“There are absolutely safe places to swim, which are the front Gulf beaches. That’s where 90 percent of the people are,” DePaola said, referring to the beaches east of Fort Morgan, including Gulf Shores, Orange Beach, Pensacola and along the Panhandle of Florida.

Florida

The Gulf Stream plays a key role in creating our mild climate, because the westerly wind belt across Europe gets its warmth principally from the Gulf Stream. The Gulf Stream system – from the Gulf of Mexico through the North Atlantic Ocean and partly into the Norwegian Sea – emits heat into the atmosphere in the north.

Scientists have previously said a weakening of the Gulf Stream could cause freezing winters in western Europe and unprecedented changes across the Atlantic. The AMOC is a large part of the Gulf Stream, often described as the “conveyor belt” that brings warm water from the equator.

The Gulf Stream — one of Earth’s major climate-regulating ocean currents — is moving slower than it has in thousands of years, a new study suggests. “If the Gulf Stream crosses its tipping point, it will continue to weaken even if we have managed to stop global warming,” Caesar told Live Science.

The velocity of the current is fastest near the surface, with the maximum speed typically about 5.6 miles per hour (nine kilometers per hour). The average speed of the Gulf Stream, however, is four miles per hour (6.4 kilometers per hour).

The Gulf Stream proper is a western-intensified current, driven largely by wind stress. The North Atlantic Drift, in contrast, is largely driven by thermohaline circulation. In 1958, oceanographer Henry Stommel noted that “very little water from the Gulf of Mexico is actually in the stream”.

Because these areas are often very narrow, the current is able to compress and gather strength. As it does so, it begins circulating in the Gulf of Mexico’s warm waters. It is here that the Gulf Stream becomes officially visible on satellite images so it is said that the current originates in this area.

5-20 miles

There are 26.15 miles from Fort Lauderdale to Gulf Stream in north direction and 33 miles (53.11 kilometers) by car, following the I-95 N route. Fort Lauderdale and Gulf Stream are 37 minutes far apart, if you drive non-stop .

between five to 10 miles

The species are endless. Some favorites include tarpon, permit, bonefish, redfish, snook, shark, sailfish, mahi, wahoo, backfin tuna, hogfish and many species of snapper. Epic does not even do justice to describing the fishing in Islamorada.

Destin. Nicknamed “The World’s Luckiest Fishing Village,” Destin is a great place to go on a fishing excursion. Home to the largest fishing fleet in the entire state, visitors often come here and charter a boat for offshore fishing in groups.

15 miles

The pilchards are two to four inches in length, and you want to catch as many as your livewell will hold. Then run offshore to the humps, get on the up-current side, shut the engines down and drift over the humps. You’ll want to use 20 to 40 pound spinning gear with 25 or 30 pound fluorocarbon leader.

409 feet