhood. Canals are a bit more ‘normal’ at around 80 feet wide here, though you’d be surprised how large of boats are often found behind the homes. View bird’s eye views of Cape Coral Unit 64 at this link. (pop-up). View Google Street view for Cape Coral Unit 64 at this link. (pop-up). View ALL properties including, but not limited, to gulf access access properties for sale in, and around, Cape Coral Unit 64 at this link. (pop-up).



	Just to the East of those 8 cloverleaf shaped lakes is Unit 3. This is all sailboat access with a very short run too. Prices to the North in this section are from the high $300,000’s and from the $400,000 towards the Southern portion (for old homes). The most Southern portion is Riverfront and has a couple of the largest homes in Cape Coral. Canals are typically 80 feet wide, with a few larger ones tossed in, and there’s the main Bimini canal that’s over twice the width. Canals here tend to be extra deep, so that’s a great plus too. The area still contains a large number of older homes, some of which will certainly be knocked down to make way for newer construction.


			UNIT 3:


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		Maps/ Aerial Images Courtesy Google Maps, Microsoft Live, Yahoo Maps, and/or LeePa


	Dan Starowicz Sand Castle Realty Group, Inc. 885 SW 47th Ter. Suite A, Cape Coral, FL 33904 239-603-6100

		LeeHouses.com and TopWaterfrontDeals.com by Dan Starowicz. (C) 2010