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Haulover Canal Shrimping Reports

Shrimping at the Haulover Canal Florida

Shrimping at the Haulover Canal is excellent and the Shrimp are very large, Jumbo, even Shrimp-Zilla Sized… (See below Shrimp-Zilla Photos.

The Haulover Canal is a waterway north of Merritt Island, Florida, near the former site of Allenhurst, that connects Mosquito Lagoon with the Indian River, and is part of the Intracoastal Waterway.

The mile-long canal links the Indian River and Mosquito Lagoon and is a good fishing spot for Seatrout, Redfish, Red drum, Snook, Black drum, Sheepshead and Blue Crabs.

The Kennedy Parkway (SR 3) Bridge crosses Haulover Canal on north Merritt Island, northeast of Titusville.

LOCATION.– 28° 43'58.80" N    80° 45'24.97" W, referenced to North American Datum of 1927, in SE 1/4 sec.19, T.20 S., R.36 E., Brevard County, FL, Hydrologic Unit 03080202, on the right bank, under the bridge on Kennedy Parkway, 8.7 mi south of the intersection of U.S. Highway 1 and Kennedy Parkway, and 7.3 mi northeast of Mims.

Canal is located on Merritt Island N.W.R., Route 3, about 4.5 miles north of Wilson's Corner.

Directions: Take I-95 to Titusville exit 80 (SR 406) and go East toward Titusville, Cross US1 after 2.8 miles and continue across causeway over Indian River and past entrance to Merrit Island National Wildlife Refuge after 4.3 miles. Continue east for another 1.4 miles (total 5.7 from I 95) and turn left just before the road begins to bear right. (There is a sign pointing left to Wildlife Drive and a JCT 406 sign). Continue on past Blackpoint Wildlife Drive and on to end of road. Go left (northwest) at the sign pointing to Haulover Canal. Another 4.5 miles takes you over the Haulover Canal drawbridge. Turn left (west) less than 1/4 mile past (North of) the bridge. A brown sign indicates Haulover Canal Recreation area. Follow the dirt road as it turns left, then right and parallels the canal until it reaches a wide beach area at the western end of the canal. This is the put-in and take-out.

The Old Haulover Canal is a historic location north of Merritt Island, Florida. On December 19, 1978, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.

"The Haulover Canal is a waterway north of Merritt Island, Florida, near the former site of Allenhurst, that connects Mosquito Lagoon with the Indian River, and is part of the Intracoastal Waterway.This canal was built in the 1800s to allow steamboats and commerce into east central Florida. The location is close to an old natural canal which did not go completely through. That one had been used by the local native Americans as the shortest portage to haul their canoes between Mosquito Lagoon and the Indian River. Thus the name Haulover Canal. Follow the canal ENE and watch for the occasional sea otter near or on the bank. Notice the limestone in places on the bank.

In the early 1960s there were plans to relocate the canal further north, near the junction of US 1 and Courtenay Parkway, but by 1964 when the new Haulover Canal Bridge was constructed these plans had been shelved

Old Haulover Canal.  Built c. 1854 Location: Vicinity of North Merritt Island

Located on the narrowest part of Merritt Island, the Old Haulover Canal linked the Mosquito Lagoon on the east with the Indian River on the west. In 1854, the federal government spent $5,000 to construct the canal based upon an investigation by Lieutenant Wright. The canal was located at this point as it served as a traditional crossover point for travel down the inland waterway and, until its construction; cargo was carried across the island and then loaded on boats which continued southward. The canal was 3 feet deep and 10 to 14 feet wide and was constructed by the slaves of a local citrus grower. The Old Haulover Canal was abandoned in 1884 when the new Haulover Canal was constructed nearly a mile to the north. In the 30 years of its use, the Old Haulover Canal served as an important transportation link in Florida's inland water way system.

Native Americans, explorers and settlers hauled or carried canoes and small boats over this narrow strip of land between Mosquito Lagoon and the Indian River. Eventually it became known as the "haulover". Connecting both bodies of water had long plagued early settlers of this area. Spaniards visited as early as 1605 and slid boats over the ground covered with mulberry tree bark. Early settlers used rollers and skids to drag schooners across. Fort Ann was established nearby in 1837, during the 2nd Seminole War (1835-1842) to protect the haulover from Indians and carry military supplies from the lagoon to the river. In 1852, contractor G.E. Hawes dug the first canal using slave labor. In was 3 ft. deep, 14ft. wide, and completed in time for the 3rd Seminole War (1856-1858). Steamboat and cargo ships used the passage until the railroad arrived in 1885. By 1887, the Florida Coast Line Canal and Transportation Co. dug a new and deeper can which you see now, a short distance from the original. The Intracoastal Waterway incorporated the Haulover Canal as a federal project in 1927 to be maintained by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Since then the channel has been dug wider and deeper and a basin added for launching boats.