The Mariners of PGI is a club of 200 members whose common goals are cruising, boating education, and social activities.  We are an active cruising club.  Each year, members participate in over 40 cruises that include overnight trips to many southwest Florida coastal marinas, anchor-outs at various anchorages, day cruises to several of the waterfront restaurants around Charlotte Harbor, the ICW and the Peace River.  For the more adventurous, there are multi-day trips to marinas in the Tampa area, a three-week cruise to the Florida Keys or a six-week cruise to the Bahamas. 

Our current vessel makeup is 73 powerboats (12 of which are 25' or less in length) and 27 sailboats.  The Bylaws of the club require members to participate in a minimum of 2 scheduled Mariner of PGI cruises within each calendar year.  We encourage members to initiate cruises that are open to all members, and also to become a Cruise Leader for cruises that are scheduled by the cruise committee. 

There’s so much more to membership in a cruising club than just cruising our beautiful Southwest Florida waters.  It’s the folks you meet and the friendships that are formed, creating a solid unit of friendship and support for all boaters, especially those unfamiliar with local waters. 

The Mariner of PGI Social Committee normally plans one event per month starting in January with our Commodore’s Ball and ending in December with our Holiday Pot Luck Party.  During the rest of the year we hold varied events, such as our First Mates’ Annual Luncheon, golf scrambles, tennis tournaments, On-the-Water Poker Runs, canoe trips, a visit to the Broadway Palm Theater, an artists/artisans show, wine tasting parties, and picnics in the park. 

We also plan events that coincide with holidays or area functions like the Jim Morris CD Release Party, the Pop’s Concert at Edison Community College, and Oktoberfest.  There’s something for everyone! 

Our monthly meetings, three of which must be attended each year, have an educational purpose.  About half of each meeting is spent on some form of boating education.  Topics have included boat maintenance, cruising safety, local navigation, emergency medical training, and several descriptions of long voyages made by various members.  In addition, there have been several outside education sessions where hands-on experience was gained about fire extinguishers, flares and electrical systems. 

If you haven't yet heard, many Mariners gather every Wednesday evening 'long about five at Harpoon Harry's in Fisherman's Village.  We mix and mingle for a couple of hours before either heading home, or heading out for dinner.  Everyone's welcome: Mariners, guests, or even those lost souls, the non-boaters!  It's a great way to get to know each other and swap stories. 

As you see, there are many reasons why you might want to become a member of the Mariners of PGI.  If you are interested, you can download an application form by clicking here or the Join menu button at the top of any page.

Let’s go cruising!