How many hours a day do you average....

The friendliest place on the web for anyone who enjoys boating.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
See posts with no answers

Hours per day cruising. Total engine hours divided by days cruised

  • I average less than 0.5 hours per day

    Votes: 2 5.3%

  • I average 0.5 to 1.0 hours per day

    Votes: 1 2.6%

  • I average 1.0 to 1.5 hours per day

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • I average 1.5 to 2.0 hours per day

    Votes: 2 5.3%

  • I average 2.0 to 2.5 hours per day

    Votes: 4 10.5%

  • I average 2.5 to 3.0 hours per day

    Votes: 5 13.2%

  • I average 3.0 to 3.5 hours per day

    Votes: 3 7.9%

  • I average 3.5 to 4.0 hours per day

    Votes: 7 18.4%

  • I average 4.0 to 5.0 hours per day

    Votes: 4 10.5%

  • I average more than 5.0 hours per day

    Votes: 10 26.3%
  • Total voters
    38
BandB

BandB

Guru
Joined
Jan 22, 2014
Messages
21,449
Location
USA
This came up in another thread. Now the calculation we're interest in is hours cruised divided by days. Take all the engine hours in a year and divide that by the days cruised. A day cruised is any day you leave your home dock. It does count as a day cruised even if you return to where you started and you include the days anchored and in slips along the way.

Our calculation for 2015 was like this. By the definition above, we cruised 264 days in 2015. That doesn't mean we moved all those. About half of them we didn't move. We put 1007 hours on engines. So, 1007/264 is 3.8 hours per day. To us that was a reasonable pace based on the areas we cruised.
 
Typical day outing is between three and four hours. Has ranged to a maximum of eight.
 
Last summer worked out to 4.7 hours per day.

Cruised from Anacortes to Ketchikan to Haida Gwaii to Olympia to Anacortes. 73 days underway and 344.22 engine hours. There were a few days I didn't move that aren't reported, but the average would still be over 4 hours per day.

Winter cruising days are usually much shorter.
 
Retriever said:
Last summer worked out to 4.7 hours per day.

Cruised from Anacortes to Ketchikan to Haida Gwaii to Olympia to Anacortes. 73 days underway and 344.22 engine hours. There were a few days I didn't move that aren't reported, but the average would still be over 4 hours per day.

Winter cruising days are usually much shorter.
Click to expand...

I counted days not moved.
 
About 12 seconds to date. :)
 
Last year we did almost exactly 100 hours, so about 20 mins per day. This year (since March) we've got 100 hrs already. Hopefully we get to 1 hour per day average
 
Our day trips are usually 3-4 hours. Weekend trips tend to be a bit longer but I only figured the days moving, not days spent on the hook.
 
I think it is a great question. I have a very small sample so far (only three short trips) but so far it is about 4 hrs per day.
 
Last Tuesday 6 hours
Thursday 20 minutes
Friday 1 hour total 30 minutes to secrete fishing spot and back to the marina its so secrete the fish don't even know its there :rofl:
Saturday Marina from 9am to 11pm
Sunday 30 minutes marina to mooring and back :D
Today 40 minutes


We don't need to go very far from the marina to be 100 miles away form anywhere yet we are 50minutes by road to Sydney :)
 
jleonard said:
This is a pretty meaningless calculation that I won't begin to attempt.
Click to expand...
Like many statistics, so many variables and to what do you really apply it to?

What does it really mean?
 
psneeld said:
Like many statistics, so many variables and to what do you really apply it to?

What does it really mean?
Click to expand...

What it was intended to mean was pace. When going on a 30 day cruise, how many hours moving is reasonable to enjoy it. Our numbers would indicate that we'd cruise for about 120 hours in that time. That includes the days of sitting and the days of 12 hours. Typically for us it would probably mean actually moving 13-15 days at an average on those days of 6-8 hours per day.

As you increase those hours it becomes less of a pleasure cruise and more like a delivery cruise. We did just do a 7 day move of our boat and in those 7 days cruised 58 hours (1286 nm). That kind of pace though is not one of a sightseeing or pleasure cruise. In each of the intermediate stops, we only had about 4 hours of daylight and about an hour and half of that taken by docking and undocking, fueling, pumping out, carrying trash to the facilities. Plus by the time of arrival most places we might have visited were closing for the day.

For cruising I think we all have to find out pace which is a combination of how many days we move vs stay put and how many hours we move each of those days. Some of us cover more miles in those hours but that's to me not part of the enjoyable pace issue. That just influences which places you visit.
 
Miles per day might have been more useful. At 7 knots, 5 hours per day is only 35 miles. Think many of us do that kind of distance........it just takes some of us longer. My average was more like 10 hours going back and forth to Fl.

