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#1
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Climate change reveals some interesting old boats
The current climate cycle (regardless of cause) has exposed a canoe,
an old steamship, a dredging barge, etc down in Florida. As lakes recede in areas where droughts become frequent and extensive, archeologists will have a lot of opportunities to sift through past technologies and evidence of pre-Euro civilizations. ************************* Drought reveals human bones, other finds at Lake Okeechobee's bottom By MATT SEDENSKY AP MIAMI (AP) - A Florida drought that has exposed parts of Lake Okeechobee 's bottom also has been a boon to archaeologists , exposing human remains, boats and other finds that could date back hundreds of years. Thousands of pieces of pottery, five boats and scores of human bone fragments have been discovered as the lake - the second-largest freshwater one in the continental United States, behind Lake Michigan - reached a historically low level. It is the first time in years some areas have been exposed, prompting archaeologists to scour the lakebed. "Right now, it's just a rush to identify things before they go back under water," said Chris Davenport, the archaeologist for Palm Beach County. The state has alerted the Seminole and Miccosukee tribes of the bones, but no decision has been made on their fate. No studies have been done on the human remains, but State Archaeologist Ryan Wheeler said they likely were 500 to 1,000 years old, possibly older. Davenport said an examination of the style of pottery found in the lakebed might tell more about the tribes who lived in the area than the bones themselves because the human remains are so fragmented. The boats include a steam-powered dredge believed to have been used to dig a canal, a steam ship whose remains are scattered across a mile and a half, a wooden motorized canoe, an early 1900s catfishing boat with a large one-cylinder engine and a fifth boat so badly decayed it is hard to determine its purpose. Archaeologists have left most of their finds where they were found, though an anchor, bottles, tools and some pottery have been excavated from the massive lake, which is at its lowest level since officials began keeping track in 1932. On Monday, it was about 8.96 feet (2.7 meters) deep, up to 5 feet (1.5 meters) below normal. The drought has bared a rim around the lake, up to 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers) wide at some points. Davenport said he considers it a once-in-a-lifetime experience to examine the dry lakebed, but that with thieves seeking his finds, he is left yearning for rain. "I'm hoping that the rains come back," he said. "Once it's covered, it's protected." |
#2
posted to rec.boats
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Climate change reveals some interesting old boats
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#3
posted to rec.boats
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Climate change reveals some interesting old boats
"Wayne.B" wrote in message ... On Wed, 06 Jun 2007 12:43:34 -0400, wrote: This has a lot more to do with SFWMD and the army corps draining down the lake than the drought. You didn't really hear much about it but my son in law (water manager for SFWMD) told me they almost lost the Hoover dike during Wilma and the order went out to drain down the lake. Any idea when Lake O might make it back up to navigable (for me) depths of 5.5 to 6 ft? Right now I have to detour over 200 NM through the Keys to the east coast. Yes, but hasn't the water been much prettier around here (SW Florida) lately now that the SFWMD isn't dumping all of that ugly brown polluted water down the Caloosahatchee? |
#4
posted to rec.boats
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Climate change reveals some interesting old boats
On Wed, 06 Jun 2007 17:17:11 GMT, "NOYB" wrote:
Yes, but hasn't the water been much prettier around here (SW Florida) lately now that the SFWMD isn't dumping all of that ugly brown polluted water down the Caloosahatchee? Oh for sure. The river has cleaned up considerable and you can actually see the shallows now on a clear day. How has your fishing been this year? |
#5
posted to rec.boats
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Climate change reveals some interesting old boats
Wayne.B wrote:
On Wed, 06 Jun 2007 12:43:34 -0400, wrote: This has a lot more to do with SFWMD and the army corps draining down the lake than the drought. You didn't really hear much about it but my son in law (water manager for SFWMD) told me they almost lost the Hoover dike during Wilma and the order went out to drain down the lake. Any idea when Lake O might make it back up to navigable (for me) depths of 5.5 to 6 ft? Right now I have to detour over 200 NM through the Keys to the east coast. Awwww. Well, you could always rent a flatbed rail car. |
