Charleston to the Keys

[Belezar]

Are there good guides for the southeast Atlantic coast? I’m going from Charleston this time to the Keys, but any info from the southern end of the Chesapeake to Florida would be good. I can’t go on the inside due to mast height, although my draft is shallow. Currently I am am just curious as to anchorages, as I’ll probably anchor every night. South Carolina and Georgia don’t seem to have lots of options, as well as stretches of Florida’s east coast. There is a Waterway Guide that covers the ICW, down there, which I suppose covers the areas I would go into at night. Any thoughts or recommendations?

[flyingfin]

Anchor every nite? Offshore in July & August might be possible if wind dies. If not, your best bet is to come inside at St Marys, Port Canaveral, Fort Pierce, Lake Worth, Miaimi. Just dont enter St Marys against the tide, you will spend half the day getting inside to anchor.

[dougweibel]

I think your best bet is to glean info from one of the ICW guides as they all include all the inlets and anchorages near the inlets. There are not really anchorages outside the inlets that I'm aware of, though I'm sure there are many places you could anchor in with an appropriate wind direction.

Your plan to anchor every night while traveling outside doesn't really seem practical, or at least very inconvenient. You will spend a lot of time/miles going in/out inlets compared to the amount of progress south you make each day. Better to make single overnight, 24-36 hour, hops. For example Charleston to St. Mary's or St. Johns.

[Enfant Du Vent]

Ahoy Belezar:
Anchoring every night will be between extremely difficult to impossible. And you'd be spending a lot of time just "getting in and then back out in the morning."

Post on this site for crew or just shanghai 2 friends.
To the list mentioned by "flyingfin" I would add St. Augustine.


If you don't feel you're ready for offshore jumps just step the mast and stay in the ICW.

You might get more helpful answers if you explained why you want to anchor every night.



I single-handed my 32' sloop down the coast 4 times. I'd wait for an excellent weather window and then go-for-it.

[Belezar]

Well, not necessarily every night. I’m looking for options, and from a safety point I like to have and brief my options. Maybe it’s the pilot in me who checks out the other airports - alternates for poor conditions. I know I can plow on through, and probably will as I can get lots of miles in. I know there is not really offshore anchoring until into Hawks Channel. Charleston to Jacksonville is an easy overnight trip if the wind cooperates.

[ThereAndBack]

Originally Posted by flyingfin

Anchor every nite? Offshore in July & August might be possible if wind dies. If not, your best bet is to come inside at St Marys, Port Canaveral, Fort Pierce, Lake Worth, Miaimi. Just dont enter St Marys against the tide, you will spend half the day getting inside to anchor.

These are all good inlets, but some additional notes.

You can stop in at St. Simmons if it doesn't look like you'll make it to Jacksonville or if you're going to hit it on an outgoing tide.

St. Augustine is a good stop.

Ponce de Leon inlet has an anchorage right inside it and is low drama in nice weather.

Cape Canaveral is an easy inlet, but you need to transit a lock to get to a "real" anchorage.

[Telemark43]

My 47' Lord Nelson Cutter is on the hard in Thunderbolt GA for repairs likely until may 1st. I would be interested in joining you as crew for a mostly offshore passage to the Keys. St Simons is nice (Brunswick lots of winter snowbirds).I have stopped in Lake Worth several times before, then hopped over to the Bahamas. Made passage from Chesapeake to Virgins, fought tide & current St Johns... severe, and crossed Gulf Stream back and forth. Recommend overnights with night watch crews... inlets are ... difficult

[Lionshooter]

40 years ago when I was a delivery captain, I made the trip from Beaufort, NC to Bradenton, FL numerous times, always outside because of mast height. I had a crew so we could sail all night if necessary. However, there were times when putting into an anchorage inside was necessary for supplies or repairs. It was never a problem but there are 2 inlets that stand out as the most difficult. The first to come to mind is Charleston. I had been in and out several times in daylight but one time I had to go in at night. As soon as I rounded the jetty all I could see were a million city lights. It was a daunting task to identify the buoy nav lights and ranges but I figured it out and eventually got to a berth at City Marina. It was a bit stressful.
The other inlet I hated was Ft. Lauderdale. Always turbulent, narrow, and not forgiving. I'm sure that a lot has changed in 40 years as has the whole world so I can't speak of present-day conditions, but I'm sure that Charleston has become even worse for nighttime sailors.

[chriswheat]

All good advice above. Skipper Bob's guide to anchorages lists quite a few that aren't mentioned in the waterway Guide, but none are offshore of course. I can confirm flyingfin's warning about coming in to St Mary's against the ebb tide but once you are in you can drop the hook in Cumberland sound, just give the channels a wide berth.

[svfinlandia]

Originally Posted by Enfant Du Vent

Ahoy Belezar:
Anchoring every night will be between extremely difficult to impossible. And you'd be spending a lot of time just "getting in and then back out in the morniing.

I have single-handed twice from Beaufort to Daytona Ponce.
You may have to do at least one overnighter, but there are lots of invites down on the coast that you can go into an anchor for the night. Yes, it may be a long way in the long way out but it is very doable.

Al, S/V Finlandia