Intercoastal

[Advocate777]

Looking for any info (web sites, favored guides, etc.) for those of you who have taken the Intercoastal Waterway from the Chesapeake to No Name Harbor in Key Biscayne, Florida.
Have been researching but would like to hear from those who have actually done it what guides, books, web sites, etc., you could recommend to me to learn about the route, where I should go outside (like in Beuafort) and why, where is good to come back inside in Florida and why; you know- any general input or recommended reading material would be great.
Also, I know the North Carolina stretch has a part of it (Pamlico) that can be a bit rough, is there a month that is better to go through N.C., weather-wise? Like, is November better than December, or even January?
Thanks, am planning a trip and want to get all my info-

[imagine2frolic]

Captain Active covers all that......i2f

[b40Ibis]

Intracoastal

[b40Ibis]

The intracoastal between nc and fla is day by day thing, as in weather, choose your days man, chill in Charleston or in beuuuufart SC, and bowwwfert NC. Of course there is h-caine season till Nov, but they are easy to dodge. If you are in a hurry go outside. Come in when you need to.

Cruz on brother >

[ebs001]

For printed material, I like Skipper Bob books, Anchorages Along the ICW and Marinas Along the ICW. For paper charts the Maptech strip charts are great. I would use both in conjuction with the Active Captain but if I could only have one I would take the Skipper Bob books.and paper charts. Skipper Bob Books are avilable here: Home | Skipper Bob Cruising Guides and Maptech charts are avialable at Westmarine and other chanderies.

[Advocate777]

thanks for the replies:

ebsoo1 - thank you gonna look up skipper books now - perfect

b40ibis - sounds good - thanks for the reply

do you both like to go outside at beaufort or is there any reason, other than weather- to stay in the ditch - i hear Georgia sucks

but is the outside passages day sails for a young sailor or is it heavy-duty offshore work? I mean, I have cruised a few miles off the coast but not 20 miles. Is the area between beaufort and where you come in again in Jacksonville considered heavy sailing in December?

[PorFin]

Originally Posted by Advocate777

thanks for the replies:

ebsoo1 - thank you gonna look up skipper books now - perfect

b40ibis - sounds good - thanks for the reply

do you both like to go outside at beaufort or is there any reason, other than weather- to stay in the ditch - i hear Georgia sucks

but is the outside passages day sails for a young sailor or is it heavy-duty offshore work? I mean, I have cruised a few miles off the coast but not 20 miles. Is the area between beaufort and where you come in again in Jacksonville considered heavy sailing in December?

Getting out of sight of land is a little unnerving at first, but you gotta do it sometime, right? Same thing with sailing at night; sailing around large commercial vessels, etc, etc.

As with any sail, you gotta pick your weather windows carefully and do your passage planning ahead of time. If you aren't in a hurry, you can wait for favorable wx for offshore and near-offshore jaunts. Alternatively, if wx sucks you can motor the ditch.

You haven't mentioned it here yet, but your vessel capabilities may drive your route selection. You'll need to assess how well your vessel motors against head currents -- and time your entry/exit at some inlets accordingly.

Draft over 5'? There will be places in the ditch you'll need to watch out for and possibly bypass. When we came up last (summer 2010) there was serious shoaling just south of St Augustine (we crept thru on a full high tide), and between Brunswick, GA and St Mary's (we decided to hop outside from Cumberland Isl to Brunswick.) Shoaling is a fact of life, and problem areas change from season to season (or even week to week) so it'll pay off to stay current.

The cruising guides will help a great deal, but you'll need to balance that info against what you know of the capabilites of your vessel and your crew.

OBTW: Regardless of vessel & crew capabilities and limitations, don't take the ditch between Ft Lauderdale and Miami unless you really REALLY like negotiating bascule bridges.

[creedence623]

Hey Advocate,

I did this trip a little over a year ago from Hampton, VA to FL, and all I can say is don't worry too much about it. Spend time planning, but really it's very do-able. I spent the night before the trip in Norfolk and headed out early the next morning (around 4 am). I made it to Beufort, NC 4 days later. It was a great 4 days, I did that part solo.

A friend met me in Beufort (pretty cool little town by the way) and we went offshore. I was sailing down because I was moving to Florida so I was unable to pick my timing like you are. I ended up going in July and passed everyone as they were heading back up north. In any case we spent about 80% of our time under power or just ghosting along with a 5 knot breeze. There was one night where it kicked up to about 35 knots, but even that was managable.

I didn't see too many places to pull in for the night once south of Beufort. I'm in my office right now, so I can't really pull up any charts right now, but I'm sure there will be someone along shortly to correct me if there are inlets south of Beufort. I ended up pulling in to Charleston after 3 or 4 days.

It was pretty light offshore work, and it was a great trip. You didn't mention what boat you are going in, but I would think a reasonably well maintained, moderately sized coastal cruiser would have no problem with this trip.

Feel free to PM me if you need any more information.

Good luck, and most of all, have fun with it.




oh yeah, and as mentioned above: www.activecaptain.com is a GREAT resource

[LarryandSusanMacDonald]

We've traveled the ICW 10 times and offer our experience on our Frugal Mariner website.

Pay particular attention to the advice on how NOT to run aground.

Have fun. Take your time and see the sights - while staying ahead of the weather. It's not fun pulling up anchor with ice on the deck. A complete enclosure REALLY HELPS!

[JonEisberg]

Here's my take on it... Written a few years ago, some information is out-dated, the Oregon Inlet route is not an option I'd suggest for the foreseeable future, for example...

An Insider's ICW | Cruising World

Caliborne Young's website is a terrific resource, and probably the best source for the latest conditions on the ICW and trip south...

Cruiser's Net

Enjoy, it's a fantastic trip...