Ted
 
BandB said:
What it was intended to mean was pace. When going on a 30 day cruise, how many hours moving is reasonable to enjoy it. Our numbers would indicate that we'd cruise for about 120 hours in that time. That includes the days of sitting and the days of 12 hours. Typically for us it would probably mean actually moving 13-15 days at an average on those days of 6-8 hours per day.

As you increase those hours it becomes less of a pleasure cruise and more like a delivery cruise. We did just do a 7 day move of our boat and in those 7 days cruised 58 hours (1286 nm). That kind of pace though is not one of a sightseeing or pleasure cruise. In each of the intermediate stops, we only had about 4 hours of daylight and about an hour and half of that taken by docking and undocking, fueling, pumping out, carrying trash to the facilities. Plus by the time of arrival most places we might have visited were closing for the day.

For cruising I think we all have to find out pace which is a combination of how many days we move vs stay put and how many hours we move each of those days. Some of us cover more miles in those hours but that's to me not part of the enjoyable pace issue. That just influences which places you visit.
Click to expand...
Then just ask that.

Depending on where you cruise and what you like to do and the speed if the vessel all affect that number.

Some like the underway time and less the ashore time...their numbers definitely skew the results.

Again your number may be relevant in your mind.....but either completely different for others...all the way to meaningless for some the way they view it.
 
psneeld; said:
Depending on where you cruise and what you like to do and the speed if the vessel all affect that number.
Click to expand...
:thumb:
Exactly my point in the other thread.

Generally, in the summer, if you want an anchorage anywhere within 50 miles of Vancouver, you best be there early afternoon or be disappointed.
Keven and Murray could probably show up most places by sundown and be alone.

The average SE AK cruise could be double the average Delta CA cruise.

To include "not moving" time is the biggest variant. Folks from all over the US relocate the boat, let it sit, fly in for a martini or two hour business cruise and fly back. That would work out to even less than Tom B's record 12 seconds.

I want to see a survey on how many times people drew their own keys from the hat.
 
Last edited:
BandB said:
As you increase those hours it becomes less of a pleasure cruise and more like a delivery cruise. We did just do a 7 day move of our boat and in those 7 days cruised 58 hours (1286 nm). That kind of pace though is not one of a sightseeing or pleasure cruise. In each of the intermediate stops, we only had about 4 hours of daylight and about an hour and half of that taken by docking and undocking, fueling, pumping out, carrying trash to the facilities. Plus by the time of arrival most places we might have visited were closing for the day.
Click to expand...

Think this just points out the differences in cruising styles. Other than maybe going out to dinner if I dock, really not interested in land cruising on underway days. Also, anchoring out 75% of the time with a boat setup for a week plus away from the dock (and fuel pumps) also eliminates lots of wasted time.

The other contrast I see is that for some the boat is transportation and accommodations like an RV traveling on the highway and staying in the RV park. For others (me), the underway cruising and sightseeing is as or more important than the day's destination. Guess this is why I prefer inland and near coastal cruising as opposed to crossing the relatively featureless ocean.

To each their own.

Ted
 
Drake said:
Math gives me a headache.
Click to expand...

jleonard said:
This is a pretty meaningless calculation that I won't begin to attempt.
Click to expand...

No one wants you to participate in activities that cause you pain or mental anguish. It is possible to simply skip it... :facepalm:

psneeld said:
Depending on where you cruise and what you like to do and the speed if the vessel all affect that number.

Some like the underway time and less the ashore time...their numbers definitely skew the results.
Click to expand...

That is the point! It points out the differences in how we use our boats and I do find that interesting. It really isn't all that complicated.
 
I'm not sure I understand the question so I'm not going to vote.


When underway on a cruise we will run from anywhere from a couple hours to ten or eleven hours, depending on how long it takes to get to our next stop. Since we have to deal with tidal current, it could take more or less time between the same stops as it did the last time.


In general, we try to even hours per day at seven knots (more or less).


Of course, if we stay somewhere more than overnight, we run zero hours on the days we are in port.
 
dhays said:
No one wants you to participate in activities that cause you pain or mental anguish. It is possible to simply skip it... :facepalm:



That is the point! It points out the differences in how we use our boats and I do find that interesting. It really isn't all that complicated.
Click to expand...

Not really.....not without explaining the variables.
 
Ok, this turned out interesting and a surprise to me too. We cruised to the Broightons last summer and were aboard for 42 days and 819 nm. The total engine hours was 123 for port and 124 for starboard engines. Lehman 120's.
The math works out to 2.9 hours per day. Of course that does not factor in a few things like 3 day weather layover in Nanaimo, two days in Campbell River with our friends getting repairs done, two days in Port Hardy with friends getting more work done, staying in Alert Bay for 3 days because we liked it there, staying two days in Kwatsi Bay because just WOW! and staying 10 days in Shoal Bay because we loved it there.

