Florida to Chesapeake Bay - 74' mast clearance

[geekoman]

We are planning our route north along the Atlantic coast this summer (June/July). Head back south after hurricane season (November). Meraki has a 74' mast clearance, so I assume ICW is out of the question.

Initial thought is to be off the coast, sailing as much as possible, and come in and sleep on the hook - no need to do overnight sails. We will not be in a big rush, and the destination is not fixed. Going inland as possible would be fine.

Any suggestions on the route? How far off shore should we target? How do we account for the gulf stream? Avoid or take advantage of? Any suggested online sources of information we should study?

Thanks!

[ggray]

Someone here suggested successive 1 day/1 night /1 day hops from:
Norfolk to Cape Lookout NC
To Charleston SC
To Cumberland Island (St Mary's River IIRC)
To Miami

Day light starts and finishes, and only 1 night sails.
I've done it along these lines.

[s/v Moondancer]

A difficult trip to day-sail. as you cannot get under the ICW bridges except into major ports. Many of the inlets are diificult at the best of times and some impassable in bad weather.

Many of the anchorages are beyond the 65 ft bridges and often depth becomes an issue. The trip will have to be well planned and you will spend as much time working your way in and out as you will sailing north.

In Florida the Gulf Stream effects are close in so you will get a lift without going far off-shore. Just 3-5 nm off-shore puts you in a northerly current, close in there is a southerly countercurrent.

You have to go outside Hattaras and that cannot be day-sailed. You need a good weather window going out of Beaufort NC and you can stay inshore on the 60 ft contour line where there are a series of large red aids to navigation.

Good luck but you are trying to do it the hard way!

[Paul L]

As Moondancer said this is not a day hop trip. Just the time to go out and back would make the day runs impractical. Break it up to a couple of 2 - 3 day runs.

[NRbar]

Geekoman

I can not go inside either, 69’ mast.

We usually traveled day hops with a few overnights.

I recommend going up Chesapeake Bay, through C&D Canal and down Delaware Bay, especially if you have time. Lots nice overnight anchorages in Chesapeake Bay. We stopped at Ventor Marina for crew change. Craig was nice and accommodating. We rented a car, surprisingly cheap on the weekend.

Lots of people on this board with Chesapeake Bay knowledge.

I will watch your thread as I am also interested in other’s opinions about offshore/nearshore routes, including 24 to 36 hour hops.

Cape Hatteras is an overnight. We got help from Chris Parker about the best time and route. My wife was more interested in calm seas than wind for sailing as our first trip north around Hatteras was rough. She heard horror stories on the internet about Cape Hatteras and was frightened. You know social media, not worth posting if not sensational. We mostly motored south in mild seas, she was comfortable and happy.

Rob

[NRbar]

I agree with Moondancer and Paul L that day hops are not practical. One half of your sailing time is going out and coming into anchorage along New Jersey and from Moorehead City south.

I lobbied hard for 24 to 36 hour hops but my wife wanted to anchor overnight. You do what you have to do, another navigation factor along with weather and clearances. Remember I have 69’ mast and 7’ draft.

We used charts, electronic and paper, as well as Active Captain to mark on the paper charts those entrances we could use. You may have more options without 7’ draft. We also talked to Tow Boat for local entrance information. Big shoutout to TowBoat and ActiveCaptain, could not do it without them.

Rob

[skipmac]

Moondancer and Paul L have noted the main problems and I agree it will be difficult to impossible to make this trip daysailing only.

You can enter a number of inlets and harbors but in some cases will not be able to access a marina or anchorage as they will be beyond a fixed 64' bridge.

Once you pass south Florida many of the inlets are a long way from the ocean, as much as 10-15 nm from the channel entrance to the harbor. So just leaving one port and entering the next could take 4-5 hours out of your travel day.

Doing a quick look the I think the following should offer clearance to enter and a marina or anchorage you could reach. Note that some will be a long way from town or any facilities.

Miami
Ft Lauderdale
West Palm
Canaveral
Jacksonville
Brunswick
Savannah
Charleston
Cape Fear
Beaufort
Chesapeake
Delaware Bay

Previous comments covered the Gulf Stream issues pretty well.

