Mapquest type info for boating

[Randy]

Might be taking a boat trip with a friend from Baltimore, MD to Hilton Head, SC, and was wondering if there is any way to figure out about how long it would take. It's a 48' Sea Ray and we're thinking we could cruise at about 20-25 knots.

 

[twowheelnut]

Got Garmin? Tons of charts for waterways. Do you have a 276C type of GPS that does both land and water?

 

[Scab]

Some of the smaller hand-held gps units are for exactly that.

 

[Randy]

Perhaps 2 problems with the above exist...1) I'm not in Baltimore right now, so, don't know if there would be a benefit to charting it out from here. 2) I have a Quest 2 and I don't think it does water. There is GPS and autopilot on the boat, but, the boat isn't here. Just trying to get an idea of how long it would take or if there are any online tools that could help figure it out.

 

[twowheelnut]

Perhaps 2 problems with the above exist...1) I'm not in Baltimore right now, so, don't know if there would be a benefit to charting it out from here. 2) I have a Quest 2 and I don't think it does water. There is GPS and autopilot on the boat, but, the boat isn't here. Just trying to get an idea of how long it would take or if there are any online tools that could help figure it out.

Er, like land based maps, the water charts can be downloaded to and from your pc, so you don't need to be there or on the boat.

Linky

 

[twowheelnut]

Clicky here, too.

But to answer your question: Balt to HH is 470 NM +/- or 20.89 hours at 22.5 knots.

Send me a cookie or sumpin'.

 

[Randy]

macho grassy ass!!! still not sure if this is gonna happen, but, i hope it does. send me a pm with address and favorite cookie.

wow - what an anticlimatic event. My 1000th post was me offering TWN a cookie

 

[twowheelnut]

Sucks, don't it?

 

[okmac]

AHEM, what about the current.

 

[Randy]

Don't know about the current in the Atlantic Ocean or the Intercoastal waterway. The average speed will depend on how rapidly the owner wants to empty the 400 gallons of fuel into the twin 500hp Cummins diesels. I think she'll do about 32 knots wide open.

We'll try to do 12 hours/day and then dock and whoop it up. At 27 knots, it'll burn about 46gph, so, we'll have to back it down a bit to go 12 hours before needing fuel.

 

[twowheelnut]

AHEM, what about the current.

WTF? Mr. Cornbelt raises an ocean current question? :bleh: It's a power boat. Power boats overcome currents with more power. Besides, the question posed assumed an average speed which negates the current factor.

Don't look now, but there's a bunch of hungry crows headed your way! :lol:

Randy, if you go inter-coastal, your average speed is gonna be waaaay slower than 20 or 25 knots. More like 10 - 12 given all of the no wake zones and dinghies crossing your path. Allow a bit more time.

-Barney "Popeye" Fife :grin:

 

[Randy]

I answered nice about the current knowing the 1-2 punch wasn't far behind

Too early to tell if we're gonna do the intercoastal. Won't have to make that decision till we get to Norfolk. Since it will still be in hurricane season, we'll have to see what the weather has in store. I would prefer to keep 'er out at sea and run it WFO.

 

[twowheelnut]

One benefit of going I-coast: ****ies. Lots and lots of ****ies. mg:

Trust me. I know this to be true.

 

[Randy]

Well, we'll be in HH for a week, so, even if we take the Atlantic down, we can do a blast up the IC for an excursion.

Found out last night that odds have slipped a bit in this happening. The highly-experienced person that was going to be going along might have to back out. If so, that leaves me and the new owner. While neither of us are new to boating, neither of us have experience tossing around a 48 footer for a 2-3 day blast down the Atlantic coastline. Sure, it has auto pilot and 2 different nav systems with plenty of warning features, but, this isn't a little $10K wave hopper we're talking about and it isn't like we're going out into a little lake where the nearest assistance is within an earshot of an airhorn. It's a 0-hour vessel that he's taking delivery of today and he'll only have 1 or 2 chances to take it out into the Chesepeake for a shake-down.

 

[daviddowns2000]

Don't know about the current in the Atlantic Ocean or the Intercoastal waterway. The average speed will depend on how rapidly the owner wants to empty the 400 gallons of fuel into the twin 500hp Cummins diesels. I think she'll do about 32 knots wide open. We'll try to do 12 hours/day and then dock and whoop it up. At 27 knots, it'll burn about 46gph, so, we'll have to back it down a bit to go 12 hours before needing fuel.

If you go outside, you need to plan carefully where you are going to duck in to get fuel. Give yourself plenty of slack. There aren't any fuel docks on the outside. You will have to run the inlets to get fuel.

The ICW clearly sounds like the best bet for this crew in a new boat. As TWN said, it will be a lot slower than going outside (I would allow at least 5 days) and you probably will not want to run at night in the ICW...too easy to miss a mark and end up in trouble, but compared to going outside, it will be less likely to end up in disaster if the weather turns snotty or you have mechanical failures. I've done the trip from New York to Florida, but not in 13 years, so I don't know what ICW charts/guidebooks are now available, but there used to be mile by mile chartbooks. Check out Bluewater Books in Fort Lauderdale, I think they have a website. Also westmarine.com, for guides/charts. If you go outside, you will need charts for the coast and the inlets. You can get them also from Bluewater or West Marine.

