How long to cruise NYC to Miami?
 

Hey guys:

I plan to do this trip in August, starting in NYC. Thoughts, experiences? Doing it in a Sonic 30 SS. Practical to run outside to avoid the no wake zones? Cruised to Nantucket in it before, so am "comfortable" in light offshore conditions.

Hopefully August will avoid most of the going south traffic in September, but I am guessing it will still be busy and hard to get overnight berths. Yes or No?

Any tips on how to rent the Navionics chips for the entire east coast? I don't want to buy them.

Thanking you in advance,

Chris

ask ben.

Dont know if this will help but "42TS" did this from Florida a few months ago but on the intercoastal.

42TS DID THE TRIP IN 6 DAYS FROM FT. LAUDERDALE TO GREENWICH, CT, HALF IN THE ICW HALF OUTSIDE

I did it in May 1989 from Ft-Lauderdale to lake Champlain Thru NY up the Hudson, with a Fountain 29.
Did all of Florida Offshore about 2 miles off the Coast. Slept in Palm coast first night.
Offshore again till Jacksonville FL than in ICW slept in Hilton Head.
All Intercoastal 3rd day slept in Moorehead city few no wake zones in that area.
4th day made it to Norfolk VA.
5th day was 2-3 foot seas so went offshore made it to Atlantic City.
6th Day left Hotel/Marina at 4:50 AM passed New York about 6:30 AM into the Hudson, I imagine I could of made NY in 5 Days if I needed too.

Averaged about 46MPH/ 3400RPM when running Fueled every 3 hours so as not to get caught with my pants down and never traveled passed 4:30 PM so I could fuel in the evening and leave early AM from every spot.

No cell phones back then I imagine now would be even easier. But always respect Mother Nature, she's a finicky old broad!

Your doing it southward i imagine the same kind of routing backward would not be an issues. Good Luck and have fun!

Super, thanks folks.

GLH, I have had problems getting 92 Octane fuel on long cruises. What fuel did you use?

How many hours did you run per day? Was your wife along? Did you have long lunches or fuel and go? Did you stay on the boat or at hotel/marinas? Did you buy charts/GPS chips (ho ho) for the whole route?

Thanks for your valuable information!

Chris

I'll try in order!
I had 454 Mags in that rig so no 92 needed but if I recall most places I stopped had it available. I had charted my course in advance and marked ALL the fuel docks on the route (took a while but I am not much on taking chances!) You could call in advance at areas you plan to be at 60-80% of your range and spot the marinas with 92.

Per day I usually got up around 5 AM took a shower made sure all was running fine and off I went. My first fuel stop was around 8:30 AM and all the fuel docks where open by then. I would run till about 4:30PM NO Later due to the fact I did not want to get to a closed fuel dock and have to wait till 8 or 9 AM when the fuel opened to get going. So about 10 hours a day stopped for snacks and stuff. The day i got to Norfolk I got there earlier than 4PM but did not want to tackle the route Offshore or up Chesapeake Bay that late. Remember I was going North, also from Norfolk to Atlantic City did not take the whole day but I didn't know where I could stop in NY and knew the casino marinas in AC would be a blast.

Wife??? Man I was 24 and single a friend that's an attorney was suppose to come with me and had to bag at the last minute. So i was solo. I had given a chart and course of what I would follow to my mother (this was before cellular) and told her that if I had not checked in by 1PM and 6 PM every day to call the Coast Guard station corresponding to my location (I had given her the numbers of all the stations and she knew to tell them everything about the boat and me. I would call her will fueling usually around 10-11AM and when I would dock at 4-4:30 PM.

Lunches/Sleeping arrangements? Breakfast and Lunch were just pick up snacks by the gas docks. Dinners usually consisted of a few beers two bottles of wine, food and a few more pops at a nice restaurant close to the marina I was staying at, after the whole day on the water and a nice dinner like that I would pretty much just pass out on the engine hatch with a comforter and a pillow!!! I don't think I slept in the cabin once! It was sunny all week. I did get a room in AC, by that time I was ready for time on shore!!!

Charts/GPS? Back then no gps that were worth it, just Loran I had charts for the WHOLE way, bought 4 of those $60 chart books and plotted my course on them with bearing points between buoys for the streches in large waterways (crossing rivers in Carolinas and so forth) I indicated times from points to points running at 45 MPH on the charts so i could time myself bought binoculars with compass in them to help me find buoys around and chart my position. Today I would get a chipped gps and a handheld back up with pre programed route in it.

