Outside route from Hilton Head to Florida

[CaptainBW]

We are getting ready to do the run from Hilton Head to Florida via the Atlantic. Never did this before. What routes work? How far off shore is best? How long does it typically take? General advice???

Thanks!

[skipmac]

Not much routing to it. Personal preference if you want to save a few miles but be farther offshore then leave SC and head towards FL. If you like being closer in so it's easier to stop if you decide then hug the coast.

Around Palm Beach the Gulf Stream is close in so hug the coast.

How long will it take? Well the simple answer is distance divided by boat speed modified by weather conditions. This time of year the fronts are starting to blast in from the north so you should keep a close watch on the weather. Might be a good reason to follow the coast instead of cutting straight across. You do not want to be in the Gulf Stream when a norther hits.

[ka4wja]

Bill,
As Skip has pointed out, it's pretty straight forward...

Originally Posted by CaptainBW

We are getting ready to do the run from Hilton Head to Florida via the Atlantic. Never did this before. What routes work? How far off shore is best? How long does it typically take? General advice???

1) In general you want to be far enough offshore that you avoid "day-sailors" and misc. coastal traffic....BUT, not so far off that you end up bucking the Gulf Stream...

2) For Hilton Head / Savannah areas....head out, roughly SE, a half dozen miles or so, until you're in 40' - 50' of clear water, and head South...(Just about Due South, for about 175 nm)
Head south, staying in about 40' - 50' of water, until you're about 10 - 15 miles east of Daytona Beach / Ponce Inlet...

Then head a bit SSE, for a point about 3 miles off Cape Canaveral.....
Then turn a bit, and head for a point about 3 miles off Ft. Pierce Inlet....
You'll start to get into water a bit shallower...as you get farther along this route...but saying 2 - 3 miles off will keep you clear of shoals/shallow water...

Once you get near Vero Beach / Ft. Pierce areas, the Gulf Stream gets pretty close to the coast, and as you get to Jupiter and West Pam Beach (Lake Worth Inlet), and Ft. Lauderdale (Port Everglades), you will need to hug the coast quite close (about 1 mile off, at most) in order to avoid adverse current....(if you get out too far, you'll be bucking the Stream...)

Remember the main axis of the Stream along the S. FL coast, is typically 20 - 25 miles wide....and the actual "walls" are farther away than that...so best to hug the coast by the time you're nearing 27* N...


Here are the Gulf Stream locations, from earlier this week....(updated every few days, and broadcast 24/7 on NOAA Weather Radio...)

THE APPROXIMATE LOCATION OF THE WEST WALL OF THE GULF STREAM BASED ON THE REAL TIME OCEAN FORECAST SYSTEM FROM MONDAY NOVEMBER 3RD.
43 NAUTICAL MILES EAST OF PONCE INLET.
29 NAUTICAL MILES EAST OF PORT CANAVERAL.
25 NAUTICAL MILES EAST OF SEBASTIAN INLET.
15 NAUTICAL MILES EAST OF FORT PIERCE INLET.
10 NAUTICAL MILES EAST OF SAINT LUCIE INLET.
6 NAUTICAL MILES NORTH NORTHEAST OF JUPITER INLET.
5 NAUTICAL MILES NORTHEAST OF LAKE WORTH.
5 NAUTICAL MILES EAST SOUTHEAST OF PORT EVERGLADES.
5 NAUTICAL MILES SOUTH SOUTHEAST OF FOWEY ROCKS.

I have seen it as close as 1 mile off Fowey, Port Everglades, and Lake Worth....and as close as 2.5 miles off Jupiter and St. Lucie, and 3 miles off Ft. Pierce....
And, as far off as 12 miles off Port Evergaldes, 10 miles off Lake worth and Jupiter, etc...

So, it DOES move around quite a bit....

As for decent ports/inlets....if you're inexperienced, stay with the bigger/commercial ports/inlets (such as Ft. Pierce, Lake Worth, Port Everglades, etc...)

Be aware that recent dredging has made the St. Lucie Inlet very nice and easy (but still, like many of the smaller inlets, not advisable at night without local knowledge/experience...)


I hope this helps...

Fair winds...

John
s/v Annie Laurie

[CaptainBW]

You all rock! Thanks for the information!

[skipmac]

Hi Bill,

Just did a quick look a the weather and looks pretty good for the next few days so if you're heading south soon this might be a good time. There is a strong front coming but so far doesn't look like it will hit the SE coast for several days if at all.

DISCLAIMER. Check local conditions and forecasts yourself carefully before departing to confirm this.

And to kind of reiterate, if you want you can cut off the big bend into the GA coast to save some distance but as you get further south the Gulf Stream is closer to the coast. If you look at the data posted by John you can see how close in it gets when you reach south FL. Even if you don't have a north wind against the current making for rough conditions you would be fighting 1-2 kts pushing you in the wrong direction.

Safe sailing.

