ICW...stop and then go situation

[LauraleeG]

Hey All.
I know about the Great Loop sites and all the info out there for those making the journey. I am not unique, I get that.
We are planning to do the trip too, from Oswego to Erie Canal etc etc. Ending in the Keys.
We cant do the trip all in one go, so we want to go, then leave the boat then go again. I am sure we are not unique in that regard either...so anyone know anything about doing it that way?
Backstory:
I dont want to haul out each time, obviously.
We will be doing it over the course of 6 months or so.
Each time we are moving south, we will be doing so for about 3 weeks at a time.
We will be leaving her for about 3 weeks at a time too.
Plan is to start moving May, arriving south late fall. Yes...aware of hurricane season ...bad idea?? We also talked about leaving late fall, moving south for the winter...better idea?
We want to enjoy the adventure not rush through the journey..
Comments?

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by LauraleeG

Hey All.
I know about the Great Loop sites and all the info out there for those making the journey. I am not unique, I get that.
We are planning to do the trip too, from Oswego to Erie Canal etc etc. Ending in the Keys.
We cant do the trip all in one go, so we want to go, then leave the boat then go again. I am sure we are not unique in that regard either...so anyone know anything about doing it that way?
Backstory:
I dont want to haul out each time, obviously.
We will be doing it over the course of 6 months or so.
Each time we are moving south, we will be doing so for about 3 weeks at a time.
We will be leaving her for about 3 weeks at a time too.
Plan is to start moving May, arriving south late fall. Yes...aware of hurricane season ...bad idea?? We also talked about leaving late fall, moving south for the winter...better idea?
We want to enjoy the adventure not rush through the journey..
Comments?

Easy to do. There are literally hundreds of marinas up and down the US east coast. Just takes a little planning, call ahead to confirm space and price and leave your boat at the marina until you're ready for the next leg.


Good places for info on this waterwayguide.com and activecaptain.com

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by LauraleeG

We will be doing it over the course of 6 months or so.
Each time we are moving south, we will be doing so for about 3 weeks at a time.
We will be leaving her for about 3 weeks at a time too.
Plan is to start moving May, arriving south late fall. Yes...aware of hurricane season ...bad idea?? We also talked about leaving late fall, moving south for the winter...better idea?
We want to enjoy the adventure not rush through the journey..

Easy to do, good idea to stop and smell the coffee along the way.

Our insurance carrier doesn't want us to go south of the FL/GA line before 1 Nov.

Hurricanes can be anywhere along the coast, so you DO want to have a plan in case one comes up... either while you're onboard or when youre not. The plan could be as simple as having an agreement with "that marina" (wherever the boat is) to haul you out for that event, etc. Might be a useful point to consider when you're targeting candidate leave-the-boat marinas.

-Chris

[Lodesman]

Originally Posted by LauraleeG

We will be doing it over the course of 6 months or so.
Each time we are moving south, we will be doing so for about 3 weeks at a time.
We will be leaving her for about 3 weeks at a time too.
Plan is to start moving May, arriving south late fall. Yes...aware of hurricane season ...bad idea?? We also talked about leaving late fall, moving south for the winter...better idea?
We want to enjoy the adventure not rush through the journey..
Comments?

Curious about the motivation for parsing the trip into 3-week sessions? There's also the logistical hurdle of getting to and from Canada from each place you stop (assuming that's your intention) - are you planning to have someone follow you in a car?

For the option, you won't be able to start too late in the fall, as the Erie Canal system does close for the season. If you start earlier in the fall, the weather is more enjoyable and there's still life in the towns you'll be stopping at. If you time it right you can hit the magic hurricane line (usually GA/FL border) at the magic date (usually around Nov 1) to avoid insurance issues.

[LauraleeG]

Originally Posted by Lodesman

Curious about the motivation for parsing the trip into 3-week sessions? There's also the logistical hurdle of getting to and from Canada from each place you stop (assuming that's your intention) - are you planning to have someone follow you in a car?

For the option, you won't be able to start too late in the fall, as the Erie Canal system does close for the season. If you start earlier in the fall, the weather is more enjoyable and there's still life in the towns you'll be stopping at. If you time it right you can hit the magic hurricane line (usually GA/FL border) at the magic date (usually around Nov 1) to avoid insurance issues.

yeah , I can see why youd ask that--we are still working for a year or so, and want to get the boat south asap.
The returning to Canada thing is not much of a consideration at this point--we have a solution to that.
I am doing my research, and realized that by doing 'the great loop' we could start on Lake Huron this summer, go up around Mackinac Island and down to Chicago--leave her hauled out in Chicago for the winter, then go down the interior of US in the spring...arriving in the south as the weather warms up...lots to consider with planning but its doable I think...( naively?? )

[Tingum]

If you are going to be flying out you will need to plan your stops with easy access to an airport. Finding a marina will be the easy part.

[Lodesman]

Originally Posted by LauraleeG

, then go down the interior of US in the spring...arriving in the south as the weather warms up...lots to consider with planning but its doable I think...( naively?? )

I think doable, but very weather-dependant. Spring hasn't been springing very quickly the last couple years. No experience on the interior route, but the ICW can be done in winter (or unseasonably-cold spring).

