Hampton Road to Florida to Bahamas on December

[Vanessallj]

I am planning my first long passage to depart from Hampton Road to Florida then to Bahamas on first week of coming December. Initially I plan to sail all the way offshore, sailing not far from shore and avoid touching the Gulf Stream. But many suggest that not to sail offshore passing Cape Hatteras. Most people suggest taking ICW to Beaufort NC.

I sail on C&C Red Wing 35' MK1 1971, Atomic 4 motor. This babe sail smooth on sea but not great on just motoring all the way. It would be great for any experience sailor there to give any advice for this passage trip on:

1. What to watch and beware of sailing during December?
2. Would you prefer all the way offshore or ICW? Why?
3. If my final plan were Hampton Road - ICW to Beaufort NC - come offshore to Florida - Bahamas, any detail along this route that I need to be aware of?
4. Any suggestion on good spot to anchor for the night along this route?

Finally, any sharing, your stories, experience, or ideas are always welcome Thanks!

[Paul L]

Start by doing the ICW to Beaufort, then reevaluate when you are there based on weather, boat condition, etc.

[caradow]

What Paul L says!!

The Gulf Stream can meander very close to the beach at times around Hatteras.
It makes going south a bit more difficult when west of the GS.
Your route offshore if you choose is very very weather dependent.
Avoid at all costs with a northerly.
Best time would be to go is with a westerly.

The ICW is relaxing and interesting.
When you come out at Beaufort take some time to hang at Point Lookout.
When leaving Point Lookout It is a short offshore sail to Wrightsville Beach/Banks Channel which is a nice safe place to anchor and pick up supplies if needed. There you can make your next choice of ICW vs Offshore.
Best

[Peeew]

On my boat I don’t have the ICW option due to mast. I recently made my third passage from Hampton Roads to the Bahamas, twice using one log offshore leg and once making hops offshore with a few stops due to Covid testing rules last year. So I can’t say anything about the ICW choice. I cross the GS fairly north, a bit after clearing Hatteras with the choice depending on the thinnest part of the stream coupled with advice from Chris Parker or weather routers inc. Once outside the GS I find it is warmer and fishing can be productive. This had taken me 5-5.5 days and I do it with at least one other crew aboard.
On my trip with stops I found a few nice places along the coast and with decent weather info I usually avoided any seriously bad weather. Offshore of course I do the best I can with 5 day forecasts and am prepared as best I can for the unexpected. My boat is 46 ft if that helps time comparison and I don’t carry enough fuel to motor a lot.
Whatever you decide enjoy the trip and welcome to the Bahamas!

[Vanessallj]

Originally Posted by Peeew

On my boat I don’t have the ICW option due to mast. I recently made my third passage from Hampton Roads to the Bahamas, twice using one log offshore leg and once making hops offshore with a few stops due to Covid testing rules last year. So I can’t say anything about the ICW choice. I cross the GS fairly north, a bit after clearing Hatteras with the choice depending on the thinnest part of the stream coupled with advice from Chris Parker or weather routers inc. Once outside the GS I find it is warmer and fishing can be productive. This had taken me 5-5.5 days and I do it with at least one other crew aboard.
On my trip with stops I found a few nice places along the coast and with decent weather info I usually avoided any seriously bad weather. Offshore of course I do the best I can with 5 day forecasts and am prepared as best I can for the unexpected. My boat is 46 ft if that helps time comparison and I don’t carry enough fuel to motor a lot.
Whatever you decide enjoy the trip and welcome to the Bahamas!

Great detail sharing thank you! I've been getting so many feedback asking me not to cross Hatteras but yet many people like you manage to did it safely.

[dougweibel]

I have made the trip either northbound or southbound numerous times. My best advice is to wait and see what the weather is doing. The trip around Hatteras can be smooth enough to waterski or it can be the graveyard of the Atlantic. If you are ready to go and the weather looks favorable then proceed outside. If not, take the ICW. With winter hours of daylight it usually takes us 3 days to get from Norfolk to Beaufort if we are not stopping along the way to enjoy the trip. From Beaufort to northern FL we generally go outside in one hop or more, depending on weather.

At Hatteras the Gulf Stream squeezes right in to the shoals and you often get wave sets colliding from different directions so it can get very uncomfortable depending on what the weather is doing and has been doing the previous days.

The ICW from Norfolk to Beaufort is fairly pleasant. There are some stretches with limited/poor anchoring so don't leave thinking about an anchorage till late in the day. You also get the choice of taking the Virginia Cut or the Dismal Swamp route. If you have time there are some nice little towns to visit along the way. Google the Albemarle Loop for some ideas.

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by Vanessallj

Great detail sharing thank you! I've been getting so many feedback asking me not to cross Hatteras but yet many people like you manage to did it safely.

You've been getting the advice because it is good advice. Your original post does not come across like you are an experienced offshore sailor. December in the North Atlantic off Hatteras is not an optium place to gain that experience.
We've done a lot of offshore passage making, currently in South Africa. The last time we left Hampton Roads for the Caribbean we left on the advice of the weather router noted in this thread in November. We heard the most number of Maydays in a single night the first night out than anywhere else we've been, including having the Coast Guard flying ovehead trying to locate the various distressed boats.
Going inside to Beaufort is a nice motor. It shakes the boat down a little and leaves you with a good jumping off stop if the weather cooperates or the option to make further progress on the ICW if it doesn't. Any boat that can't fit in the ICW is obviously larger than your boat, so not necessarily a good comparison. Anyone who says: Hay we've done the trip 5 times, obviously has much more offshore experience than you have.

