Ever sail from Great Lakes to Florida???

[djn]

Hi All, has any of you ever sailed/motored from the Great Lakes out to the ocean, then down to Florida or close?  I am trying to get information on doing this.  Any help is appriciated. Time, cost, tips,hints......Cheers.

[Captain Smollett]

I have not done so, but there are some interesting stories at:

Guide to Sailing and Cruising Stories - Voyage Logs

I think there are some Ohio River or Tenn. River accounts on that page (I've read 'em, I just don't recall from where).

[s/v Faith]

Yes, there were a group of guys that did it aboard a 26' boat just this year.

  Here is a link to their log.

  Great story, well written log.  They were going all the way to Berkley California, and there was not a truck involved!

  The boat was a Pearson Commander, same hull as the Ariel, smaller cabin.  Their boat was also named 'Faith' there is no relation though....  ;D

[Zen]

s/v faith, what does s/v mean?  ???

I see several folks with that...

[CapnK]

Sailing Vessel. :)

...and stinkpotters use "M/V" for "Motor Vessel".

[Zen]

Oh I see boat code,

thanks

[Amorous]

I've done Duluth to Key West and back.  Not in the same year.

[djn]

Hi Amorous, I assume you went throught the Erie canal?  How long did it take to make the trip?  What kind of cost did you run into on the canal?  Cheers.

[Amorous]

we took our time going down and spent 7 weeks.  hurried coming back and took almost 4.  i went through the erie canal to and from oswego and through the trent-severn waterway in ontario.  both very cool.  I don't remember the costs for the trent but there are no costs for the erie.

[djn]

Hi A, so there is no charges for the locks all the way through the erie canal?  Is there some website for the canal?  Cheers.

[Solace]

djn,
Depending on which Lakes you are going through you would need to go through the locks. There is a cost for the locks - depends on your boat size. The web site for the Erie Canal system is: http://www.canals.state.ny.us/index.html - you need to drop your mast to transit the Erie canals.

If you are leaving from Lake Ontario you would also have to go through the 8 locks that make up the Welland Canal. I have more experience with this one. You can go through this one with your rig up - it is more expensive. You are also required to have a minimum of 3 aboard each boat. If you don't - they will provide people, for which there is a charge.

Hope that helps.

John

[Amorous]

Seems there is a charge now.  Sorry for the mis-information.  Wasn't one when I went through last but it has been a while.  We used to comment on how the US was so cool to go through all the trouble and expense for us little recreational boaters.  Oh, well looks like it is a pretty reasonable charge anyway.
On the other hand the Trent-Severn was always a fee system including a canal pass for a certain amount of days, and also a charge to tie up to the locks' seawall overnight.
The locks through Ontario are of many different types, most are small and hand cranked by a bunch of college kids on summer employment.  Others include an "over the top" railway, the "breadpan" which uses the weight of water in one "pan" to raise the other, and others of varying types.  It's worth the charges simply to experience it all.
I've never been through the Welland canal as that would have been the long way around for me as I was either coming or going from Duluth.
The Sault Locks in Sault St. Marie are just amazing, if a bit daunting.  OK, a bit terrifying!  They are built for the 1000 foot lake boats, so are HUGE! 
There is a Yacht club at Avon-on-Hudson that has a hand operated crane to do your own stepping and unstepping of the mast, and a marina in Victoria harbor on Georgian bay in Ontario with the same thing.  Both were very reasonable ($30) but again, that has been a while so may have changed.

[djn]

Thanks for the info.  I just ordered the little booklet.  I assume there is no locks on the Hudson once you get to Albany.  It looks like about a ten day trip through the system from Buff to NYC.  Cheers.

[Amorous]

The last/first locks are the Troy locks in Albany.  A series of four locks, two sets of two.  One set on the river, one in the canal.  10 days sounds about right.  They only operate during the day.  There are a few places that you will want to be careful when stopping for the night, as you are stuck between locks.  I've personally had a bad experience in Ilion for one.  I like to stay away from the towns when tucking in for the night.

[djn]

Hi A, I would like to get more info about your neg experience on the canal.  If you would rather take this offline, I can be reached at djnagle@comcast.net  Thanks.

