LI Sound - Norfolk - Charleston

[kipwrite]

I'm planning a delivery from LI Sound to Norfolk, VA, weather permitting, departing on or about October 30. We'll make a second leg down to Charleston later in the month of November.

Aside from finding the right weather window, and catching the tides through NY, any other tips for this voyage?

We are looking at Cape May and Ocean City as potential bail-outs for the first leg.

We have a 70' mast, so the second leg will need to be outside.

Crew is seasoned, we have an SSB, EPIRB, certified raft.

Thanks.

[camaraderie]

Kip...Well, you know you are gonna be squeezed between the Stream and the shallows at Hatteras so all you can do there is try for a decent forecast to get round.
Good gulf stream data HERE in the 3rd drop down box:
Weather Routing, Inc. - Now Weather
and here: PassageWeather - Wind, Wave and Weather Forecasts for Sailors and Adventurers


Your bailouts past Nofolk are nonexistent until you are past Hatteras but after that you have Beaufort NC, Southport/CapFear,and Winyah Bay/Georgetown, all of which are ClassA, inlets with no air draft or shoaling concerns in the marked channels.
You'll want to stay fairly close in shore after Hatteras to perhaps catch a bit of countercurrent, and avoid the Stream while preserving your bailout options.
Plan on doing a lot of beating or motoring on this leg in prevailing conditions.
Good luck with the trip.