Average daily distance ...

What is the average daily distance those with costal cruisers cover before tying off or dropping the hook? We are usually pretty happy with stopping for the day ( assuming we can) after about 60 nm or less. We cruise at about 7-8 knots usually.

We cruise the PNW at 8 knots and usually do 4 to 6 hours - 32 to 48 mi in a day. Occasionally because of currents, weather, logistics, we cruise 8 to 10 hours - 64 to 80 mi. Once did a 14 hour day, Sullivan Bay, BC to Pender Harbor, BC - 112 miles because the water was flat calm the whole day and we had luck on our side and hit all the rapids at near slack and pretty much had the current with us most of the day too. Once in 35 years of cruising in two 8 knot trawlers.

With all the amenities of a pilothouse trawler, a long day is not a big deal. With the computer and autopilot steering the boat on preprogrammed routes, my wife and I take turns at the helm to watch for logs, kayaks other boats and enjoy the scenery.

The majority of the cruising examples above are in inside waters. Your mileage may vary - in the open ocean.

Most of the time where we are our typical weekend destination is <4 hours away. When we are going further afield, we can put in a 12 hour day. I love it, my wife not so much.

I prefer a 6 hour daily cruise at 6 knots but safe anchorages aren't overly plentiful along some parts of our coastline. Heading west, there is a 12 hour minimum run along the bottom the the Yorke Penisula.
Last time we cruised this area, the head wind and seas were worse than forecast, so it ended up a 16 hour trip, then trying to make our way into the safe anchorage in the dark with breaking waves and 30 knots of wind as we neared the coast. Not fun.
On a long run it's best to leave in the dark and arrive in daylight.

We cruise at 8.5 kts. We have a 5 year old and a 1 1/2 year old. We’ve done 8 hour days when we had to but it’s tough on my wife and the kids. We prefer less than 5. Wake up whenever everyone gets up, breakfast and showers. Get going mid morning when the toddler takes a nap (he sleeps great with the engines running!). Then we like to be dropping the anchor mid afternoon and fire up the grill.

If my destination is far, my preference is to go far outside & keep going. I've done two 11 day passages, either to avoid certain countries or because of a weather timeline. I think it was 3 days from the San Blas Islands (Panama) to Cartagena. These were primarily under sail, so typical runs were 100-150 miles per 24 hrs. Once I'm there, wherever there is, I like to stay local for a few weeks or months & soak up the atmosphere. Lost the engine once with zero wind on a passage north to Florida & had a VERY slow ride on the Gulf Stream. Made pizza, put on Jimmy Buffett & read novels until we caught a nasty headwind & managed to tack into Key West for haulout.

We run at 8.5 knots and typically go 6-7 hours, maybe less. There have been exceptions, of course. Had a 10.5 hour day recently because we swung wide into the Gulf of Mexico to avoid a storm. Once, we did a 100 mile day. With No Wake zones coming in and out, took us about 14+ hours. We were wiped out that night.

My wife is ready to stop after about 2 hours. We generally cruise at about 6 knots so that limits us to about 12 nm. Fortunately here in Maine there are a couple of dozen decent stopping points within that distance and many times that if I can coerce an other hour out of her, or convince her to let me run at 7 knots.

That's extremely variable for us, it all depends on where the next desired destination is. As short as an hour as long in one instance as a couple of days. And to some degree what time of year. We typically prefer not to run at night, so length of daylight is a factor sometimes. We cruised at 8 or 9 knots typically, on an extremely comfortable boat.

Occasionally we'll push to a destination but usually it's more of a time than distance thing. 90-100 miles in a day is pushing it, a more typical day for us is 50-70. If we can make a 2 day trip into a one day trip by running an extra couple of hours, we sometimes do that, but usually 6-7 hours is about max for a daily run.

Ken

I'm solo, cruise 7 knots and prefer an 8 hour day. That said, I prefer to anchor out and sometimes weather is an issue. Did a 22 hour day from Elisabeth city, NC to Crisfield, MD this spring to avoid sitting in Norfolk for 4 days. Did 26 hours crossing the Gulf from Panama city, FL to Tarpon springs, FL to avoid sitting a week or or so for the next weather window. Then there are those favorite anchorages you aim for, only to be confounded by currents, making it a long day. Recently the cruising day has gotten shorter as I have found to many places I want to stop and eat at, again.

Ted

I don't have an average.
We've done 12 hour days and we've done 10 minute days.

Somewhere around 8-10 hours at 8 knots and you are ready for something else.

Sometimes you have to go much longer, but the preference is shorter.

Imp said:

If my destination is far, my preference is to go far outside & keep going.

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I am the same. For long trips up/down the coast I preferred 20-25 miles offshore and running several days straight. I like being out on the open ocean. Coming across the occasional oil tanker or fishing boat keeps things interesting while not having the stress of coastal cruising. Plus I find pulling into numerous ports while traveling to be a hassle and big waste of time in/out.

Wifey B: Depends on boat so average in cruising boat is 5 hours/100 nm but varies widely from 2 hr/40 nm to 48 hr/800 nm.

Now on fun boat it's more like average of 3 hr./100 nm but varies from 1 hr/35 nm to 13 hr., 350 nm (with 1 hr for refueling included).




Oh, today from Morehead City to Myrtle Beach, beautiful seas of 2' @ 8 seconds so like glass almost, estimated is 8 hr/150 nm.

We are setup to run 24/7, but not very happy doing that on the ICW or inland water ways. Running by radar and AIS at night in crowded water ways is not all that fun. In offshore conditions it is OK, but now we are staying close to shore, and prefer to run 8 hour days. So we plan on 50 miles a day.

