ORANGE BEACH, Ala (WPMI) -- Boaters beware. You may need some extra planning if you're heading to Orange Beach this weekend as a popular boat launch is still torn up and unusable.
Alabama state work crews have been remodeling the Cotton Bayou ramp since January.
The sign is so simple, yet one it could not be bigger for J.T. Williamson and his friends. "It's a shame, we wanted to go fishing with the boys, and have a condo right there at Grand Caribbean and can't put the boat in, so we had to go to the Marina," he said.
Plans are changing for many boaters as state crews continue to work on the ramp. "Any time we have one down, it has a significant impact," Orange Beach Mayor Tony Kennon told Local 15. Kennon said he wishes he could do more, but is at the mercy of the crews tapped to finish the project.
They ran into some unexpected issues that's taking them longer than they wanted it to; but my daddy would have said, boy you should have started earlier," he laughed.
For now, other ramps in town will see more traffic. For many, that means more waiting; more money.
"Had to rent a slip and do all of that, just makes it a little more difficult," Williamson said, "
We go up here and launch obviously, got to put it somewhere, you can't pull it in and out and keep it at the condo."
Frustration, fees and all, the picturesque destination is still the same. It's the means of getting there that's been more of a task than first expected.
