East Coast ICW

[Camaraderie]

Can't help ya there Paul...the inside was not available to me with my draft so I've never been through there. Maybe someone else will chime in. Have fun in any event!

[Camaraderie]

ALERT- DISMAL SWAMP ICW Route.

Just had friends on a Hunter 42DS with a five foot draft tear up their prop and rudder in the Dismal Swamp. They report that the depth sounder was showing 8 feet when this happened and so attribute it to debris or stumps on the bottom.
I know many have made it through safely this year and the depths are good...BUT...once again, the bottom there is simply not reliable. It has always been a bit iffy for a 6ft draft...but this report from an 5ft. draft vessel may make you think twice about the trip. In any event...go slow!!

[Gypsy Muse]

we're leaving tomorrow for first trip from Cambridge, Md on the Chesapeake ,down the ICW, sometimes outside depending on the weather. Nasty right now but a couple of good days ahead.
Your posts are GREAT. Many thanks.
Fairwinds.

Cam,

We had a tough ride yesterday. Winds were 25 knots out of the east with 6-7' seas. We went outside at Ft. Lauderdale and just had a tough 3 hour ride until we came in at the Gov't Cut in Miami. I was just whipped by the time that we cot back in. We had a late dinner at the Chart House (very nice) and then got some groceries at the "Fresh Market" which is only a short walk from the Chart House. We got back to the boat around 10PM and I told Vic that I just wanted to sleep in tomorrow (Oct 23)..but I woke up at 6AM and felt pretty good..so I took one last look at the charts and potential anchorages and we finally got out of the harbor around 9AM after topping of our tanks.

We came through Key Biscayne Channel with no difficulty and we had a great ride down Hawks Channel..good wind, about 12 knots for half the trip, but as we started the turn to the west, it died down to about 7 knots right on our stern..but it was 100% better than yesterday.

We anchored this evening in Long Key Channel Bite..nice anchorage..I did a bit of swimming, had a nice dinner..got some great photos, and then decided to hunker down and catch up on my blog this evening..thought that I would leave a note here as well.

I do have a question going into the morning. If I go under the Long Key Bridge, it looks like the ICW route will carry me on depth until I take the turn over to East Sable. Otherwise, I will go down to the 7 mile bridge and cut through Mosers Channel and head north from there. My plan is to anchor in the Little Snake River tomorrow evening and then take a two day run outside up to Long Boat Key..hope to get in on Monday...I would appreciate any other wisdom that you might offer if I cross over to the Florida Gulf side here at Long Key Channel...Paul

[Vic-n-Paul]

We have arrived safely in Longboat Key FL after a 200nm run up the west coast of Florida. We ended up motoring under the 65' fixed bridge section of the Seven Mile Bridge southwest of Marathon. As we crossed under this bridge, the boards were showing 66.5', We figured that this would be a "no risk" event, but we dragged our VHF antenna at least 6" down on the antenna. Just about every other bridge that we crossed under in FL had boards that were 18" to 2' conservative. This one was off by about one foot the wrong way...be careful here at high tide!

We had a great anchorage in the Little Shark River, although don't look for any contact with the outside world because TV, radio, cell phones, etc. just don't work here.

Last night we tied up at Moss Marine at Fort Myers Beach. These were nice folks who were also very helpful as we struggled with both winds and current to get docked. They also had a couple of good restaurants here (see our blog).

Today we arrived at 5:45PM. I figure that we have traveled at least 1608 statute miles, spent 23 days in route, and have spent more time on the boat than we have in the last two years. I am glad to be tied up at the dock.

THanks to all for your comments and suggestions. If I can return the favor, jsut drop a note.

Glad to be tied up and settled for awhile...

Paul (with all of Vic's support)

[Jorgen]

ALERT- DISMAL SWAMP ICW Route.

Just had friends on a Hunter 42DS with a five foot draft tear up their prop and rudder in the Dismal Swamp. They report that the depth sounder was showing 8 feet when this happened and so attribute it to debris or stumps on the bottom.
I know many have made it through safely this year and the depths are good...BUT...once again, the bottom there is simply not reliable. It has always been a bit iffy for a 6ft draft...but this report from an 5ft. draft vessel may make you think twice about the trip. In any event...go slow!!

We got thru fine a couple of days ago with a 5'9" draft. We did however bump some submerged objects. Soft bumps - Nothing serious.

[xort]

ALERT- DISMAL SWAMP ICW Route.

Just had friends on a Hunter 42DS with a five foot draft tear up their prop and rudder in the Dismal Swamp. They report that the depth sounder was showing 8 feet when this happened and so attribute it to debris or stumps on the bottom.
I know many have made it through safely this year and the depths are good...BUT...once again, the bottom there is simply not reliable. It has always been a bit iffy for a 6ft draft...but this report from an 5ft. draft vessel may make you think twice about the trip. In any event...go slow!!

It would be interesting to hear how fast they were running at the time and if they were following close behind another boat.

[AboardIndigo]

We got thru fine a couple of days ago with a 5'9" draft. We did however bump some submerged objects. Soft bumps - Nothing serious.

It would be interesting to hear how fast they were running at the time and if they were following close behind another boat.

