sailing navigation app

[Drmanso]

I'm getting ready to cruise from Kemah Tx to Tampa via the ICWW.
Tentatively by mid OCT. Looking for the best app for navigation for the Android
Also need guidance/sage advice on this route.
Can someone help ?
I'm sailing solo in a 2013 Gemini Legacy 35 s ADIS, radar, and Raymarine chart plotter.
Thanks in advance

[tkeithlu]

Two challenges. First, there is no ICW between Carrabelle, FL and Tarpon Springs, north of Clearwater. The distance across the Big Bend is such that leaving and entering in daylight requires an overnight. The good news is that with only a minor dogleg in the route you can anchor midway for some sleep - the water will only be 25 ft deep. If you need guidance on that run, ask a more specific question and I'll try to answer.

The second is checking your height versus bridges to see how many will have to lift for you to get through. My guess is not many, because that section is largely 65' bridges. Is your mast over that?

You've got a chart plotter. A nav program for the Android duplicates that without supplying what you may not have, paper charts. A $150 investment would supply you with a refurbished Lenovo Yoga and OpenCPN, which can lead to a $60 HP printer. That's the redundancy and whatever paper you want. I think I would print the ports, where having your chartplotter go phift suddenly could be seriously embarrassing.

[CaptBobR]

Consider going from Carabelle (Dog Island) to the St. Marks River which is a protected anchorage, then to Steinhatchee, then to Crystal River and then to Tampa.
Those are easy sails (less than 60 miles each day) and fun places to see.

There is a marina at Steinhatchee (Sea Hag) which is nice, has cabins ashore as well as a restaurant/bar

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by Drmanso

I'm getting ready to cruise from Kemah Tx to Tampa via the ICWW.
Tentatively by mid OCT. Looking for the best app for navigation for the Android

Don't know that area, but AquaMap USA (with "Master" upgrade) is the best Android app we've found so far. Includes ActiveCaptain and Waterway Guide markers. The "Master" upgrade, an in-app purchase, gets you the recent Army Corp of Engineers survey data.

We've also used Transas' iSailor (Transas/Wartsila vector charts), MX Mariner (NOAA raster charts), and we've looked at Embark (C-Map vector charts). We also used the earlier Plan2Nav app (C-Map vector charts), now replaced by Embark.

MX Mariner is a great back-up. P2N (and presumably Embark) are both OK. iSailor is less intuitive, at least for us. None of these have ActiveCaptain or Waterway Guide markers.

-Chris

[Chayal]

Wavve Boating (navionics)

[Franziska]

Sailgrib WR is superb and can also read Navionics charts amongst many others.