[gpridgen]

Another thing to consider in selecting layover points is oneway rental car drop-off points. Sometimes the perfect marina is 2 hours from the best airport, not a problem if you can rent a car and drop it.

[chris mac]

We left whitby Ontario mid/late Sept. Went south to Oswego and through the canals to NYC. The boat is now in the Chesapeake while we flew home to Canada.
There are tons of options for leaving the boat. As others have said being close to a major airport will be the trick. Marinas will be easier to find. We went through quite fast in order to attend the boat show, but would like to go through again at a slower pace. There were so many places we wanted to explore.
The main stops you want to hit will be Oswego, obviously, especially to drop a mast.(they don't do masts on weekends) Phoenix has a great town dock to tie up to. And Waterford town dock, right after the Waterford flight. It's a great place to reprovision. The grocery store allows you to take the shopping cart back to the dock, so you can really load up, especially heavy stuff.
If you want more detailed info, send me a PM.

[valhalla360]

Slightly different but we took our truck along for the second half of the loop.

We would travel by boat for 3-4 weeks (200-300miles), then get a rental car, drive back and pickup the truck, return the rental car and then we had the truck...usually we would stop for 2-4 weeks between stops.

Are yo planning to do the Great Loop Route or head east to the ICW? From Oswego, the ICW will be shorter but not conducive to doing the Loop as you will be spending most of the river section going up river.

[Stu Jackson]

Originally Posted by LauraleeG

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
I am doing my research, and realized that by doing 'the great loop' we could start on Lake Huron this summer, go up around Mackinac Island and down to Chicago--leave her hauled out in Chicago for the winter, then go down the interior of US in the spring...arriving in the south as the weather warms up...lots to consider with planning but its doable I think...( naively?? )

Are you ever going back? If not, it appears that you're only doing half of the loop. If not, perhaps that half may not be as fun (for lack of a better word) than the other half. If you are, forget what I said.


Your boat, your choice.

[Cheechako]

The only thought I have is if leaving the boat for minimal time, like a week or two or three... guest dockage rates will apply, which can be quite expensive.

[darylat8750]

We did one and a half loops. Just the way you are talking about. For $$ efficiency try to leave the boat almost a month at a time so you pay the monthly rate at marinas. I think you are planning to leave from Oswago. If so crossing to the Trent Severn waterway late spring or early summer would be my choice. Actually early spring if you have a heater. I would spend most of the summer and early fall getting to Chicago. We got into Canada in late July and wished we had spent more time west of Severn. Then I would follow the fall colors south and try to take the time to go a ways further up the Tennessee river than the cut off to the TennTom waterway south. That is some pretty country. Plenty of places to leave the boat. Join Active Captain and play with it a little before you leave. If you will be flying to and from the boat pay attention to access to airports with commercial service. Some marinas will give you rides to and from the airport and sometimes you will need to use UBER or some other car service. Always call a couple of marinas before you decide on one and ask about the things you need. They tend to be more accommodating when trying to sell their services to a potential customer rather than one that shows up to tie up at 6pm. Avoid running at night anywhere tow boats go. They have a lot of power and they stir up logs and stuff that are a little hard to see in the daylight and completely invisible in the dark. Join America's Great Loop Cruisers Association. That is a great resource but like most internet groups there are various degrees of knowledge both real and imagined .

I haven't checked recently but I think leaving your boat for the winter in the Chicago area would be more expensive than further south. Like Kentucky lake or further south.

By the way it took us almost 3 years to get 1 1/2 times around and we didn't spend enough time in Canada or on the rivers of the South. Part of the time was caused by grandchildren having events that Nana just had to go to. Part of it was just that there are so many things to see and do. I would hope that you use the six months to get the boat to Tennessee or Mississippi (on the TennTom) and winter it there.

[captlloyd]

The internet will provide you with all the info you need to choose marinas. The advice about leaving the boat at a marina for their monthly rate is a good idea. Looks like you want to head West and South using the river system, great trip. However you probably need to wait until late spring because the rivers get high and fast in the early spring. You can call marinas on the river system to check for flood conditions. The internet and YouTube are your friends.

[valhalla360]

Originally Posted by darylat8750

We did one and a half loops. Just the way you are talking about. For $$ efficiency try to leave the boat almost a month at a time so you pay the monthly rate at marinas.
.......

By the way it took us almost 3 years to get 1 1/2 times around and we didn't spend enough time in Canada or on the rivers of the South. Part of the time was caused by grandchildren having events that Nana just had to go to. Part of it was just that there are so many things to see and do. I would hope that you use the six months to get the boat to Tennessee or Mississippi (on the TennTom) and winter it there.

Keep in mind, you can pay the monthly rate and leave before the month is finished. It is often cheaper to pay for a month than to pay for 2 weeks.

3yrs? You were flying...took us 5 to do 1.5 times around...and yes, we agree, the river system is a great place to go slow and enjoy.