[caradow]

After reading these posts and your comments I strongly suggest that you purchase one of the cruising guides for the ICW. Take your time and enjoy the ride.

Then acquire your offshore experience and shake down in shorter distances.
Was wondering, do your have an ERIRB, Liferaft with up to date cert., thoughts on Hypothermia, Sea sickness, good communication other than VHF such as SSB, Sat phone, engine spare parts etc etc. Excellent flares (SOLAS)?

Believe me I am not trying to offend you at all, but just want you to be safe for you, your crew and boat.

Its just that you are contemplating going around Hatteras in December!
Personally I would not attempt that in December other than MAYBE being far east of the GS in a boat that has been throughly shaken down and with an experienced crew.
There are those on this forum who would probably argue with my statements but you are the one that will have to make the informed decision.

[skipmac]

Hatteras can be very, very nasty. As noted the potential for the Gulf Stream to pass very close to shore combined with the shoals extending far offshore if further mixed with a north wind is what makes for the dangerous conditions. And in December winds with a northerly component are pretty common.

But if calm winds or moderate winds that are not from NNW to ENE then Hatteras could be quite benign. However going south that could mean headwinds and beating against it. Ideal conditions would be moderate winds from the west. If you don't have that or have the slightest doubt then you should go inside at least as far as Beaufort.

[Tingum]

You have been getting some good advice. I have made this trip many times. Don’t even think about going around Hatteras in December in your boat. Sorry, but the bow is too close to the stern! That is an experience you don’t want. Steam on down to Beaufort and coastal hop your way to Lake Worth. Current Bahamian rules require a Negative Covid test for an entry, which has a time limit that will require you to wait for a weather window, get your test, then scoot across with the herd that will be waiting for the window. Check the Bahamian web site for current requirements. Good Luck!

[LoudMusic]

I did this just a few weeks ago, offshore, in my 43' catamaran. Our airdraft is 64'8" so we're relegated to offshore most of the time.

Timing Cape Hatteras is critical. We were able to go when there was almost no wind and just motored around the Cape. It was mostly calm and almost boring. Once we were south of Beaufort the wind picked up out of the west and we were really scooting.

We also got REALLY LUCKY with the Gulf Stream current once we were further south. If the information on Windy is at all accurate, we actually had a southbound counter current nearly the entire way. My instruments would agree; .5 to 1.5 kts in our favor. Even all the way south at Palm Beach to Ft Lauderdale. I think this was due to a rather significant storm that had recently blown through, but I'm not sure what all affects the Stream's tragectory.

https://i.imgur.com/Vznoo8f.png

https://i.imgur.com/0yo4IIT.png

I don't think you'll be able to catch a weather window to go from Hampton Roads all the way to south Florida. It's just too far and the weather changes too much day to day. I'd plan for not more than two nights at sea, and probably keep it to one at a time, then find a marina or anchorage. We stopped in Hilton Head, St Catherine's I think?, St Simons, Cumberland Island, St Augustine, and then our final destination in Ft Lauderdale.

For finding anchorages, we've had pretty good luck with Waterway Guide. There are fairly helpful comments on the pinned anchorages. You don't have to anchor exactly where the icons are, but seems most people anchor near them, and provide information about the conditions there.

[BelizeRumRunner]

The ICW guide is a good reference to have and plan trips. Also suggest bob423 tracks. He runs up and down the ICW and has current info on shoals and anchorages. His tracks can be downloaded to use with navionics, aquamaps and garmin plotters. See bobicw.blogspot.com or Google Bob423 tracks

[TBW]

Have done this in December and January a few times in a trawler. Its all weather. Beaufort to Charleston or maybe St Augustine; or Hilton Head or maybe Ft Lauderdale or Stuart. Weather is all. Went inside from St Augustine to Stuart once. Never again. Lots of dredging in Stuart. Plenty of markers but very confusing (to me at least) at night. Careful. Watch the weather and you will be fine. Might sit for a while here and there.

[jewt]

Some very good advice here, I have made this trip about 12 time around the same time of the year. Get your weather reports from Chris Parker! Unless you want to spend a lot of time motoring I would suggest going inside to Beaufort then, weather willing, make the offshore run from there to Marsh Harbor, best place to clear in. The cut through the Bahaman Bank at Marsh Harbor can be very rough with North wind (several boats have been lost there) but in calmer conditions it is a nice ride. Study the charts along the North Bahaman coast so you have a good idea of where to come through. Many of the cuts are poorly marked and not well maintained and not advised to attempt at night!
the best one (5years ago) is / was Little Harbor. I spent one night sailing up and down the bank for around four hours waiting for dawn and ending up coming in the channel on the East side Spanish Cay, nice deep channel but poorly marked.

Good Luck and enjoy the trip! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

jewt Bifrost-8

New Bern, NC

[mnh]

I’ve dealt with the Atomic 4 Tonka toy engine for many years on my C&C 29. Besides being an older gasoline engine with fuel/water issues and such, I don’t think it’s up to the task sailing around Hatteras in Dec.
You will need a lot more horse power if the seas and winds do not listen to Chris Parker.
There is nothing but a lee shore out of Norfolk. Oregon inlet is your only realistic bailout should you need to.
My suggestion are like others above. Hatteras is not to be trifled with especially in the winter months. I suggest you reserve going around in the spring from South to North.
If you choose to go outside Hatteras this time of year with the Atomic 4, you may want to have a good life insurance policy intact. I speak to this issue from having dealt with the Atomic beast for years. And …I was a commercial fisherman off that coast in a former life for several years. There was a reason that we quit the big fish in Dec and went crabbing and oystering inshore. Best of luck with your decision my friend.
My 2 cents,
mnh