ICW Norfolk to Beaufort

With the previous comments about the magenta line, I'd like to review its origin and purpose. The magenta line on the Atlantic ICW was first drawn in 1913. It was not meant as a chartplotter route. Chartplotters were not that accurate in 1913 I guess. It was intended just as a guideline. It showed you to enter to enter the Virginia Cut Canal, go through Currituck Sound into the North Carolina Cut, into North River to Albemarle Sound. Cross the Albemarle and enter the Alligator River, etc.

Unfortunately in recent years cruisers misunderstood its purpose and tried to drive the magenta line as if it were a route. So many got into trouble that NOAA removed the magenta line from many charts in 20113-2104. If you look carefully, you will find that the magenta line is missing from the latest edition of many NOAA charts, e.g 12204, 11547 and many others. It remains, in parts, on the ICW strip charts. In areas such as Browns Inlet and Mason Inlet, the magenta line is on the chart but it stops and is not drawn through the rapidly changing trouble spots. Further, if you look at the magenta line on the NOAA charts, it does not follow the exact same route as on the Garmin Charts or the Navionics charts. This has shown up several times in Active Captain comments where often people refer to the magenta line, not knowing that the Garmin line is not the same as in other charting systems. Bob423 and I are friends and collaborators on a variety of ICW projects, comments and routes. Recognizing that he is using the Garmin magenta line which is not necessarily the same as on other charting systems, he now is using navigation aid references rather than the magenta line.

For most of the AICW you probably could navigate without any charts, if you want to. There are plenty of navigation aids. If you decide to use chart as 99% of us do, it is important to have up to date charts in those areas around the inlets where the channel and the navigation aid placements change frequently. For those who believe that paper charts are the way to go, I will point out that there are 220 charts for the ICW charts between the Chesapeake and Key West. They are covered in two different USCG district NTMs. If you can keep the charts up to date without missing a single week of LNTMs, you are an animal!

For me, I use Coastal Explorer. It notifies me when there are NOAA chart updates . When I have good WiFi I download them. This activity on CE acts as a reminder to update my micro SD card of charts for the chartplotter. i run Navionics on my iPad. Navionics can be updated with just a couple of screen taps any time I want to update it. Have made many trips on the ICW with my own boat and on deliveries, and have not used a paper chart in years. For those of us using Garmin, they only update but twice a year. I do have Garminblue Charts on my iPad. I have many screen captures showing how out of date their charts can be; this was particularly evident heading south last year after hurricane Matthew. NOAA an Navionics were updated within a couple of weeks of the storm, showing the new buoy placement. The Garmin ICW charts were not updated until early 2017 .

The Magenta line was not meant to be used as a chartplotter route. If you use it as a route you will at some point run aground

"Best advice given me years ago was imagine how a tug and barge would do the turns, etc. They come through there daily."


Great advice as the tugs are powerful enough to "push mud" and clear their track with ease.

tadhana said:

The Magenta line was not meant to be used as a chartplotter route. If you use it as a route you will at some point run aground

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Yes and there was a fight back when the NOAA wanted to remove the magenta line. So, now, the NOAA is considering changing them entirely and actually making them match the channel and route. This is being called "the improved magenta line." Still don't depend too much on it, even when it is implemented.

https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/news/jan14/magenta-line.html

There was indeed a fight back. At the time I was the Managing Editor of Waterway Guide, and I was right in there with the others. Since then the line has been replaced in some areas. You will see it where it passes through some straight dredged canals in VA and NC, and where it crosses sounds in deep water, such as crossing the Albemarle and through the Alligator river. But all through SC, and GA, in places such as Dawho River, Ashapoo Coosaw Cutoff, Skull Creek, Calibouge Sound, Sapelo, Jekyll, Fernandina, etc. the line has not been replaced. These are the trickiest parts of the ICW. It does not reappear until you get to Pablo Creek, FL. Through SC and GA it will be very hard for someone sitting in an NOAA cartography office, to find a route that might be used as a chart plotter route. NOAA has no updated bathymetric data,for the ICW and the inlet transits are changing with nearly every major storm. The best we can hope or is that there will be some sort of a line which will wind through these areas to let mariners know which creeks and sounds are part of the ICW.

