Cruising the ICW east coast

Because I'm still working, our time on the boat is limited to weekend excursions to a local marina, and, if the seas are calm enough, out to the reef for a little snorkeling/diving/swimming enjoying the ocean.

I've got a vacation coming up and would like to head north from Ft. Lauderdale up the ICW at a pace similar to my ultimate travel plans of getting up north for the summer and back down here to FL in the winter (the reverse snow bird syndrome).

My question is this: what's the "average" distance/time traveled on a daily basis when making the trek north or south? This trip i'd like to try to mimic that time table. No criteria on where to get to. Trying to make getting there the experience.

Boat is a Meridian 411 that can travel as fast as 20+ MPH, but our plan is to keep it down to the <10 MPH (Trawler speed).

As always, any info would be appreciated.

It is likely that you will cruise slowly the first or second time you do it, then afterwards, unfortunately, you will feel you have been that way before and rush through it!

We have been running Jax to West Palm near annually since 2001. Because our aim is the islands we want to get there soonest to maximise our time there so we usually run around ten hour days. So that is around 80-100 miles.

We went to the Chesapeake two years ago and, similarly, our aim was the bay. So we kinda rushed there and back. We had already "done" between here and Charleston before anyways. See below for an idea.

http://atanchor.com/chesapeake-the-outside-run-with-a-ton-of-fun-along-the-way/

The first couple of times you do it I wouldn't worry too much about daily distances. I would lay out what towns and anchorages you want to see, then plan your day as long and short as needed. Stopping at some on the way up and leap-frogging to others on the way back.

There are many parts of the ICW where you can’t go fast, then there are of course bridges to have opened. If you’re in a hurry you can do long days and push it and we sometimes do that too, but it can be exhausting and hard to sustain if you’re going a long distance like say 1000 miles of ICW. We like to stop at interesting places and see what they have to offer, get off the boat, walk, bike, sightsee etc. Then of course there are weather considerations. When we become snowbirds and start doing our annual 1700 miles to Fort Myers we expect 50-60 mile days on average.

Ken

Ultimately it is about what you like.

It's easy to calculate how far the boat will go, but what do you want to see along the way?

It's also about stopping for the night...what marina or anchorage do you want to see, or even is available?

30 to 50 miles was my usual after about 25000 miles back and forth between NJ and Florida....based on a 6 knot boat and what I wanted to see.

To answer your question about how far to travel everyday, based on personal experience on the AICW, and from what I've seen others who ply those waters frequently, thirty to fifty miles a day seem normal.

As has been noted above, there are many factors - speed restrictions in channel, weekday vs. weekend, 'tightness'/'shoaliness' of the area, and weather are some of the major ones I look at when doing voyage planning - that affect how far you go everyday. I typically don't strive for 'mileage' but look more towards time underway each day. We don't like to get up early, but can 'get moving' fairly quick after we're up. We always strive to be moored/anchored at least an hour and a half before sunset.

If you're a FaceBook sort of person, I think you'll find Bob Sherer's ICW site full of information, and lots of answers to any questions you might have. The members are a well behaved group ranging in experience from delivery captains who have been up and down the AICW for over fifty years to the guy/gal who just splashed their first boat this week and are ready to start their adventure.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/ICWCruisingGuide/

We used the 1 hour in a car is 1 day on the boat for rough estimates

After 12 trips up and back from CT to FL we pretty much averaged 60 miles per day. Normally we anchor for the night well before dusk. Marinas only if we need fuel or want to stay and sightsee for a day or two and visit family or friends along the way.

At a 7 knot cruise, <50 miles or so per day works well. Some areas may require more or less depending on chosen anchorages / marinas, tidal water depths, and weather.

While I have lots of favorites that I try to stop at each time, finding new places to explore on each subsequent trip keeps the trips from becoming boring. There are also a great many places that deserve a days deviation. As an example, you go by Jacksonville, but taking a day or 2 to explore the St. Johns river is well worth the effort and a nice break from the AICW.

I like to think of my trips as cruises between evening points of interest.