Nice to go back and read the boat log again as well.
 
kolive said:
Ok, this turned out interesting and a surprise to me too. We cruised to the Broightons last summer and were aboard for 42 days and 819 nm. The total engine hours was 123 for port and 124 for starboard engines. Lehman 120's.
The math works out to 2.9 hours per day. Of course that does not factor in a few things like 3 day weather layover in Nanaimo, two days in Campbell River with our friends getting repairs done, two days in Port Hardy with friends getting more work done, staying in Alert Bay for 3 days because we liked it there, staying two days in Kwatsi Bay because just WOW! and staying 10 days in Shoal Bay because we loved it there.

Nice to go back and read the boat log again as well.
Click to expand...

This explains a person's cruising style....a poll of average hrs per day without explanation says ......what? I bet the same number may be posted by 2 people with completely different cruising styles.

Boater A uses the boat 10 times a year for 8 hour round trips to towns just up/down the bay for the night. 4 hrs per day.

Another cruises 120 days up and down the ICW for 2500 miles and puts 480 hrs on the engine. 4 hrs per day.

Now throw in 25 knot cruisers versus 6 knot cruisers.....mind numbing unless presented with narrative.
 
Last edited:
I average over 500 hours a year on the Hobbs, for the three years I have had the Willard. I base out of Seward in the summer and almost anywhere I want to anchor for the night is a minimum of 50 miles away, usually 60-70 nautical miles.

I motor a lot, (because) it beats getting gnawed on by the bugs on shore and if I think there are any fish I throttle back and drop the down rigger and do catch and release. I enjoy watching the shoreline go by, the marine life, the new anchorage every night and I seldom spend the night in the same anchorage two nights in a row unless shrimping.

The season here (for me) is only 4 months long, the wind in the fall and the cold temps in the spring set my season for me. I usually don't run my generator to keep my batteries up, I motor if water conditions permit and save the generator for when they don't.

Everything here is far apart, at 6 knots :) When I ran the Bayliner I ran the same distances in two hours a day and had to carefully watch every drop of gasoline to be sure to make it back to the harbor. I am liking this diesel and displacement arrangement a lot!
 
AKDoug said:
I average over 500 hours a year on the Hobbs, for the three years I have had the Willard. I base out of Seward in the summer and almost anywhere I want to anchor for the night is a minimum of 50 miles away, usually 60-70 nautical miles.

I motor a lot, (because) it beats getting gnawed on by the bugs on shore and if I think there are any fish I throttle back and drop the down rigger and do catch and release. I enjoy watching the shoreline go by, the marine life, the new anchorage every night and I seldom spend the night in the same anchorage two nights in a row unless shrimping.

The season here (for me) is only 4 months long, the wind in the fall and the cold temps in the spring set my season for me. I usually don't run my generator to keep my batteries up, I motor if water conditions permit and save the generator for when they don't.

Everything here is far apart, at 6 knots :) and had to carefully watch every drop of gasoline to be sure to make it back to the harbor. I am liking this diesel and displacement arrangement a lot!
Click to expand...
Lol.
Good commentary. I bet when yer shrimpin' you are wearing a grand's worth of Ray Bans and flip flops too, eh?
 
Greetings,
I really don't keep track of hours save for oil changes. I also really don't care if I go anywhere or at what speed. As long as I'm aboard, I consider myself cruising even if still tied to the dock. I'm NOT ashore. I just enjoy floating. We usually run (off the dock) about 200 to 300 hours a year and THAT is a bonus. Where are we going? Don't care. How fast are we getting there? Don't much care either.
 
After 14 hour days on sailboats we graduated to power boats where we leave the dock at 10 AM and are tied up or anchored about 2PM
 
bayview said:
After 14 hour days on sailboats we graduated to power boats where we leave the dock at 10 AM and are tied up or anchored about 2PM
Click to expand...
Then you sit through happy hour watching all the 14 hour sailboats fighting rigging, hanging laundry and each other for the last spot.

Do you miss it?
 
It was a poorly worded and created poll. Guilty.

Now, the reason I used hours instead of miles is that miles give a very distorted impression of our cruising. People think we can't be doing that many miles or that we must be cruising 12 hours every day. However, our average daily time cruising is very reasonable and moderate. It's just that we do it faster.

This all came from trying to discuss what we felt was reasonable for a two week time period.
 
Oh believe me...us slow pokes KNOW a lot of people cruise much faster. :D
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

RickyD
How many things can go wrong in one day???
Replies
14
Views
2K
Dougcole
Dougcole
O C Diver
Slow Hand – End of the line
2 3
Replies
69
Views
7K
Miz Trom
Miz Trom
mvweebles
Hurricane Otis - thoughts and aftermath
Replies
12
Views
1K
Slo-Mocean
Slo-Mocean
mvweebles
5-mos Cruising Pacific Mexico Q&A
Replies
11
Views
1K
PNW
PNW
Dougcole
How much Solar to offset Starlink?
Replies
5
Views
2K
socalrider
socalrider

Latest posts

Back
Top Bottom