#6
posted to rec.boats
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Climate change reveals some interesting old boats
"Wayne.B" wrote in message ... On Wed, 06 Jun 2007 17:17:11 GMT, "NOYB" wrote: Yes, but hasn't the water been much prettier around here (SW Florida) lately now that the SFWMD isn't dumping all of that ugly brown polluted water down the Caloosahatchee? Oh for sure. The river has cleaned up considerable and you can actually see the shallows now on a clear day. How has your fishing been this year? Still no keeper-size grouper on the nearshore reefs, but a spot that I fish about 15 miles out of Wiggins has a ton of undersized grouper on it...which is a very good sign. The wind on the weekends has been relentless for the past 3 weeks, so I haven't fished much. It's too bad, because May/June is typically one of the best times of the year. |
#7
posted to rec.boats
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Climate change reveals some interesting old boats
"HK" wrote in message . .. Wayne.B wrote: On Wed, 06 Jun 2007 12:43:34 -0400, wrote: This has a lot more to do with SFWMD and the army corps draining down the lake than the drought. You didn't really hear much about it but my son in law (water manager for SFWMD) told me they almost lost the Hoover dike during Wilma and the order went out to drain down the lake. Any idea when Lake O might make it back up to navigable (for me) depths of 5.5 to 6 ft? Right now I have to detour over 200 NM through the Keys to the east coast. Awwww. Well, you could always rent a flatbed rail car. I know a Dr. in town who has his 36' boat trailered across to Ft. Lauderdale when he wants to make a trip to the Bahamas because it saves him time and fuel. |
#8
posted to rec.boats
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Climate change reveals some interesting old boats
NOYB wrote:
"HK" wrote in message . .. Wayne.B wrote: On Wed, 06 Jun 2007 12:43:34 -0400, wrote: This has a lot more to do with SFWMD and the army corps draining down the lake than the drought. You didn't really hear much about it but my son in law (water manager for SFWMD) told me they almost lost the Hoover dike during Wilma and the order went out to drain down the lake. Any idea when Lake O might make it back up to navigable (for me) depths of 5.5 to 6 ft? Right now I have to detour over 200 NM through the Keys to the east coast. Awwww. Well, you could always rent a flatbed rail car. I know a Dr. in town who has his 36' boat trailered across to Ft. Lauderdale when he wants to make a trip to the Bahamas because it saves him time and fuel. Sounds like a smart move to me. Getting there is not the kind of boating I enjoy. Being there is. |
#9
posted to rec.boats
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Climate change reveals some interesting old boats
wrote in message ... I left about the same time when they were rationalizing cutting down a stand of Australian pines on Donax to build a golf course in the name of "exotic removal". Isn't that what WCI and Hyatt did on the island to the South of New Pass? |
#10
posted to rec.boats
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Climate change reveals some interesting old boats
"HK" wrote in message . .. NOYB wrote: "HK" wrote in message . .. Wayne.B wrote: On Wed, 06 Jun 2007 12:43:34 -0400, wrote: This has a lot more to do with SFWMD and the army corps draining down the lake than the drought. You didn't really hear much about it but my son in law (water manager for SFWMD) told me they almost lost the Hoover dike during Wilma and the order went out to drain down the lake. Any idea when Lake O might make it back up to navigable (for me) depths of 5.5 to 6 ft? Right now I have to detour over 200 NM through the Keys to the east coast. Awwww. Well, you could always rent a flatbed rail car. I know a Dr. in town who has his 36' boat trailered across to Ft. Lauderdale when he wants to make a trip to the Bahamas because it saves him time and fuel. Sounds like a smart move to me. Getting there is not the kind of boating I enjoy. Being there is. I'd burn about 200 gallons of fuel each way just to get to the East Coast. But more importantly, I'd waste two full days just travelling between Naples and Ft. Lauderdale and back. If I take my boat to the Bahamas, I'm definitely looking into getting someone to trailer it over to Lauderdale, and leaving from there. Time is my most valuable commodity right now. |
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