Snowbirds

[rwidman]

For the folks on the US east coast and in particular, those who head south in the winter and north in the summer, when (month, date, etc.) do the boats generally leave Florida for points north?

I'm planning a trip to FL in the spring and don't want problems finding a slip.

[a64pilot]

"season" is I think Oct to Apr?

[Cotemar]

I though the Snow bird season was the same as the Atlantic Hurricane season, which is June 1 to Nov 1

[rwidman]

I was hoping that some folks who actually go up and down the east coast would see this and respond.

[a64pilot]

Originally Posted by rwidman

I was hoping that some folks who actually go up and down the east coast would see this and respond.

They may, but our responses at least bumped your thread back up to the top of the list.
A second alternative and the one I would use would be to call the few Marina's you want to stay at and ask them. It may be that the time changes based on how far South it is.

Maybe PM Hudson Force, I bet he knows

[UNCIVILIZED]

The author, Tom Neale, used to/does this, & so might be a resource. I read his book All In The Same Boat back in the late 90's, & he's done a number of articles for Cruising World as well.

[rwidman]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

.............A second alternative and the one I would use would be to call the few Marina's you want to stay at and ask them. ..............

Yea, I did that (actually emailed them). They basically told me to call when I was nearby and they would tell me if they had room for me. Not wanting to make a commitment, I suppose.

That's no help when planning.

[a64pilot]

From an insurance perspective Cotemar's dates make the most sense, I assume many are not insured to be in a hurricane area and have to vacate prior.
My dates are from observation of the crowds, which the vast majority of course did not arrive by boat


I tried Googling it, but again this isn't boaters, which is your question
http://www.urbandictionary.com/defin...wbird%20season

[chris mac]

My parents snow,bird, but land side. The point is to hide from the cold so typical is November thru April. We are limited on stay based on travel and health insurance, I believe it is 6 months out of a year.
Boaters may have different usable dates and I have no idea about slip availability. So Im probably not helping much:-)
Bump at least

[mikeod]

Everytime i have come north we leave bahamas mid to end of april travel nothth till bigining of june arriving in NE. We nevet stayed in marinas so i cant speak of dockage but there seems to be room for all that want it.

[Hudson Force]

Originally Posted by rwidman

I was hoping that some folks who actually go up and down the east coast would see this and respond.

After reading this, I'm inspired to respond. We've been cruising up and down the US East Coast since our first trip in 1972.

.....but this doesn't mean that I have much of an answer. We never travel with concerns about getting a slip or with any relationship to an insurance policy. We're not even "snowbirds", since I've been a Florida resident for 65 years.

If we're in Maine, then we might start heading south in August, but not reach Florida until November. If we're in the Bahamas or the Keys, we might start heading north in May, but not reach Maine until August.

This past year we've remained at a marina, but for 13 of the past 15 years we've not been focused on a destination.

I think most people think of the "snowbird" behavior as those that cruise for a moth south and a month north, but spend ten months of the year at a destination marina.

I think there's too much variety among cruisers to come up with a good answer.

[Vasco]

Originally Posted by rwidman

For the folks on the US east coast and in particular, those who head south in the winter and north in the summer, when (month, date, etc.) do the boats generally leave Florida for points north?

I'm planning a trip to FL in the spring and don't want problems finding a slip.

The vast majority of snowbirds anchor on their trips north and south. They will not significantly alter the number of slips available as far as the ICW goes. As for FL most of the slips are annual or monthly users.

For those needing a slip on the trip a phone call the day before usually does the trick. Do you need a transient or long term slip in FL? FL is a big state with lots of coastline. There's usually no problems with slips, all you need is a credit card.

[CaptMarc]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4R3kqu9m-U

Enjoy

MArc

[rwidman]

Originally Posted by Vasco

The vast majority of snowbirds anchor on their trips north and south. They will not significantly alter the number of slips available as far as the ICW goes. As for FL most of the slips are annual or monthly users.

For those needing a slip on the trip a phone call the day before usually does the trick. Do you need a transient or long term slip in FL? FL is a big state with lots of coastline. There's usually no problems with slips, all you need is a credit card.

What prompted my asking was information on Vero Beach marina indicating that the slips are often full and even mooring balls have to be shared. My plan is to spend a few days at each town and then move on when we get tired of it.

[Vasco]

Originally Posted by rwidman

What prompted my asking was information on Vero Beach marina indicating that the slips are often full and even mooring balls have to be shared. My plan is to spend a few days at each town and then move on when we get tired of it.

Vero has very few transient slips. The moorings are usually shared in the fall but in May you can get one to yourself. The problem with Vero in the fall and early winter is that everybody stays longer than they intended. I think the free bus system has something to do with it and also it is a very cruiser friendly place. Some folks stay there all winter. Hotel California?

We usually have to share on the way south but when we head back north there's quite a few empty moorings. Sharing a mooring is not a problem and we have made many cruising friends through sharing moorings.