Add A Candidate So Others Can Vote On...

... where was the absolutely worse place you have transited on a cruise.

Ours was today when we came through the Alligator River and Pungo River Canal (A&P Canal).

That place is boring, ugly and I would even say dead. We saw minimal signs of any life at all - even birds. And the mega tug-barge combos running it are downright scary.

AND we have to do it again in a couple of months.

Thats why I prefer the Outer Banks run if the weather is nice.

Usually dead but there have been reports of deer, black bear, eagles, otters..... more so at twilight and most of us want to be out of there at those times.

Add poor phone reception unless you have an amplified antenna.

Ranks up there as 20 or so miles of mindless travel for me too.

ICW sights

I agree the canal is not scenic, goes on for what, 20 miles?
I did enjoy some of the sights on the VA Cut' photo attached. You might need to zoom in to see everything.

Well I went around those (Pungo and Alligator) when I went south thru there, too tall to clear the bridges. Went through the sounds, and it was no picnic either, 28 degrees and snowing, had to hand steer (unsheltered cockpit of sailboat) because the autopilot had packed it in 3 days earlier. Got pictures of the wife on the Nags Head/Hatteras beach standing in 6" of snow. Most of the stores were closed (as was the National Park) and we were trying to buy ski gloves.

psneeld said:

Usually dead but there have been reports of deer, black bear, eagles, otters..... more so at twilight and most of us want to be out of there at those times.

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I think there are still a few red wolves in there, too; part of a (failing?) re-establishment program...

When we came through there in March, e Nordic Tug a mile or so in front of us had a surprising "change to reverse and go to full power" event happen while underway. Gave them quite a scare; we thought maybe they had hit something, watching from a distance, since the maneuver was a bit weird. I think it turned out to be caused by corrosion at their upper (unprotected) helm.

-Chris

ranger42c said:

I think there are still a few red wolves in there, too; part of a (failing?) re-establishment program...

When we came through there in March, e Nordic Tug a mile or so in front of us had a surprising "change to reverse and go to full power" event happen while underway. Gave them quite a scare; we thought maybe they had hit something, watching from a distance, since the maneuver was a bit weird. I think it turned out to be caused by corrosion at their upper (unprotected) helm.

-Chris

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Told you that place could star in a horror movie!

I've been thankful for even the less fabulous places we've visited and transited. Experienced while on our boat in the way we choose, they've all been better than the alternatives, and we've learned something from them all.

GregBrannon said:

I've been thankful for even the less fabulous places we've visited and transited. Experienced while on our boat in the way we choose, they've all been better than the alternatives, and we've learned something from them all.

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Great. What did you learn from the A&P?

The Georgia ICW gets my vote for the most mindless, unscenic place to cruise. Miles and miles of salt grass as far as the eye can see, no civilization, and switchback after switchback which makes the trip twice as long.

But some like the solitude. Not me!

David

We learned that it was a haven from bad weather on the Pungo.

On my recent Bahamas trip, we had nice offshore conditions between SC and Fla going in both directions. So we got to miss Ga.

But weather caused us to hit the Myrtle beach ditch stretch both ways. Yuk. Jetskis as thick as roaches in the bottom of a dumpster...

I personally enjoy every statute mile of the AICW! I would like to try the outer banks channel sometime and on our short list is the dismal swamp route. I seem to always find something interesting to look at even where some deem it as boring & not scenic. I did see a bear way up in the top of a tree on the Alligator Cut...it was kind of comical. To me, the SC & Georgia marshes are some of the prettiest ,with their random small islands, beaches & wildlife. Dolphin will sometimes surprise us with a show near the inlets too. I especially appreciate even the most monotonous areas of the waterway when it's blowing 25 offshore!

Greetings,
I’m also of the mind that there are really no boring places along the ICW. I agree with Mr. dj that it does seem like endless marsh and salt grass but I don’t find that so bothersome. We’d never have come to experience Kilkenny Creek marina otherwise. Now, THAT is a life’s experience.

I came South in my old sailboat in 2010 using the Dismal Swamp Canal, also the Alligator and Pungo rivers. There are mostly game lands and wildlife preserves surrounding the Alligator and Pungo, but its a great deal wider and deeper than the Dismal Swamp. I can agree with David that the Georgia swamps with the green headed flies and other swamp features was the part I least enjoyed. Just wish I had spent more time enroute visiting some interesting towns.

I have no problem with doing the Alligator Pungo canal. Generally do it twice each year and simply it's a safe passage, with reasonable depth, protected from all but hurricane force winds. Given a choice between being beaten up by moderate winds in the short steep chop of the NC sounds, waiting sometimes for days for passage through the sounds, or the peaceful canal, I'll take the canal. It's only about 2.5 to 3 hours.

Ted

Kemah, Texas to New Orleans via the ICW. No, just no, never again.

Hasn’t happened yet...too many mountains, islands, islets, inlets, canals, channels and bays to look at

menzies said:

... where was the absolutely worse place you have transited on a cruise.



Ours was today when we came through the Alligator River and Pungo River Canal (A&P Canal).



That place is boring, ugly and I would even say dead. We saw minimal signs of any life at all - even birds. And the mega tug-barge combos running it are downright scary.



AND we have to do it again in a couple of months.

