Best East Coast Location

[osirissail]

Originally Posted by s/v Beth

. . . Let's see, did we miss anything? Oh yeah, how long to sail to Maine, and how long to sail to Bahamas....

As the crow flies, Hampton is within 6 nm of being equidistant from both Maine and Bahamas. Or about 513 versus 520 nm. Sailing time to get to either could vary from about 85 hours (being able to average 6 kts SOG) to a month or more if you choose to gunk-hole along the way and allowances for weather.

[tartansail]

Originally Posted by osirissail

As the crow flies, Hampton is within 6 nm of being equidistant from both Maine and Bahamas. Or about 513 versus 520 nm. Sailing time to get to either could vary from about 85 hours (being able to average 6 kts SOG) to a month or more if you choose to gunk-hole along the way and allowances for weather.

I will let others comment on best options from Chessie to New England. Given the prevailing southwesterlies in the Spring and Summer, it's pretty common to sail directly from southern New England to Maine and then gunkhole back against the wind. If you come from the south, Block Island is a common point to converge on New England. From there, you can get to Penobscot Bay or Mount Desert in two days though stopping over in Provincetown and taking a third day isn't a bad idea. I find the shorthanded overnights along the crowded coast to be a lot more tiring than sailing offshore. Tracking barge traffic, poorly lit sport fisherman and fellow cruisers, even with a good radar setup, is a pain. It is important to time your trip to ride the tidal currents, which is useful all the way to the Cape Cod Canal and critical for the transit. Make sure you have a current copy of Eldridge's on board before you head out and use it to time your travels.