You need to look carefully at the charts and plan your runs, but you can probably do a combination of inside/outside if weather is settled and after you are pretty sure everything is working right and you know how to use it.

Be sure you sign up with SeaTow in advance...one long tow can cost $$$, much more than a year's subscription, if you have to call them to be towed. Don't expect the USCG to help.

 

[tripletango]

If the weather is calm and you are not in the inland waterway(speed limits in some areas)! Basically you will beat the boat and more especially you into the ground with any sea whatsoever at that speed. There are many GPS out there that are dual purpose. However I would be surprised that the boat does not have that capability aboard. It will take longer than you think just relax and enjoy!

Don't know about the current in the Atlantic Ocean or the Intercoastal waterway. The average speed will depend on how rapidly the owner wants to empty the 400 gallons of fuel into the twin 500hp Cummins diesels. I think she'll do about 32 knots wide open.

We'll try to do 12 hours/day and then dock and whoop it up. At 27 knots, it'll burn about 46gph, so, we'll have to back it down a bit to go 12 hours before needing fuel.

If you go outside, you need to plan carefully where you are going to duck in to get fuel. Give yourself plenty of slack. There aren't any fuel docks on the outside. You will have to run the inlets to get fuel.

The ICW clearly sounds like the best bet for this crew in a new boat. As TWN said, it will be a lot slower than going outside (I would allow at least 5 days) and you probably will not want to run at night in the ICW...too easy to miss a mark and end up in trouble, but compared to going outside, it will be less likely to end up in disaster if the weather turns snotty or you have mechanical failures. I've done the trip from New York to Florida, but not in 13 years, so I don't know what ICW charts/guidebooks are now available, but there used to be mile by mile chartbooks. Check out Bluewater Books in Fort Lauderdale, I think they have a website. Also westmarine.com, for guides/charts. If you go outside, you will need charts for the coast and the inlets. You can get them also from Bluewater or West Marine.

You need to look carefully at the charts and plan your runs, but you can probably do a combination of inside/outside if weather is settled and after you are pretty sure everything is working right and you know how to use it.

Be sure you sign up with SeaTow in advance...one long tow can cost $$$, much more than a year's subscription, if you have to call them to be towed. Don't expect the USCG to help.

Very good advice.

 

[tripletango]

Well, we'll be in HH for a week, so, even if we take the Atlantic down, we can do a blast up the IC for an excursion.Found out last night that odds have slipped a bit in this happening. The highly-experienced person that was going to be going along might have to back out. If so, that leaves me and the new owner. While neither of us are new to boating, neither of us have experience tossing around a 48 footer for a 2-3 day blast down the Atlantic coastline. Sure, it has auto pilot and 2 different nav systems with plenty of warning features, but, this isn't a little $10K wave hopper we're talking about and it isn't like we're going out into a little lake where the nearest assistance is within an earshot of an airhorn. It's a 0-hour vessel that he's taking delivery of today and he'll only have 1 or 2 chances to take it out into the Chesepeake for a shake-down.

Trust me when i say this. The ocean is extremely unforgiving. I have sailed thousands of miles all over the world.

Please please get an experienced person to accompany you!

No ******** so called sailor - but a person that has a ton of experience!

I am serious!!!!!!

If you go down the ICW then no problem but it would still be better to have an experienced sailor aboard. One who knows the ICW.

There is no time table on a boat, it is what mother nature will allow you. If you push the envelope she will kick your ass if you're lucky if not she will take what is yours.

 

[Randy]

Trust me when i say this. The ocean is extremely unforgiving. I have sailed thousands of miles all over the world.Please please get an experienced person to accompany you!

No ******** so called sailor - but a person that has a ton of experience!

I am serious!!!!!!

If you go down the ICW then no problem but it would still be better to have an experienced sailor aboard. One who knows the ICW.

There is no time table on a boat, it is what mother nature will allow you. If you push the envelope she will kick your ass if you're lucky if not she will take what is yours.

Mmaybe I'm missing something...are all boaters called sailors? If not, we're not taking a sailboat - we're talking about a 48' 33,000 lb. boat with 1000 hp. It's more than capable of handling the Atlantic. But, I respect the water and realize that, regardless of the technology on the boat (GPS/Chartplotter/Radar/Autopilot/bow thrusters for parking), someone still has to run it all.

The person who we were hoping would accompany us has been selling boats/yachts for many years and has been on the water his whole life. He's done the trip to FL many times. In the off season up here when no one is buying boats, he's transporting boats from the north to the south for the snowbirds. If he doesn't go, I'm not sure if we'll be making the trip. Depends on how many hours he gets with a captain.

And I do fully understand that mother nature still rules the roost regardless of the size of the vessel. We certainly wouldn't blast through the Atlantic at 25 knots in 5-10' waves.