[CaptainBW]

Looks like we need to come it to Jacksonville for business reasons. How would that affect the route you outlined John? Seems like it might be best to stay closer to shore???

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by CaptainBW

Looks like we need to come it to Jacksonville for business reasons. How would that affect the route you outlined John? Seems like it might be best to stay closer to shore???

From Hilton Head to Jacksonville the rhumb line course would take you close to the coast. However, several spots on the GA coast, usually south of where a sound opens out to the ocean, there are shoals that extend a few miles offshore.

You can follow the coast but not too closely. Check your charts and make sure you keep in deep water. Also there are a few unlighted buoys offshore along along this route that you need to watch for. Would be very unlikely to hit one but they're not small and if the night is dark it could happen.

[jstevens]

CaptBW,
My recommendation would be to sail the rhumb line from the sea bouy off the Port Royal Sound Channel direct to the Sea Bouy off the St. John River. That will keep you well west of the GS.
Are you going all the way up the St. John to Jacksonville? If so you may want to time the current in the St. John. The ebb off Mayport can exceed 3 kts. If you can catch the flood you should be able to get to JAX in less than 4 hours.
Again if you are going to JAX be aware that the FECRR bridge across the St. John just above downtown JAX is undergoing repairs and has a very limited opening schedule for the next few weeks.

[cheoah]

Originally Posted by skipmac

You can follow the coast but not too closely. Check your charts and make sure you keep in deep water. Also there are a few unlighted buoys offshore along along this route that you need to watch for. Would be very unlikely to hit one but they're not small and if the night is dark it could happen.

It's an important point. Never navigate directly to these buoys with your chartplotter. Particularly at night. Unlikely collision, but very possible if you were to put dutiful crew at the helm.

Not sure if it's been said, but be careful at the inlets. Depending on conditions, sometimes the right thing to,do is kill time along the way,or lie offshore, even though the inclination is to rush to tie up,or drop the hook. Just be careful in contrary current and wind. It can seem perfectly moderate inside or out, but some inlets will take you for a ride.

We are careful to,batten things down from the time we weigh anchor to go,offshore, to the time we drop anchor again, just to avoid things getting tossed.

Have a great time. Lovely time to be on the water down there.


Sent from my iSomething using tapatalk

[CaptainBW]

Thanks everyone for the feedback!

[CaptainBW]

We had an unexpected delay in our departure from Port Royal and we will be leaving after the first weather window in the 2nd week of December. In looking more closely at the charts I noticed quite a few fish haven areas round the St Marys and St John river inlets. Are these problematic enough to keep further out? Are the nets deep enough not to worry about them?

First time for us in these areas so trying to gauge the possible obstructions.

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by CaptainBW

We had an unexpected delay in our departure from Port Royal and we will be leaving after the first weather window in the 2nd week of December. In looking more closely at the charts I noticed quite a few fish haven areas round the St Marys and St John river inlets. Are these problematic enough to keep further out? Are the nets deep enough not to worry about them?

First time for us in these areas so trying to gauge the possible obstructions.

I always avoided them so not certain but I think they are deep enough to sail over. What worried me the most were the unlit buoys.

[jstevens]

Like Skipmac I also avoid these areas or cautiously cross them in daylight. I don't really know what structure (other than the charted buoys) are associated with the Fish Havens, as I've never seen anything on the surface or on the depth sounder when transiting them.
Still best give them some respect.

John

[skipmac]

OK, figured I should learn something about fish havens other than they are areas I always avoided on principal.

Had (incorrectly it seems) assumed they had something to do with commercial fish farming or something like that. Duh!

Instead they are a kind of artificial reef which might contain old car bodies, concrete, construction debris or whatever to create a habitat or a haven for fish. The main obstruction would be for commercial fishermen dragging nets that could be hung up on the stuff on the bottom.

From what I can tell there should be adequate water in a fish haven for sailboats safely pass over with plenty of room and then some.

[ka4wja]

Sorry, I've been away from this discussion....
Skip, you are 100% correct...
And, on my charts (US NOAA and DMA charts), the authorized minimum depth of each haven is listed on the chart....and is typically only 1 - 2 fathoms above the sea bed in that area...although artificial reefs constructed from scraped ships can be higher...

Originally Posted by skipmac

Instead they are a kind of artificial reef which might contain old car bodies, concrete, construction debris or whatever to create a habitat or a haven for fish. The main obstruction would be for commercial fishermen dragging nets that could be hung up on the stuff on the bottom.

From what I can tell there should be adequate water in a fish haven for sailboats safely pass over with plenty of room and then some.

But...

But, there is a minor reason to avoid some of these areas....and that is, during nice weather many of these havens attack pleasure-boat fisherman who are more concerned with their fishfinders and rod/reels/bait, etc. than they are in keeping watch for other boats....
So, while the "depth" is of little concern sometimes other boats on/near these fish havens might give reason to avoid...

Fair winds...

John
s/v Annie Laurie