My dad drilled Red, Right, Return in my head when i was about ten. If you draw a straight line from one red marker to the next and stay within ten feet of that line on the way out of the bay into the gulf, you will be in the channel. Although when you pass the second-to-last red marker, its better to sweep to your left (marsh island side) a bit, but as long as you remain inside of the green and red while going through , you'll be in 20+ feet of water. If your fishing t-butte, turn very wide right after you get past the oyster sticks and watch your depth finder so it doesnt pass 3 feet. Diamond is a little tougher. The water is so high right now that the charts aren't very accurate in my opinion. If your going to fish the reefs, i strongly suggest you invest in any kind of GPS with a backtrack or visual track feature because once in the reefs, they start to look different as the tide shifts and its much easier to come back out the way you go in. I use several and even the phone based apps work well until you get outside of the pass. i can send you some charts via email if you need. I also have a handheld that i use on my waverunner with the Navionics Gold Louisiana chip that I'm selling if you want to try it, but if you have a smartphone the USA Marine apps are fantastic for just 10 bucks. PM me if you are interested in trying the handheld or want some chart pics.
Ferraridriver2@aol.com. I have picked up and brought in several beat up fishermen who I noticed standing on the reef with no boat because they ran their fiberglass hull into the last reef and sank it. The strength of the current there is a killer. Following someone is great as long as you have someone to follow back. Sorry for the long two cents. I almost lost my brother on those reefs.