Ted

If we’re going into a destination town then the preceding day can be long so that the next day run is short to arrive around noon. Remember winter daylight hours are short. The number of miles is secondary to being positioned for your plans.

A lot of good advice given so far. The points about determining what your destination objectives are, are all very well taken. Everything pretty much flow from there. For the first leg or two of that trip, bridge opening schedules will call the tune more than anything else. After your first trip up and back, you may very well understand why repeat voyagers go outside for as much as possible, the "been there, done that" syndrome.

Get a Waterway Guide for starters, study the Cruiser's Net website, and most importantly determine what you want to accomplish. Even going inside, a schedule can be the worst thing to have on a boat.

Sealife said:

We used the 1 hour in a car is 1 day on the boat for rough estimates

Click to expand...

Same here. 40 miles short day 80 for a full day.

Captankirk said:

My question is this: what's the "average" distance/time traveled on a daily basis when making the trek north or south? This trip i'd like to try to mimic that time table. No criteria on where to get to. Trying to make getting there the experience.

Boat is a Meridian 411 that can travel as fast as 20+ MPH, but our plan is to keep it down to the <10 MPH (Trawler speed).

Click to expand...

We usually averaged somewhere between 35-60 NM per day, often at 7-8 kts when possible, sometimes at 20 kts when called for. Most of our legs were based on interim "destinations" along the way.

We haven't always traveled every day on these trips; sometimes those interim destinations kept our attention for a while... and then sometimes weather has held us down. Or sometimes we'd insert a lay day (or two, or three) just because we could.

-Chris

Adding to the rule

Sealife said:

We used the 1 hour in a car is 1 day on the boat for rough estimates

Click to expand...

1 hour in a commercial jet = 1 day in a car

Cruising the ACIW should be approached like General Eisenhower thought or repeated....

" Plans are worthless, but planning is everything. '

Knowing whats ahead in detail let's you adjust to all the factors that will by default change the amount of miles you do each day....and enjoy the flexibility.

We like to do about 5 hours a day but some days can be as much as 10 to 12 if circumstances require. We run about 9 knots.

We cruise at about seven knots normally, but the ICW in FL has many speed limits and manatee zones as well as bridges on a restricted schedule.

We typically travel 30 to 50 miles in one day or four to seven hours. This is mostly based on where we want to stop for the night.

You will be returning the same way you came so you might try what we do and skip some towns on first leg of the trip and stop there on the return leg.

I go by hours, not necessarily boat speed. An hour or two at the locks or at a tourist stop still equals an hour or two. Doesn't matter if you are doing "miles over the bottom" or just sitting.

Eight hours is generally considered to be a lot. We hardly ever plan on more than that on the water.

pete

If you guys want to travel hundreds of miles, why not go into the open ocean, get offshore a bit, set the auto pilot, maintain a careful watch, but run 24/7. On the pacific side, we don't have anything like an intercoastal, so from my perspective, it sounds like the difference between taking surface streets and putting up with traffic and stop lights (bridges), rather than getting on the freeway and setting the cruise control (though our freeways have gotten plenty congested anywhere within about 100 miles of a population center).

Wifey B: I highly recommend a game of leap frog cruising and fairly aggressive days of travel sandwiched around great days exploring sites ashore.

Now I 'splain: I'd go through and select all the towns I'd like to see along the coast, all the places I'd like to stop. Then decide what is a comfy day. 8 hours of cruising perhaps or maybe 10? So pick stops that match that. Go offshore when it helps you. But don't try to pick up all the stops. Leave some for the trip back and some for next time. Going north maybe you hit Hilton Head for a day, but coming back maybe it's Savannah. Going north maybe you explore the Chesapeake for a few days but coming back maybe stay outside and bypass it.

And just enjoy. There's no hurry. What if you don't get as far as you hoped the first time? That just means you had more fun at the places you made.

We are cruising on the ICW right now and find that 6-7 hours a day is good. For our little boat that means about 36-42 miles a day. If we need to get someplace faster, we travel more days, start earlier in the morning, otherwise we are here for the JOURNEY not the destination.