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We made the trip in 2015 in a Hans Christian 38 Mkii at night. We lost the transponder so no depth sounder. The submerged tree stumps kept us in the middle. It was the trip from hell.

Made the trip once. Now do Pamlico Sound for the reasons stated.

An Opinion was requested so, Kemah, Tx. to New Orleans was mentioned as bad.
I have transited that portion of the ICW for many years and many times and have always noted that it is a grand section of the ICW, really neat with so many homes and things to see and divert to on the trip. I mentioned one time, giving a seminar on the Gulf ICW that it is a DESTINATION and not a way to get somewhere and received an ovation! These people knew!
It is replete with many commercial tows and many pleasure boaters don't like that, but one must keep in mind that the ICW, both of them, were not built for pleasure but for transport of goods.

Personally I prefer to be in the company of most commercial tows as opposed to many pleasure boaters as I KNOW what the tows will do (or will not) but certainly not the case with many pleasure boaters.


As far as a portion of the Atlantic coast not being great would be the inside route north of Cape May, NJ, there again only an opinion.

charles said:

An Opinion was requested so, Kemah, Tx. to New Orleans was mentioned as bad.
I have transited that portion of the ICW for many years and many times and have always noted that it is a grand section of the ICW, really neat with so many homes and things to see and divert to on the trip. I mentioned one time, giving a seminar on the Gulf ICW that it is a DESTINATION and not a way to get somewhere and received an ovation! These people knew!
It is replete with many commercial tows and many pleasure boaters don't like that, but one must keep in mind that the ICW, both of them, were not built for pleasure but for transport of goods.

Personally I prefer to be in the company of most commercial tows as opposed to many pleasure boaters as I KNOW what the tows will do (or will not) but certainly not the case with many pleasure boaters.


As far as a portion of the Atlantic coast not being great would be the inside route north of Cape May, NJ, there again only an opinion.

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We did see a dead cow stuck in the mud, so there is that.

Since no one mentioned it yet, Lake Okeechobee proper. Around the rim is fine. Out in the open is either smooth or horrible with nothing to look at but burning sugar cane field smoke and chocolate brown water.

Wifey B: Seeing the above Kemah to NOLA rebuttal reminds me why we don't have a candidate for this as every area has it's good and it's bad and we all have different tastes. Some is better for cruising and some better for sightseeing. Open seas and canals. I like each place's uniqueness, too. Just can't call any "worst" places.

Cedar Key FL to St Marks Lighthouse against a Norther gusting to 35 mph. Just under 200 miles of shallow water. At 7 knots it took almost two days.


We met two girls that had sailed across,we motored, and arrived 24 hours earlier than us. They were still scared stiff and shaking 24 hours later. About ready to give up the dream.

Worst Transit

Onboard USS Independance CV-62 in the North Atlantic, we entered a storm that had waves crashing on top of the flight deck 90 feet above the water. Sea Leggs didnt do much good that day !!

Four years ago in April bringing our newly purchased boat in Florida back to Maryland, we encountered the waters of St. Andrews Sound. We were advised that, because of the current and wind direction, high winds from the north, we could expect six foot waves at a critical turn in the channel. We pounded through the sound through three and four-foot waves until the turn when we got the 6-footers. When we made the turn to the west we began taking waves directly on our starboard beam. We had no choice but to stay our course because to stray would have meant running aground. The channel is very narrow there. The boat performed terrifically in the heavy water. She took very little water over the bow so our visibility was pretty good. It was all okay, just very rough, until we took a big one directly on our beam. We never saw it coming. We rolled 20 - 30 degrees. Tools, coffee maker, refrigerator contents, lots of stuff went flying. The icemaker flew out of its housing. That wave hit the boat with a very loud BANG. Sounded like Thor's Hammer.

We finally docked in Brunswick alongside a Mainship 43 which had taken the same route. The Mainship captain piloted his boat from the fly bridge because he was taking so much water over his bow and onto the lower helm windscreen that he couldn't see. They had an even more difficult trip that we.

Bodega Bay. The A-hole fishermen did it in for me.

Eat Life -

As an avid hunter and fisherman, I found the OP comment curious. Many days afield include bugs, snow, getting beat up on the water in a small boat, no fish, sore butt - no deer wander by. And every minute is exhilarating.

We've done that Alligator River stretch, Okeechobee (a candidate for sure) and much more. Yet for us, even being offshore out of sight of land in the Atlantic or the Great Lakes it's all so fresh, so free. Maybe we're just too new to be ranking geography in this amazing journey we love so much. . .

djmarchand said:

The Georgia ICW gets my vote for the most mindless, unscenic place to cruise. Miles and miles of salt grass as far as the eye can see, no civilization, and switchback after switchback which makes the trip twice as long.

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Our first time (of about 25 trips) down the ICW, after miles of switchbacks in the Georga grass my wife said, "Every now and then I look back and think I see our stern passing our bow!"

I still love every mile of the trip.

As I read thru these I realize my first post had an equal but shorter passage, Oyster Bay to Great Pt Hope in Mobile Bay. About 20 miles straight into a raging Norther with every other wave going over the bow. Got my most treasured compliment when I was tying up and two Commercial fishermen that had watched my ordeal as I rounded the bouy into the harbor thru binoculars came up and complemented me on my seamanship. That compliment was worth the 4 hours of hell.