Where is south enough

[Jule]

I searched before posting this to avoid a repeat question, but couldn't find anything related. Does anyone know how far south would I need to take my trawler to avoid having to haul it out on the hard for the winter? (In other words, to be able to keep it in the water for the winter.) I'm on the northern Mississippi up in Minnesota, well above the Illinois River connection north of St. Louis.

 

[Circumnavigator]

The answer will be different on salt and fresh water, but, for what it's worth to you, we lived aboard Fintry in Boston Harbor for seven years with about 35 other live-aboard boats. Most of them had shrink wrap, but not all.


Jim

 

[Nomad Willy]

Juneau would be fine.
Most skippers leave their boat in the water.
One great advantage there is that the sea water is quite a bit warmer than the air so keeping things from freezing in the boat is rather easy. I used a thermostatically controlled 750 watt 110v heater.

Tie your boat securely to float w plenty of fenders.
Expect numerous gales w winds about max 60 knots.

 

[psneeld]

It's a hike from the Mississippi to Alaska.

 

[Jeff F]

For you it's Paducah, Memphis, or pretty much anywhere on the Tennessee River.

ETA: Grafton is open all winter as well.

 

[Hippocampus]

People wet store without winterizing in SC and no bubblers. From NC up if not in active use fresh water systems will need antifreeze or to be completely drained and blown dry. Bubblers aren’t usually needed for NC but maybe required at time from what I’m told. Bubblers or other mechanism to prevent ice damage seems definitely required required from NJ on up. Chesapeake can also get quite cold and ice up. Seems SC is the line where you can safely not worry about winterizing.

 

[psneeld]

Jule - are you planning to stay in the Mississippi Valley/tributaries?

I would guess different climate than coastal SE if just going by latitude, especially water temps.

 

[sunchaser]

Just west of St Louis is St Charles. There are several nice marinas where boats are in the water year around. We kept a boat at Woodland Marina. The St Louis Yacht Club is good too. Our vessel was a 36' wooden Trojan with no bubblers with covered slips so no rain or snow on boat. We did winterize the vessel though.

 

[High Wire]

Just a couple years ago, Texas had a hard freeze that caused major damage. Every year is different.

 

[psneeld]

Heck.... I was off Nome, AK one February in 1984 and talking to my wife in Mobile, AL. It had been colder there for a couple days than it was where I was in the Arctic ice pack.

She reported a frenzy at Home depot and hardware stores being overrun by customers buying up PVC plumbing supplies.... even the city fountains were freezing up.

West of the Appalachians and down to the Gulf Coast can get a bit colder than the SE Atlantic coast...more importantly the cold snaps seem to last long enough to cause more issues.

 

[Jule]

Thanks for all of the helpful information. We will eventually be looping on the boat but for now, we're deciding between winterizing and land storing it in MN until Spring splash or moving it south for the winter.

 

[Action]

When I grow up I want to move to an area like that.

The restrictions are
Far enough South that 98% of the time water will never turn solid
Far enough North that 98% of the time named events do not venture
Not on the Atlantic coast
And on navigable water

Action

 

[psneeld]

The beauty of living aboard...go where it's best.

 

[Gulf Comanche]

Anywhere on the Gulf Coast. I'm in Aransas Pass, Texas now. 16 years in Louisiana on the Tickfaw River, fresh water, no barnacles, about a 3hour sail to New Orleans across Lake Pontchartrain. The gulf ICW goes thru there.

 

[PPandE]

No freeze and no hurricanes…
Roatan

 

[Action]

Mitch

 

[Shrew]

When I grow up I want to move to an area like that.

The restrictions are
Far enough South that 98% of the time water will never turn solid
Far enough North that 98% of the time named events do not venture
Not on the Atlantic coast
And on navigable water

Action

San Diego, LA, San Francisco

 

[Bellakins]

I'd say NC. We leave our boat in the water, although my husband winterizes it. We live right off the ICW about halfway down NC.

 

[rgano]

Heck.... I was off Nome, AK one February in 1984 and talking to my wife in Mobile, AL. It had been colder there for a couple days than it was where I was in the Arctic ice pack.

She reported a frenzy at Home depot and hardware stores being overrun by customers buying up PVC plumbing supplies.... even the city fountains were freezing up.

West of the Appalachians and down to the Gulf Coast can get a bit colder than the SE Atlantic coast...more importantly the cold snaps seem to last long enough to cause more issues.

I was in Pascagoula that same Feb as the recommissioning Weapons Office of US Iowa, and the yard got closed due to the freezing conditions that broke some water mains leaving a sheet of ice on the roadway to the ship. Nearl all the palms in the area died.

In answering Jule's question, I would first ask if the boat in question is being lived on. You can be a whole lot farther north in a constantly tended and heated boat than the opposite.

 

[MOJO]

It's simple. When you no longer see these signs on the highway, you're far enough south!

 

[henrymei]

https://www.boatus.com/expert-advic...e like most,damage claims as frigid Minnesota.

 

[Pete Meisinger]

There is a difference between just leaving your boat in the water all winter and actually using it all winter. Memphis would do for beating the freezing but memphis winters are bleak, rains all winter. Go further south.

pete

 

[jgtrucking]

For you it's Paducah, Memphis, or pretty much anywhere on the Tennessee River.

ETA: Grafton is open all winter as well.

Grafton may be open, but still using an ice eater... Even here on the TN river at I40, many winterize and some use ice eaters. It's not every year we freeze, and if we do it's only for a couple days... but it happens.

 

[LargeMarge]

Brazil.

 

[jgtrucking]

Anywhere on the Gulf Coast. I'm in Aransas Pass, Texas now. 16 years in Louisiana on the Tickfaw River, fresh water, no barnacles, about a 3hour sail to New Orleans across Lake Pontchartrain. The gulf ICW goes thru there.

I have some friends here that swear by the Tickfaw River... Looks like a beautiful place... if only there was some reasonable property on that river

 

[Hippocampus]

Brazil.

Getting to Brazil by recreational boat is extremely difficult. There’s a strong current going against you when coming from the north. It would be much like going south inside the Gulf Stream. Also northern Brazil sees active weather at times.

 

[Bmarler]

When I grow up I want to move to an area like that.

The restrictions are
Far enough South that 98% of the time water will never turn solid
Far enough North that 98% of the time named events do not venture
Not on the Atlantic coast
And on navigable water

Action

Try Puget sound. No named storms, only seen ice around the boat twice in the last thirty years, and that was a very thin layer.
Plenty of rain in the winter though, some folks can’t handle that.
Endless number of places to visit here.

 

[Action]

I lived in and around the Puget Sound for 12 years.
Not going back.

And not going to any of the West Coast states.

The area that fits is on of the lakes on the Eastern Tenessee River.
Fresh water with salt water access.
I can buy a water front home for a reasonable price.
South enough, freezing is rare.
North enough to be mostly out of the way of a named storm.
Lower cost of living.
Smaller state government.

The restricting factor is location of children. (None have kids yet)
One is in Michigan and the other two are in AZ. The youngest is at ASU. Where she goes at graduation is unknown.

 

[motion30]

Palmbeach

 

[Action]

Not sure if Palmdale is directed at me. (The OP lives in Minnesota!)

Palmdale does not work for me based on a whole host of bad actors.
Sandy
Florence
Barry
Wilma
Ida
Bertha
Katrina

Likely I have missed some. One in 10 years is too many.