Knowing that I was risking damage with nothing other than luck on my side would drive me nuts. Especially after hearing both Jorgen's and Cam's reports.

[Vic-n-Paul]

Gypsy Muse,

You will be behind us by about 3 weeks. I am glad that we were able to get underway before the cold weather hit, although we had some tough and cold weather when you got hit by the nor'easter.

We were in a rush to get to Longboat Key, FL because of some contractual commitments. I am sorry that we did not have the time to tarry at more places. I would encourage you to do fewer miles than we did each day and just enjoy some very pretty places..Portsmouth/Norfolk, Beaufort NC, Myrtle Beach, Charleston SC, Savannah, ..etc..and lots of great places in the Keys.

When the dust settles down here, we will likely take the boat south again to the Keys and spend some time just doing nothing!

Safe Journey..if you have any specific questions, feel free to drop me a note here or at paulwhite2@comcast.net. BTW, I blogged this trip at
Annapolis to Longboat Key, FL via the ICW

Paul (and Vic in the background)

[Camaraderie]

Just an update for GEORGIA on the ICW...

Hell Gate has been dredged and is now 10 ft. deep...that's the good news. The bad news:

Following is a list of the surveyed areas showing 7 feet MLW or less in the center half of the channel (the west quarter is the red ICW channel marker side and the east quarter is the green ICW channel marker side; most of the channels are 150 feet wide):
Ramshorn Creek: 6 feet center, 7 feet west quarter, 4 feet east quarter
Fields Cut: 5 feet center, 5 feet west quarter, 4 feet east quarter
Elba Cut: 5 feet center, 2.5 feet west quarter, 11 feet east quarter
Florida Passage: 5 feet center, 6 feet west quarter, 4.5 feet east quarter
Little Mud River: 3 feet center, 2 feet west quarter, 2 feet east quarter
Altamaha Sound: 5 feet center, 2 feet west quarter, 7 feet east quarter
Buttermilk Sound (vicinity of DM “216A”): 4 feet center, 5 feet west quarter, 5 feet east quarter
Buttermilk Sound (Vicinity DM “216A” to BN “223”): 3 feet center, 3 feet west quarter, 3 feet east quarter
Jekyll Creek: 5 feet center, 0.5 feet west quarter, 3.0 feet east quarter

Now the tide in GA is around 8 feet...so any boat can make it throuh these areas if you don't feel comfortable going offshore. Just plan your passages for mid tide or greater as needed.

[Vic-n-Paul]

Cam,

The worst spot for us on the entire trip was the Little Mud River. We arrived about an hour before low tide and ran aground just to the right of center of the channel in 4' of water. We were able to back off and turn perpendicular to the channel and find 6.5' of water. About half way down this stretch, we ran aground again in the middle of the channel. We were saved by a commercial shrimper who was literally 10' off the bank on the east side of this passage (our port side). I called him on the radio and he advised me that he was drafting 8' and although he was dragging bottom, that this was the only way to get through..so I moved over almost to the bank and headed south. About 1/4 mile before exiting this stretch, my chartplotter was showing a wreck right near the east bank. I was uncomfortable hugging the bank and wandered out about 100'..and promptly ran aground once again. I decided that if there was anything here, the shrimpers had long since dragged it out..so I headed to the bank for this last stretch. I am convinced that this is the only way to get through here at or near low tide.

Paul

[Camaraderie]

Hey Paul...how goes it? The Little Mud was the worst for us too...just gets worse every year. Hopefully the stimulus bucks that were allocated for dredging in SC and GA will make a difference after a decade of neglect.

[sailingdog]

Well... here's to having a shoal draft vessel...

[Camaraderie]

"Due to a scheduled replacement of the Ben Sawyer Bridge's swing span, the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (AICW) will be closed to marine traffic from Tuesday, December 1, 2009 at 12:01 A.M. through Friday, December 11, 2009 at 11:59 P.M. The Coast Guard will enforce a safety zone around the Ben Sawyer Bridge. The safety zone will encompass the AICW from 180 yards northwest of the bridge, and 220 yards southwest of the bridge. No one may enter the safety zone without prior authorization from the Captain of the Port Charleston or his designated representative.

South Carolina DOT will conduct post-construction tests following the span replacement. Accordingly, the Ben Sawyer Bridge will have limited openings from Saturday, December 12, 2009 at 12:00 A.M. through Monday, December 14, 2009 at 11:59 p.m. Scheduled bridge openings will be broadcasted via channel 16 VHF and incorporated into this MSIB as soon as the information becomes available.

Mariners are encouraged to monitor the Broadcast Notice to Mariners on VHF Channel 16. Coast Guard Sector Charleston will broadcast the closure of the AICW and the rescission of the corresponding safety zone as appropriate. The bridge construction schedule is somewhat dependent on weather, and any changes to the schedule will be made to this MSIB. For questions regarding the bridge construction, please contact Ms. Julie Hussey of PCL at (843) 224-1096 or Mr. Kim Partenheimer of PB Americas at (843) 972-1775. Coast Guard Sector Charleston may be contacted via our 24-hour Command Center Line at (843) 740-7050."

Note that boats heading to Charleston will need to take the ocean route out of Winyah Bay / Georgetown SC to the Charleston Sea Lane Inlet.