Outfitting vs. Cruise Ready Dilemma

[DDabs]

The boat's draft is 5'. Is that going to be a big concern?

[gjordan]

I must agree with malbert that the ICW is not stress free. There is a lot of traffic, and passing situations (my reference to whistles and radios) in addition to shallow water, but it is beautiful and at this time of year it beats the heck out of the potential punishment of going offshore. You will be a better seaman for having done the trip. Best of luck. _____Grant.

[gjordan]

Thousands of boats with more than 5 foot draft do the ICW every year, but you must pay attention. As I said before, you will be a better/sharper seaman for having done it. This time of year a secure dock with a 110 volt electric heater every night will be wonderful. _____Grant.

[malbert73]

Originally Posted by DDabs

The boat's draft is 5'. Is that going to be a big concern?

No problem, but you will run aground. Learning to time tides, current, and bridges will also keep you busy. A fun kind of stress.
Best to purchase your unlimited boat us towing insurance for those ICW soft ungroundings.

I also recommend you buy a fortress anchor with 20-30 feet chain and rope rode, all sized to working loads for your boat. All would be retrievable without a windlass. You'll get into trouble if you always have to dock at a marina- mistakes and groundings always most likely when pushing it at dusk to get to next stop, so you want to be able to stop and anchor when needed. Anchoring is a lot less stressful and time consuming than docking every night with lines, spring lines, fenders, etc....

[gjordan]

Malbert is giving very good advice, but I must say that I like sleeping warm at night when I can. Good sailing/motoring. _______Grant.

[DDabs]

Most likely will not be anchoring out- the weather will be very cold and the boat does not have a generator.

[Sailorman Ed]

he boat is not even equipped with a windlass; I was planning on staying a night in marinas most of the way. Would I be better off anchoring out in certain places?

Ddabs - you will be in the ICW, and concerned about running aground - you do not need a windlass!! I think you are going to have a problem finding a marina every night or you will be stopping quite early many nights. I do not remember many marinas near any of our anchorage stops. We bought an electric "throw" (like an electric blanket) at Wallymart and plugged it into the inverter before turning in each night to warm up the bed. Doesn't use much amp-hours and was nice to crawl in to a warm bed. Also had an old mexican blanket to cover the person at the helm as you get cold sitting there for hours. Get a good larger thermos and fill it each morning and lunch to you have hot drinks to keep you warm when the cold wind is cutting thru you. I suspect the Skipper Bob's both cover the same mileage/bridge info. If you haven't already done so, checkout Active Captain. Do you have a long range WIFI antenna? Probably not needed in marinas. Or cell phone hot spot should work well.
And +1 for towing insurance, you only need it once to break even and you have a boat you have no experience with. But at least a few days before you start the trip as they all have a waiting period. Those big fuel tanks are a plus.
Ed

[TacomaSailor]

My Caliber 40 draws a little over 5' 6" when full loaded with fuel and water. I have measured it with a weight and string while snorkeling.

I would plan on a depth of 6' to account for wave action and the boat moving around.

BEFORE you leave - Make sure you check the fathometer for what is being measured:
- depth below keel (if so what is the keel depth set in the B&G)
- depth below waterline
Then use a string & weight to verify the measurements you get.

The good news is that a Caliber keel is tough - I have tested it a number of times with no substantial damage.

Also - measure the mast height above the water - mine is 59' 6" .

[DDabs]

Is there a cut through early on in the Keys or will I need to sail around Key West?

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by DDabs

Is there a cut through early on in the Keys or will I need to sail around Key West?

St. Lucie River, through Lake Okeechobee, out the Caloosahatchee River... assuming winter-time depths are OK.

Check ActiveCaptain.

-Chris

[DDabs]

Chris, Jerry has informed me the route through Lake Okeechobee is not going to work due to fixed bridge heights. I thought there might be a way through near Marathon? Or is memory not serving me correctly?

[TacomaSailor]

The Caloosahaatche Bridge at Ft Myers, the MidPoint bridge and the the Cape Coral Bridge on the Caloosahatcee River just west of Ft Myers are 55 feet clearance. The Edison Bridge in Ft Myers is 56 feet.

A Caliber 40 mast is 59' and mine needs 60' 5" with the wind instrument on top.

A sister ship made three (3) tries to get under the Cape Coral bridge. Finally, on a minus tide, they hung a dinghy full of water from the outboard end of the boom which was almost at right angles to the boat and two big guys crawled out on the boom.

They measured over 4 degrees of heel and SCRAPPED under the bridge. They then repeated the stunt three more times and barely made the last bridge because the tide was coming in.

The tides on the river are not of much use - the January minus is -0.4 and the January high is 1.4 so it is a rare minus tide that will be useful. February is about the same.

It can be done BUT - a new owner?

My friends had been cruising full time for four years from Annapolis thru all of the Caribbean down to Trinidad and back.

My experience with advice such as "there is good clearance there" or "the rock to be avoided there" should only be accepted from someone that can tell when they were "there" and exactly what they did.

We tried to buy a house up river from the Cape Coral bridge where we were going to keep our Caliber 40. We visited the local yacht club and talked to owners of boats similar in size to Mirador and to two local dock masters. They all confirmed the 55' height.

WHY are those bridges allowed on the ICW?

The Caliber 40 is advertised as an ICW boat and we assumed that meant EVERY fixed ICW bridge - or is the Calooshatchee/Okochobee not part of the ICW?

[DDabs]

So I have to sail around the entire Florida keys?

[Horror Hotel]

At marathon you can head north and work your way up the west coast. John sawyer bank to cape sable is 19.4 nm. Get some charts it's all there, I came through a week ago. I would get paper charts for your whole route even if your gonna use a chartplotter.

[DDabs]

Thanks Horror