I had originally charted to go up Chesapeake Bay and down Delaware Bay but when I got up in Norfolk the forecast said 2-3 foot seas so I went offshore to AC and saved a day. I did make it to Lake Champlain from AC in one day!!! left AC at 4:30 AM passed NY city with the tires floating (with rims) railroad ties with bolts and all... around 6 AM up the Hudson and thru the Champlain Canal from Troy NY to the bottom of lake Champlain at 7 PM.

Doing it going south in a 30 ft rig for you from NY I would wait for a day where the following day forecast is descent (2-3ft seas) and would make it that evening to AC, and fuel up spend the night and leave there early morning going offshore you can fuel up in Cape May and a few other places if I recall. I never went more than 1 mile offshore and hugged the coat line all the way. Lost sight of land only crossing Delaware bay. You could easily make Norfolk from AC in one day then it's ICW all the way south.

That trip remains one of the best times and memories off all things I have ever done. I have done that route twice in sailboats and once in a trawler but nothing compared to waking up watching the sun go up after sleeping on the hatch over the engines, cleaning up cranking those bad boys and hauling ALL DAY LONG!!!! Trip cost $1200 in gas altogether from NY might be cheaper and if I had the time I would do it twice a year.

Pics of the rig I did it in. Call me if you have anymore questions. Take Care and have fun.
G.L. Harvie
802-734-8284
BTW: It was sunny all that week! So good luck also!

By yourself?!!!! Wow, I am impressed. Now I see where your screen name came from GLH!

I thank you for your detailed reply, and think that this would be too much for the wife to tolerate and stay married afterwards. <gg>

Yes.
I would not dare put my family thru this, that kind of trip is for hardcore to the bone power boaters.

We ran the MIAMI to NYC race 36 hours with 2 stops in a 38 Gun with 502s. You can get a Map that has Texaco or the fuel stop locations. Cape Fear your electronics go silly. Maybe best to go inside there. Outside all the way to Florida stay out of Georgia. You can run northern Florida it's when you get to Palm Beach you need to decide. cb

Thanks all.

Cbdragon, what was your average speed?

CBR

I think it was about...I just looked it up. Top Speed 62 mph. fuel 700 gallons. Range 700 miles @ 45 mph. Time 44 hours 5 minutes. Finish: Third. The range is off because we made 2 stops. cb

Had a few pops with my lawyer buddy that missed this trip tonight....

He still gives me crap about missing it...

Like it's my fault.... Got to love them $300 and hour dudes...

Short of my Family this up to now has been the sh!t. A lot to say for a happening with a Fountain. :D:D:D

You will want to tuck in in Norfolk. Rounding Cape Hatteras is a nightmare, you will find yourself a good fifty miles off shore at one point. I always tuck in in when we run dowm, and that is in a 55' sport fish.

I know this is an old thread but.....
GLH, you say you made it from AC to Lk. Champlain in one day????........I don't think it's possible.
Not calling you a liar or anything like that but I made the same run with my parents on their 36' Chris Craft except we started from Toms River, NJ (Silver Bay). We hit the ocean at Manasquan Inlet and headed north. First days run found us at the Tapenzee Bridge. Second day we were at the north end of the Hudson. Third day we started through the locks and canals. Speed limits were strictly enforced, we were timed from lock to lock. Some locks took us about 30 min to get through. I believe it took us a total of 4 days to get to Lk. Champlain.
I know the Chris doesn't run as fast as as yours but to make it from AC, up the Hudson, stopping for fuel several times, and through all the locks in one day? You must have been hauling a**.

Funny it only takes me an hour plus a little to run to the tappan zee from sandy hook. A little more from sandy hook to silver bay. I say very possible running 45-50! If you are in a old busted cruiser doing 16 kts youre never gonna get there.

Very possible, I can make Rhode Island to AC in about 4 hours at 33 knots in the sport fish, that trip is 275 miles.

OK, so maybe it can be done. I just don't rememebr it that way. As I recall the speed limt was just above our planing speed. On one run between locks dad got a little tired of going slow so he hit the throttles. Operator at next lock told us our travel time between locks was too short and if we did it again our lock permit would be revoked and we would have to turn around and go home.
I guess it isn't like that anymore.