[Scott Berg]

I've done this many times; our current boat has a 78' main mast. Leaving from Fort Lauderdale, for example, we turn left at the PE Sea Buoy and left into the Chesapeake Bay. We like to plan six days for the trip but it's never taken more than 5 including a great boost from the Gulf Stream. For example, you'd be about 100+ miles off Charleston in the stream; why go in? You COULD plan a series of short hops but you'd be sailing east and west a lot in order to go north... YMMV but we consider Florida to the Ches Bay a non stop trip.

[geekoman]

Thanks for all the great replies! There is no fixed plan yet. Staying off shore is still an option, just not a requirement, as we will not be on a timeline - other than weather driven.

[Hartleyg]

I'm with Scott - from Florida to Beaufort or the Chesapeake should be straight up - do the short hops and visit the harbors on the way South! I think we'd do it that way Northbound even if we had a short enough mast to use the ICW (weather permitting, of course).

We've left Riviera Beach (West Palm Beach) and Fort Pierce, cut an angle NE and then ridden the Stream to about 80-90 miles South of Beaufort NC -- takes us about 3 days and 3 nights. Beaufort to Chesapeake Bay is an overnighter. Download the Gulf Stream maps to make it easier.

Once you're in the Chesapeake, the only one-nighter left is from the C&D canal/Delaware City to New York - and the East River is highly recommended!

Coming South, there are enough stopping places you can do day-sails (some of the days will be long), but we found that two days/one night hops worked out well. We did Beaufort to Charleston, then Brunswick, then Canaveral and on to Riviera Beach - all one-nighters, and those ports are all highly recommended!

The worst beating you will get (unless you get unlucky at Hatteras) will be coming in & out of the various entrances.

Hartley
S/V Atsa
Tayana 48DS (68' mast)

[akprb]

You have the right advice so far from other posters.

I’ll speak to night sailing.

It’s my favorite and that direction it’s magic with the stream doing its magic.

The other thing is after 2 days offshore you fall into that delicious cruising rhythm!

That is the icing on the cake!

Enjoy it and you are especially blessed not being on a time frame!

[NRbar]

As Skipmac states and I said before, going in daily takes a big bite out of your day. To add to Skipmac’s list with places I have anchored, moored or docked and in a few cases places I plan to go. I will skip the obvious big port entrances.

Again 7’ draft and 69’ mast and a wife that does not like night sailing:

I have not been south of New Smyrna Beach, where I am anchored now. Plan to go in at St Augustine and St Mary’s. Been in at St Catherine’s Sound, Port Royal Sound, Wrightsville Beach (easier in and out near Wilmington), Moorehead City (and the Beaufort there not South Carolina), plan on Virginia Beach if I have to. Plenty of places in Chesapeake C&D Delaware loop. Been to Cape Henlopen Inlet, Cape May Inlet, Atlantic City, and Barnegat Inlet. After New York City then tons of places in Long Island Sound, Cape Cod and Mass Bay. From Rockport MA I have anchored at Isle of Shoals and then into Casco Bay, Matinicus Island and Penobscot Bay. Actually plenty of places to go in Maine.

I know this is further north than you want but Long Island Sound and New England can’t be beat for cruising. You can spend all summer in Maine.

[NRbar]

GGray, Scott Berg and Hartlyg I like your options for traveling north and will try to incorporate them in the plans. I do prefer outside with good weather. Most of my boating stress comes when the boat is close in to shore like inlets and docking.

[LoudMusic]

How's the commercial traffic in the Atlantic stream in that part of the world? Presumably they'd all be headed your direction, but still at greatly different speeds.

[JOHNMARDALL]

I recommend that you assemble an adequate crew to go out from Florida and stay out until you can come back in, through the Virginia Capes to the Chesapeake. Trying to go in and out to a series of inshore anchorages will waste a lot of time and expose you to frequently difficult conditions in the inlets, even down here in Florida. Also, don't leave it late in the season to make either passage.

Good luck, have fun
John Mardall
Vetus Maxwell Group