Well we are stuck here in Norfolk and do not see any possability for rounding Cape Hatteras anytime soon. It has been several years since I have done the ICW and was looking for some updates on spots to worry about and also the feasability of going out and around by Roanoke Island and transiting Croatan sound, I know this would save me several hours. Anyone been down this way lately? We are 130' with a draft of 7' Thanks for the help.
teh 70 footer i run draws 6 1/4 to 6 1/2 fully loaded and i run the ICW. The section from Norfolk to Beaufort NC is no problem for the most part. the run from Norfolk to Currituck Sound is easy, channel is a little narrow but plenty deep in the middle (stay away from the edges in some spots, like most of the ICW anywya...). Al the bridges south of norfolk are pretty nicely synch'd with little waiting if you time your speed correcly. Great Steel Bridge is the only one that it's hard not to wait for, so take it slow so you dont' have to wait too long there, it's narrow near the bridge and shoals up quickly on the sides. stay in the center of the A&C canal, there are stumps off to the side. last trip earlier this year i saw a 50' catching a stump waiting for the north landing bridge (southbound), he wasn't that far off the channel. and watch for logs. depths in currituck sound (north of Coinjock) can be affected by wind (water gets blown out in northerly winds) you may want to be careful although i have never seen less than 9' of water. the channel is not very wide so stay mid channel Croatan sound is a little thin and i've never taken that route, you dont' save a lot of time anyway. The Aligator river and canal is an easy run, nice and deep. Just watch out at the northern end of the Aligator river, many folks run into trouble there becasue they use old charts that dont' show FLG 3 at the entrance. then when they clear the shoal off the point, they blindly follow the line on their plotters at R8/FLG7 into a 3' shoal. Instead if you aim directly for G9 you'll have at least 9' of water. the rest of the aligator river/canal is plenty deep and so is the rest of the route all the way to Beaufort. really not worth getting beat up outside... and not worth being stuck in Norfolk waiting for a weather window! the biggest issue on that stretch is that it's the only section of the ICW that most hot shot sportfish jocks have to run. Many of them dont care about passing signals and even much less about courtesy... they come out of nowhere aroudn the bend at 25kts throwing a 4' wake.
Going back some years to just after Hurricane Alex we were joined by a 98' and 110' yacht in Coinjock at Midway marina. They were northbound and had come up the sound without any issue. Offshore was too rough for them to go around the Cape also. We traveled with them to Norfolk with no issues. Coinjock is probably about as far as you will make it in one day with the bridges and lock to deal with. They have about 300' of bulkhead dock so you should be able to tie up there.
with an early start out of norfolk (7:30), you can make coinjock by 1 or 2pm easily at slow speed. I rarely stop in Coinjock unless the Albermarle is really nasty and usually push down to the Alligator rive and anchor there. Plenty of room and good holding both at the northen end or near the canal entrance. or at higher speed, you can easily transit the canal and anchor in the Pungo river one more thing... if it's blowing over 30kts, the Alligator River bridge doens't open so check before leaving Coinjock or you may have to anchor north of the bridge (good holdign and depth on the east side, off the creek.
Pascal you are correct about the timing on Coinjock. I think I was remembering the times I didn't start out at Norfolk or some bridge or the lock was delayed. Got stuck in the lock once for two hours. Once you clear the last bridge before Coinjock you can go as far as you like. In the ICW, especially with a boat that size, the captain will probably want to be on the bridge the entire time so that may limit how many hours they run also. Ok now I'm already planning my next run down that way....
I ve run many sections at night but I wouldn't run the pungo-alligator after dark, too many logs and debris. And yes, i stay at the helm on the icw it s too easy to stray just a bit of center in many places and run in trouble
I ran the outside around Hattaras in a gale many years ago. It cured me of any thought of ever going that way again. There is vitually no time saved. The only reason to go that way is if you're too big. We did it in a 140' Dinner yacht, but I've seen Mystique come through inside and she's 162'. If you stop at Coinjock be careful leaving in the AM. I've run into real dense fog there many times and the North River is winding. As you leave Coinjock and enter the river that area tends to shoal a bit, but the tugs coming through generally keep it pretty clear. Also, be sure to leave Norfolk early. The bridges lock down for rush hour. If you don't get out before rush hour you'll only make Coinjock.
yes, Salty's is a good resource and i use it / contribute but they tend to over hype things a bit... after reading it for a while you start wondering if a gale off Cape Hatteras isnt' a better option!
Ditto. Wouldn't do the trip without checking it. I find most contributers to Salty's are sailboaters who are concerned with dafts of 6' +. So, for most of the boats I run that is a bit hype, but it's OK with me with my 3' to 5' drafts.
Don't know if this effects you or not: "I. AICW/North Carolina - Virginia Cut CLOSED at Froli Sleep SystemStatute Mile 15.2 and 20.2 Late yesterday afternoon, we received a notice from the USCG to the effect that, due to the recent heavy rainfalls, both the Centerville Turnpike (SR 170) Swing Bridge, at AIWW mile 15.2, and the S165 Swing Bridge, at mile 20.2, across the North Landing River, both in Chesapeake, VA, are unable to open. This effectively CLOSES the primary AICW route south of Norfolk, Virginia until these two spans are able to return to normal operation. There IS an alternative however. Follow the link below to learn more! Check out the full story by going to: http://www.CruisersNet.net/urgent-n...ia-cut-route-aicw-statute-miles-15-2-and-20-2 "
Thanks for the update, we are scheduled to leave in the morning. Hopefully they will be open tomorrow.
From what i read elesewhere it s going to be a couple of days till water comes down enough to start repairs... Call before heading that way
Update- We departed Norfolk at 1215 when we got word the bridges were operating. We got to Coinjock around 1730, just in time as the bridges closed down again for high water. The next morning we left at 0645 and headed south, I decided to head down to Roanoke sound and transit the outer sounds to the Neuse. Except for the crab pots and a skinny spot (8') just after the 65' bridge to the next green it was much easier going. We had a 112' go the ICW and I think we beat them by about 2 hrs to Beaufort. This is a good route if you have a boat that can run, once we cleared the Marshes we were up and running at 22 kts., all the way to Adams creek. We did not stop in Beaufort but continued on, and are now in Ft. Lauderdale. Coinjock to Ft. Lauderdale in about 48 hrs.
That 2 hour difference to Beaufort is about right, which is why I always go the Aligator route. The one time I went down the sound I got my tail handed to me so the 2 hours is a small price to pay. Plus I like the burgers at Clawson's. Unless I have enough time to make Writesville Beach, Beaufort is my spot. Thoroughly enjoy that town and its people. Glad you had a good and safe trip.
