Dear Capt. Paul:

Is it possible for you to show an easier route from Shell Beach to Breton Sound? How do I get to Bay Eloi, Black Bay and Breton Island.

I’m sure these three places each have a better route suited to each destination for ease and quickness. How would I program routes for this in my Garmin 545s.

Thanks, lagulfcoast (from lasmag.com)

Capt. Paul’s response:

Shell Beach to Breton Sound is a snap at this time. All you have to do is to use the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet (MRGO) in a southeast direction (outbound to sea) to reach the Breton Sound area. I say “at this time” because there is a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers project now under way to block the MRGO with a rock dam just at the southern part where Bayou La Loutre crosses it.

Once it is completed, you will have to negotiate Bayou La Loutre or the Back Levee Canal to get around the rock dam, but for now, you can simply use the MRGO to reach most of the points you asked about.

Bay Eloi is located just north of the end of the rock dam that supports the north side of the MRGO at Gardner Island. The Short Rocks, as the rock spoil area is called, ends roughly between Aid to Navigation markers Red 62 and Red 64, or about N29 40.791 x W89 23.253.

To reach Black Bay, you simply proceed outbound in the MRGO to NAVAID marker Green No. 59. Near that location, there is an opening in the rocks on the south side of the MRGO. It is at or about N29 39.523 x W89 21.824. Turning south through the rock barrier will lead you to the eastern part of Black Bay and the Breton Sound area. In addition, you can just continue in the MRGO to marker Green No. 23. The Breton Islands are just to the south of that location.

Most of these “routes” are almost straight-line courses outbound in the MRGO.

I suggest that you inquire about using the Garmin MapSource Trip and Waypoint Manager program to transfer data to and from your GPS 545 and your computer. The program will allow you to plan a route and transfer the data to your GPS unit.

The alternative is to have a written copy of the various waypoints, and load them one at a time into the GPS unit when you are in the boat. Do that one time with a route of 50 waypoints, and you will never try it again.

The Trip and Waypoint Manager will allow you to accept emails that have attachments that area actually an electronic file that will install in your Trip and Waypoint Manager, and can be then downloaded into your Garmin unit. Believe me, this is the way to go.

This electronic transfer procedure is the basis for the Capt. Paul’s Fishing Edge program. It allows you the ability to install more than 300 waypoints in your GPS unit in less than two minutes.

Got a GPS-related question for Capt. Paul? Ask it at
www.lasmag.com.