[Frank]

The answer to costs is like answering 'how much does a new car cost?'......stay at marinas-anchor out.....motor all the way inside-go outside sailing often. You are going to eat and drink at home or cruising.These costs don't change much. It will be fuel and marinas that cost.There are lots of spots to anchor out...BUT a nice shower and a resterant meal sure is nice at times too.You WILL motor LOTS !  You know your engine/fuel use x 8-10hr days.Even time varies....nice trip-site see-no pressure=7+ weeks. Go destination bound and not enjoy the trip=4-5wks. Once out...offshore saves time and fuel BUT BE PREPARED.Gulf stream storms are not to EVER be taken lightly !!!!!

[djn]

Thanks Frank.  yep, those are all good variables.  I am still in the investigation stage.  I work online for a living so nightly internet connectivity is a must.  That will drive how we plan the trip.  Cheers.

[Amorous]

djn,
I consider the only REALLY bad experience on the canal system to have been at Ilion, NY and completely preventable.
I saw on the chart that there was a lock west of town a mile or two so I tried to get there before it closed for the evening but the locktender was just locking up as I arrived.  I tied to the seawall in anticipation of spending the night.  At this particular lock there is a railroad that runs by right at the top of the hill and I went to just check-out the immediate area.  Upon reaching the top of the hill and the railroad tracks I noticed what seemed to be campsites, and trash throughout the adjoining woods.  Kind of a "hobo-jungle" for lack of a better term.  This made me a bit nervous at the prospect of tying to the wall for the night, so I went back to the boat and suggested that we move somewhere back down toward town.  There was a slough or backwater that had looked navigable about 1/2 mile back.  As we were discussing it a runabout with 4 guys came idling up into the seawalled approach to the lock.  They simply stared at my girlfriend as they went passed and didn't respond to our greeting at all.  Upon reaching the closed lock doors they turned around and headed back out.  When they got almost next to us they gunned the engine and set up a serious wake which lifted and banged us against the very deteriorated concrete wall, rolling our fenders out and causing alot of serious damage to the bulwarks and cap-rail.  Thinking they were just some more stupid power boaters, I was checking the damage when they came flying back in, turned on a dime and DID IT AGAIN!  I give everyone the benefit of the doubt.....once.  I quickly untied the boat and headed back toward town while sending my girlfriend below.  When they returned yet again I called the numbers down to her to write down, figuring I would go to town and report the incident  They proceeded to turn around and come up toward my quarter so I yelled for my girlfriend to load and hand up the flare gun.  Just as their boat touched mine and one of them reached out to grab my rail, I fired a flare down into their boat and reloaded.  They yelled and fell back but not before I sent another flare into their boat.  They were all yelling and rushing around and two of them jumped in the water.  I was worried that the flare would hit the gas tank, causing an explosion but, at the same time wasn't going to have these fudge* hurt me or mine any more than they already had.  I was also worried that they might be armed (after all, this IS the home of Ruger), so I didn't want them to have time to fight back.  I had reloaded again and sent another flare toward the assholes but it flew over them and their boat.  As I was trying to reload again, I noticed that the flare gun had melted and the barrel had collapsed so I slammed the throttle down and headed toward town as fast as I could go.  The flares, and fishing their buddies out, kept them busy for a while and I reached the boat landing, where I found that I couldn't get close to the wall and the docks were in the middle of being torn out!  I saw a telephone booth right next to the landing, so I dropped an anchor, jumped overboard, and swam ashore.  There were other people there launching and recovering their boats, who all looked at me as if I were NUTS!  I called the police and told them what happened, then swam back to Ningui to await their arrival.  As we were waiting, the boat and all 4 of the sons-a-bitches pulled up to the landing and they loaded their boat lickety-split, while trying to ignore us, and headed into town.  Just as they pulled out of the parking area, a police cruiser came in.  I yelled and waved for them to stop the truck but the officer didn't understand.  After I swam ashore again, the officer, who obviously thought I was out of my mind, took my statement and, after giving me a sobriety test, told us of a place right around the corner where we could get close enough to the wall to tie up.  He came back later that night to tell us it was OK for us to leave.  They had used the boat's numbers to get a home address and were there when they guy pulled in after dropping off his friends.  He had admitted that they "may have scared" us after the officers had pointed out the burned carpet and also let him know that he was lucky to be alive. 
He decided not to press charges against me for shooting at him.

[Amorous]

Sorry for the length of the previous post.  Maybe I should move it to the "stories" topic?

[Zen]

Shows High-Sea pirates are the only A-holes out there to look out for out there.

>:(


Sounds like self-defense to me.


Cell phones are a good thing...