Gulf Coast: How long to transit the ICW from Kemah, TX to Pensacola, FL?

[Stu Jackson]

Originally Posted by valhalla360

How long depends greatly on how hard you want to push.

Generally, it's a bad idea to run at night, so figure 50 miles maximum per travel day but a good idea to leave at least 2-3 days per week for waiting out weather. So figure around 200miles per week at a comfortable pace.

Sure you can push hard and do it faster but then you may as well do the offshore thing.

^^^^^^

Excellent advice, regardless of how "ancient!" What's a year or two in the digital age...

Seriously (if I could ever be accused of that!), 50 nm per day is a very, very, very realistic goal.

Incredibly, to me at least, this holds true almost everywhere one sails or motors a displacement hull.

It worked in the following places:

SF Bay and The California Delta for 33 years

Up and down the California coastline from SF to Drakes Bay and Monterey

From SF to Vancouver Island harbor hopping in August & September 2016

Many French and English canals, including the Nivernais, , the Netherlands, the Midi, Severn and Thames

BVIs


Here in the Canadian Gulf Islands and the American San Juans


Oddly enough, the old sawhorse:"YMMV" simply doesn't hold true in this most basic of planning tools.

I know this is an old thread, but it has a new respondent who seems to have done his homework to even find this thread. Good on you, Capn Bill, for asking. I think the "what to see along the way" seems to depend on which route you choose.

Safe journey, either way.

[sandy stone]

Wow, you made 50 miles per day on the Canal du Midi? Pretty impressive - we couldn't pass up all those great little canalside towns and restaurants, then there were the locks.


Edit - but for "normal" cruising in the US, I would say 40-50 miles a day is plenty.

[a64pilot]

US ICW 50 miles is easy for an average sailboat.
Summertime if you really want to, 70 is doable.
50 miles is just an 8 hour day.

[sandy stone]

Very true, it's just a question of whether you really want to get someplace and are willing to average 8 hours a day travel time, or if you have extra time to dawdle and just enjoy being someplace different.