Ditto on the route to follow, but not the channel.

Some turns are not obvious at certain zoom settings and the magenta line helps there..

bigpoppop said:

Good morning- we need to head south towards Florida from the Chesapeake Bay in a week or so. We are considering making the trip from Norfolk to Beaufort in the ICW. Our single engine trawler has a 6'8" draft and 18' beam. I've read all of the notes for the various sections of the route on Active Captain and I've had experienced captains tell me it's "a nail biter but do-able". Anyone out there done it in a deep draft vessel? Any advice?

Many thanks!

Jeff

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Hi Jeff, we have the same boat and did it late last year in the reverse. It's doable, however pretty intense. When we head back south we will be traveling mostly off shore. It changes daily and you need to watch at almost every inlet area, especially the smaller inlets. We kept very detailed notes when we made the trip. Unfortunately I won't be back to the US until November, otherwise I would send them to you. And also I am sure there are changes on what we experienced.
Good luck and maybe your next trip we can join you.

Pay $18 for the Skipper Bob's Anchorage Guide. Then follow it page by page and you will be fine. As instructed, you will travel several areas at rising high tide. Which means you will have about five spots to lay up waiting for the next high tide. But don't be in a hurry and enjoy. We've done the trip 13 times. No problems when you follow the guide. Twice in one spot we followed the guides plotted route and sailed past a grounded vessel that was dead center in the ICW!

"Skipper Bob's Anchorage Guide"

Indisputably the simplest, best and cheapest ICW cruising guide.

If you are concerned with shallow spots, set your depth sounder alarm for a foot or two deeper than your draft and when the alarm sounds, slow down or stop and figure out what is going on. If you touch bottom at two knots you can back off.

Most of the AICW bottom is mud or sand, not rocks.

psneeld said:

Ditto on the route to follow, but not the channel.

Some turns are not obvious at certain zoom settings and the magenta line helps there..

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Exactly.

Pgitug said:

. As instructed, you will travel several areas at rising high tide. Which means you will have about five spots to lay up waiting for the next high tide.

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There are no spots between Norfolk and Beaufort where you need to do this. The only places I know where you need to do this is in GA.

Tom.B said:

There are no spots between Norfolk and Beaufort where you need to do this. The only places I know where you need to do this is in GA.

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There are some spots in SC where you have to be concerned about the depth, especially with a relatively deep draft boat.

Tom.B said:

There are no spots between Norfolk and Beaufort where you need to do this. The only places I know where you need to do this is in GA.

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Your correct that most are in Georgia. But these two need tidal consideration.

Mile 460 Ben Sawyer Bridge Channel
Ashepoo Coosaw Cutoff

If those two are bench marks, there are several others to include but not limited tide planning.... that challenge but dont alter my planning for my 4 foot draft.

Little Mud river near Darien, GA
Hell Gate south of Savannah
Dawho and Wadmalaw river junction SC
Probably the stretch from McClellanville to Isle of
Palms, SC.

If we are talking Beaufort SC, not NC, I would advise caution in the area of the Brown, Mason (not Masonboro) , lockwoods Folly and Shalotte inlets and the ICW, good idea to call your tow company's local provider or the USCG for the latest. Or use that Nordhavn and go outside at Beaufort NC.

My plan would be (if depths allow) to go to Beaufort NC by icw then outside down to Fort Lauderdale- thanks

With Hurricane Irma pointed towards the East Coast (I know to early to tell, but not too early for plans B through Z)..... may be a good time to hole up near Norfolk to see what happens.

Agree with that whole heartedly!!

Dawho Creek is between Chuck and Beaufort SC. It is getting pretty skinny. We draw 4.5 but now we plan to transit that spot on a rising tide.

Scary to see that ICW Cruise ship coming through there ....would love to be a fly on the wall of the bridge for that transit.