"Uncontrolled" is the word the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers uses for the protected route that runs south from Gordon Pass, behind Keewaydin Island, toward Big Marco Pass. In the Corps' October 2026 draft Environmental Assessment, an uncontrolled channel is one that "follows best water (naturally deep areas) rather than an exact alignment," and its authorized depth and width are not fixed to x-y coordinates.
That definition matters for anyone who backs out of a Port Royal dock and turns south. The route has no line on a federal drawing. Its course is set by where the deep water happens to be, and the markers show where that is. This fall, the federal agencies that maintain the route have stopped treating those markers as permanent.
The Markers Are the Route, and Many Are Gone
The Coast Guard publishes every week which aids to navigation are out of service. The Local Notice to Mariners dated October 21, 2026 lists 21 federal daybeacons on the Big Marco Pass–Gordon Pass channel as destroyed or missing. Most of them carry a "TRUB" status, meaning a temporary buoy has been set in their place. The same notice lists Daybeacon 18A as temporarily discontinued.
The problems don't start at the pass. The same notice also lists markers out of service on Naples Bay, which Port Royal boaters cross before reaching the Gulf side of Gordon Pass.
| Waterway | Aid | Status in the Oct. 21, 2026 notice |
|---|---|---|
| Naples Bay Channel | Daybeacons 22, 26, 33 | Structure destroyed, temporary buoy |
| Naples Bay Channel | Daybeacon 25 | Hazard to navigation, structure destroyed |
| Royal Harbor | Daybeacon 2 | Structure destroyed |
| Naples Yacht Club | Daybeacon 5 | Daymark missing |
| Big Marco Pass–Gordon Pass | 21 federal daybeacons | Destroyed or missing |
| Big Marco Pass Obstruction | Daybeacons A, B, C and Light E | Structure destroyed |
| Isles of Capri | Daybeacon 6 | Structure missing |
The notice is updated weekly, so the statuses above reflect October 21. They show how many fixed marks are missing from a route defined by where the deep water sits.
The Coast Guard's Fix Is a Marker That Can Move
The same notice carries a proposal to convert 13 of the route's fixed daybeacons into unlighted floating aids. They are numbers 1A, 2, 2A, 17, 28A, 36, 40, 53, 60, 65, 66, 67 and 68.
The Coast Guard gives its reasons plainly. Its "assets are unable to access the fixed structures due to shallow water depths," and floating aids would allow "timelier relocation of Aids when shoaling evolves," which the agency says will make the channel "safer and more reliable." The water around some of the old pilings has become too shallow for the boats that service them.
This is the uncontrolled-channel idea applied to the markers themselves. A fixed daybeacon assumes the deep water will stay where it was. A floating aid can be moved when the deep water shifts. The October 21 notice lists the change as a proposal, with public comments due by November 2, 2026.
The Corps' Fix Targets Both Ends
Moving the markers handles one part of the problem. The Corps' October 2026 draft EA handles another by removing sand at the two ends of the route.
The plan covers Uncontrolled Channel Cuts 1 through 3, near Gordon Pass, and Cuts J through O, near Big Marco Pass. The preferred alternative would dredge both to the authorized 6 feet at mean lower low water, plus 1 foot of allowable overdepth. Under the preferred alternative, the dredged material could go to Keewaydin Island, Key Island, Sand Dollar Island or the Rookery Islands sand bar complex, depending on whether the material is compatible and where there is room.
The history of the two ends is very different. Gordon Pass has been maintained since it was first built in 1960, most recently in 2025. Big Marco Pass has not been maintained since its original construction. The Corps cites two reasons: a lack of places to put the sand, and low shoaling rates in the pass. The U.S. Coast Guard identified the need to dredge Cuts J–O and Cuts 1–3 in 2024.
The 2025 work at Gordon Pass ran under a $3,045,784.37 contract for Cuts 1 through 7 and the settling basin. The USACE announcement planned about 65,000 cubic yards of beach-compatible sand for Keewaydin Island, with work expected to start in November 2025. The new proposal goes beyond that job. The Corps' description covers the uncontrolled stretch from Gordon Pass south, not the pass itself.
The EA is still a draft with a proposed finding of no significant impact. The document says the draft and proposed finding will be made available for a 30-day public and agency review on the Corps' Environmental Planning site under Collier County. It sets no construction dates.
Why the Southern End Behaves Differently
The far end of the run is the hardest to keep marked. The Corps describes Big Marco Pass as a shallow inlet, under 14 feet, where inlets and shoals shift and create unpredictable navigation hazards.
Marco Island has been discussing the same stretch. Coastal Breeze News reported in February 2026 that city officials sent a proposal to dredge parts of Big Marco Pass back to the Waterways Advisory Committee for review. The proposal would use existing Tigertail Lagoon permits and place the sand on Tigertail Beach. The paper tied the effort to storm-driven shoaling and recounted groundings in 2020 and 2021. It also reported that Coast Guard markers moved earlier had improved conditions without removing every shallow spot.
Moving the markers helped but didn't remove every shallow spot. That earlier result helps explain both the Coast Guard's floating-aid proposal and the Corps' dredging plan.
Where the Run Ends Up
Most boaters run this route to reach a destination, and the stops along it are as well known as the channel. Listed from north to south, as the route meets them:
- Keewaydin Island and Rookery Bay waters. Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve runs guided trips into the reserve, including an estuary cruise and a Keewaydin shelling stop. The reserve says designated camping locations north of San Marco Road, Keewaydin among them, are open year-round, subject to posted restrictions.
- Capri Fish House, on Johnson Bay. The Marco Island tourism office's listing describes it as a waterfront restaurant with kayak and paddleboard rentals and as a stop for boaters.
- Pelican Bend, also on Johnson Bay. Pelican Bend's site describes a deck and a Chickee bar overlooking the bay, and Visit Marco Island notes that boaters can arrive there.
- Island Gypsy Café, at Isles of Capri Marina. The Island Gypsy sits on Capri Marina with waterfront seating. The marina's tourism listing also lists slips, rentals and kayak tours.
- Snook Inn, on the Marco River. Snook Inn invites guests to arrive by boat and posts its restaurant hours on its official site.
Isles of Capri is the same area where the October 21 notice lists Daybeacon 6 as missing. Big Marco Pass, past the Johnson Bay stops, is where four private obstruction marks are listed as destroyed.
Reading the Notice Before the Run
The Coast Guard's Local Notice to Mariners is public and posted at navcen.uscg.gov. Each Naples Bay and Big Marco Pass–Gordon Pass aid appears by name, light list number and status, and temporary buoys and discontinued aids are listed separately. The Corps' draft EA for the dredging plan points readers to the Jacksonville District's Environmental Planning page, under Collier County.
For Port Royal owners who think of a home in terms of its dock and its route to the water, Kaleena Figaro Group follows the waterways around Naples Bay and Gordon Pass as closely as the homes along them. If your next move depends on how quickly you can reach Keewaydin or Johnson Bay, we'd be glad to talk it through.