And we weren't "in a old busted cruiser doing 16 kts" either. :mad:

It would cost me 1200 just to get to Atlantic City from Sandy Hook.:eek:

I beleive that...disgusting isnt it...honestly not even that excited bout puttin the boat in the water with this gas crap

I'm loving the small blocks! Manhattan and back on 25 gals! Silver bay to the dutchman , pick up some bikini girls, back to tices shaol , back to the dutchman, drop off the bikini girls , and back home to silver bay, same 25-30 gals! Just want that condo of saks or even berns formula on those rough days.

The condo is to much boat for you.:eek:

You're right I really don't need a 51' peniz extension :eek: :evilb:

GLH - that had to be one great run. Great memories.
I only hope some day I can make a run like that.
And I had people telling me I was crazy for running alone in a 25' 10 year old boat across Erie from Toledo to get to PIB in 5-7's.:D

GLH, would red happen to be your favorite color? That is a cool picture.

thats what I was thinking, you had all the cool stuff in red in 89 a new vette with Tuned port injection, red stepside chevy, and a red fountain :)

that would be a awesome trip I would love to do that

If your looking for someone to go with you let me know. I'm game. PM me.

I've ran from the Mohawk to Lake Champlain via the locks. We did it last summer in my Baja 22 TC. First day we did Fonda to Waterford which included the "Flight of 5" and arrived in Waterford by 6pm, however we didn't get into the water until 1pm. The second day we departed at 10am and arrived in Whitehall at the top of the locks at 7pm, but this included a 2hr lunch and a 1hr gas stop. There are sections of the locks there where you need to do 10mph for like 20 miles and the lock operators knew when you were early, however we were lucky in that we are friends with the guy who's the overall lockmaster for the whole system and he basically told the guys running the locks to leave us be :)

I'd say AC->Lake Champlain in 1 day is doable, but I'd say that you'd want to do it in 2 days.

1st day AC->Troy
2nd day Troy->Champlain

-mike

I was there too. Different boat brand at the time.
Craig maybe you should tell the story of all of us being held at gunpoint by the Palm Beach County Sheriff for speeding through the no wake zones!

Absolutely stay out of Georgia ICW.

that had to be a rough ride. Been caught in a few storms out there.

I did the run from Red Bank, NJ to Ft. Lauderdale (on the outside) about 7 years ago with my boss in a 60 ft. Viking. I think it cost about $2K a day for fuel and that was in 2000....

It took us 5 days, could have done it in less but we were having to much fun! :evilb: Once we got there we spent two days hanging around Ft. Lauderdale and playing at the local clubs. :chick: I just broke up a month before with a GF of 5 years....ya get the picture...

Man, that trip was one I'll never forget...my liver hurts thinking about it... When you're out to sea for 10 hrs a day..what else is there to do but drink beer... then when you get to port..what else is there to do but visit the local gentlemens clubs...:drink:

Bonus was being a hot bod judge at Shooters! :cool: The extra bonus was the chick I met in Las Olas...:drink:

:d

That was the only part we ran on the inside, and that was because there was a Tropical Storm out to sea. We thought about going thru the cut but not being familiar with it we opted to go out Ocracoke but still had to go around cape lookout. The picture I posted of the sunset was after we rounded Cape Lookout and were headed to Wrightsville Beach.

It took me about 4 hours to run up to Catskill Creek in the Scarab, cruising at 50 mph and that's not even to the locks yet... So figure 2 hrs to AC, 4 hrs to where I went up to and another couple hours from Catskill, past Albany to the Lake... has to be at least a 10-12 hr day... :eek:

My family ran from NJ to Canada once and I think they made it a 2-3 day trip each way.

Yeah, I have a few good stories from Erie.
It'll turn on you quick.

Agree.....................

- Left AC at 4:30/5:00 AM

- There is 275 miles from AC to Troy took about 6-7 hours. Getting me there at Noon at the latest.

-Champlain Canal is a bunch of locks over 55 miles limited to 10MPH , I got out of the last Lock in Whitehall at 7:00 pm. I did go over 10 in some areas but just maybe 15 mph. Got spanked for speed at one lock since they know your time from one lock to the other, and the same operator runs both of those two locks, driving from one to the other...

Far from a impossible task. That Fountain ran Faster than a 36 Chris Craft is my bet.

Matched my net worth...

sounds like your bets paid off GLH, pretty impressive for anyone let alone a 24 yr old.

I have had a few scary days in erie myself.......



I did the trip from ny to north florida with my dad in a 38 bertram......I remember looking at mad dad and thinking he has to be the strongest man alive, one hand on the steering wheel and one on the throttles.....I was only about ten but i remember a lot about that trip.......