Large boats entering and exiting the Shark River Inlet may run into delays starting this Friday, as construction workers return to the Route 71 Bridge connecting Avon-By-The-Sea to Belmar.

Bill McKim already canceled his Saturday’s whale-watching excursion, which would have been his first of the year on his vessel “Jersey Girl.”

“8 a.m., I see an email and it says, ‘Important info for boat owners,’ telling us there’s going to be work. We knew it was coming, but we didn’t know when,” said McKim.

The construction is expected to last until the summer, according to the New Jersey Department of Transportation. Larger boats that need a wide space to navigate through the channel will be impacted.

Crews will work on the bridge fenders. They protect the structure from collisions and impacts with passing boats. NJDOT officials say the work is to prepare for an eventual bridge replacement, still in the planning stage.

The upcoming fender work on the Route 71 bridge will all be taking place underneath the bridge surface by the water. The DOT says it will not stop traffic crossing from the two towns.

Last year, emergency bridge repairs led to its closure from March through the Memorial Day holiday, severely impacting businesses.

Work on the bridge is expected to take place between 6 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Large boats will still be able to pass but will require working with the repair crews and barges.

“Hopefully it’s just going to be an inconvenience we can live with and won’t really affect us but who knows until it actually happens,” said McKim.