We do bluewater cruising with our 36' Nova sundeck which is not all that seakindly. Not too much pitch but she sure does roll. At 8.5 knots, four hours is our limit.

ksanders said:

Somewhere around 8-10 hours at 8 knots and you are ready for something else.



Sometimes you have to go much longer, but the preference is shorter.

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That sums it up for me. And when it’s shorter, it’s all good.

We’ve done marathon days, short days, and 24x7. If I could wave my
Magic wand, it would be short to medium days (4-6 hrs)

ancora said:

We do bluewater cruising with our 36' Nova sundeck which is not all that seakindly. Not too much pitch but she sure does roll. At 8.5 knots, four hours is our limit.

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And hence the need for some form of stabilization, otherwise it gets fatiguing. I was okay with my (unstabilized) bluewater boat's roll except in storm conditions. But with those loud Jimmies, and inadequate acoustic insulation, I really suffered from noise fatigue during weeklong trips. Perhaps 4 hours would have been better

The GMC 71 series have superchargers that can get VERY loud at any RPM.

I've read that Jimmies produce noise from multiple sources: the injectors (valve cover); the blower; the air intake; and exhaust.

I wonder if wrapping each of these components in heat resistant acoustic insulation (blankets, covers) would deaden the noise to reasonable levels?

twistedtree said:

That sums it up for me. And when it’s shorter, it’s all good.

We’ve done marathon days, short days, and 24x7. If I could wave my
Magic wand, it would be short to medium days (4-6 hrs)

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Then I have to ask out of curiosity, why a Nordhavn?

makobuilders said:

I've read that Jimmies produce noise from multiple sources: the injectors (valve cover); the blower; the air intake; and exhaust.

I wonder if wrapping each of these components in heat resistant acoustic insulation (blankets, covers) would deaden the noise to reasonable levels?

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The exhaust system you can wrap and then muffle, but I can't imagine how or why you'd do the others. We had a couple of 8V92TTI's on our Hatteras, each in it's own engine room (companionway to master SR ran in between, nice set up), and noise wasn't a big deal at all. Wearing ear protection headsets was advisable when doing ER checks underway, particularly at higher speeds.

We like about 50 miles/day when we're travelling. For us, after about 6 hours it stops being fun. Even less so for our dog. Sometimes though, duty calls and we did 90 miles from Hydaburg AK to Ketchikan last summer to get some help on a genset gremlin.

makobuilders said:

I am the same. For long trips up/down the coast I preferred 20-25 miles offshore and running several days straight. I like being out on the open ocean. Coming across the occasional oil tanker or fishing boat keeps things interesting while not having the stress of coastal cruising. Plus I find pulling into numerous ports while traveling to be a hassle and big waste of time in/out.

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Same here. On longer coastal passages with our septuagenarian crew of three, we run for around 80 hours with solo watches of 3 on/6 off during the day, and 2 on/4 off at night.

We could go longer, but 3 days is a reasonably forecastable weather window around here.

When I'm solo, 16 hrs is the absolute max, given good weather.

eagle419 said:

When I'm solo, 16 hrs is the absolute max, given good weather.

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When taking overnight trips solo, I wonder if it would be safest when taking an hour or two nap, to sit at idle, to run underway at low speed, or just continue at normal cruise speed?

Travel distances between destinations are far apart in SoCal. Probably one of the reasons boating is less popular here, than the PNW or East Coast. When heading north I like to travel through the night, and arrive first thing in the am. I enjoy the serenity of night travel and it helps avoid the wind which picks up like clock work around mid day. I run solo a decent amount, but always want someone else with me for overnight runs for safety reasons. When I worked on fishing boats as a kid, I was sleep deprived for the entire season. Pure exhaustion.

makobuilders said:

When taking overnight trips solo, I wonder if it would be safest when taking an hour or two nap, to sit at idle, to run underway at low speed, or just continue at normal cruise speed?

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IMHO it is very unsafe to take 'an hour or two nap' at anytime when underway solo, hence my absolute max of 16hrs in good weather.

BandB said:

Wifey B: Depends on boat so average in cruising boat is 5 hours/100 nm but varies widely from 2 hr/40 nm to 48 hr/800 nm.

Now on fun boat it's more like average of 3 hr./100 nm but varies from 1 hr/35 nm to 13 hr., 350 nm (with 1 hr for refueling included).




Oh, today from Morehead City to Myrtle Beach, beautiful seas of 2' @ 8 seconds so like glass almost, estimated is 8 hr/150 nm.

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Stop that. You making me regret building a slow boat. :lol:

I've used Detroits and many other diesels for about 60 years. With a proper air silencer and the usual yacht soundproofing, I don't find them much noisier than other brands. Being 2 cycles, they fire every revolution, but give more power for a smaller footprint.
Most people never check their air silencers, that some think are air filters, and use them until the cotton wadding is matted with oil vapor and debris, and no longer provide a noise absorbing surface. I suppose the rockers, lifters and injectors make noise, but I don't know how you'd hear it over the sound of ignition. Lead sheeting in the engine room and foam on the outside is the way to quiet them. I can hold a normal conversation in my salon, directly over the twin Detroits running at maximum continuous rpm. And I don't hear well, but not caused by diesels.
I travel the PNW and Alaska. I manage my speed, departure and arrivals based on the tides and optimal bar crossings. Otherwise I run at 10 knots between anchorages I like. Uncrowded and scenic. Daily runs are usually between 5 to 15 hours. In log areas, I try to run in daylight. I don't sleep while running unless someone I trust is on watch. If necessary I shutdown, drift, and set the radar alarm to wake for any close ships or boats.