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Max Draft for East Coast & Bahamas?

Discussion in 'Marinas & Waypoints' started by SeaLion, May 3, 2018.

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  1. SeaLion

    SeaLion Senior Member

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    We are shopping for a boat to cruise the East Coast of USA and Canada, NY and Canadian canals, Gulf Coast, and the Bahamas. We saw a trawler that draws 6'. Other dimensions and details are ok and the prop is well protected. HOWEVER... will I kick myself if I try to cruise a boat with a 6' draft in these areas?
  2. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    Well, define WHERE on the East coast you plan on cruising???? Do you plan on doing the ICW on the East Coast? You can get away with 6' draft for most all places in the Bahamas, the ICW is going to be the determining factor.
  3. SeaLion

    SeaLion Senior Member

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    Oops! Thanks Capt J. Yes, we would intend to cruise the ICW, but bypass it as desired. I know the NJ ICW is mostly too shallow, so limited there.
  4. Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    The atlantic icw is not a problem with a 6' draft beyond a handful of spots where you may need a little tide to help.

    Bahamas is ok too, i ve cruised the exumas for years running a 6 1/2 foot draft 70 MY, going to out of the way anchorages, again using some tide. Now with a 5' draft 84 footer, i no longer have to worry about tides in those anchorages...

    So 6' is ok. except in the florida keys
  5. Prospective

    Prospective Senior Member

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    I think 6' would get tight on NY canal system. May want to check that.
  6. olderboater

    olderboater Senior Member

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    Canadian Canals would be the first on your list that would give me reason for worry. I think the Trent Severn would be very problematic.

    The Gulf Coast ICW in areas would be an issue.

    You mentioned the East Coast of Canada and that then implies outside Nova Scotia and perhaps Newfoundland so some serious cruising.

    I'd suggest really looking carefully at the nature of 90% of your cruising and align your boat choice to that, then determine what of the remaining 10% is impossible and if that is very important to you.

    The key is how you like to or want to cruise. Many trawler owners are almost exclusively ICW cruisers and rarely venture outside. For that, I believe 6' would be a mistake. On the other hand, we are not ICW cruisers. We do our runs outside, then duck in, but we don't do hundreds of miles on the ICW. 6' can do the East Coast but does require more playing of tides to do so. Much of our cruising is with 5' draft and even with it, we prefer outside. Right now we're going up the east coast with a 6'6" draft and would definitely not do the entire trip inside on the ICW with this boat.
  7. SeaLion

    SeaLion Senior Member

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    Excellent input. Thanks! I would anticipate that we'd go inside when we want to see a particular area or because of weather, ducking in as you suggest. More thinking to do...
  8. captainwjm

    captainwjm Senior member

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    I agree with all of the above; the key in your description, however, that the prop is well protected, is important to put the prior comments in perspective. A well protected prop on a 6' draft is better than a 5' draft with an unprotected prop [which is what I have]. I am more skittish than my 6' draft neighbor in cruising the Keys for this reason.
  9. olderboater

    olderboater Senior Member

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    I partially agree. The definition of "well protected" is something I'd have to see as I've seen some owners thinking such and finding out the hard way. Also, it's not just about props but what else is on the bottom of the boat and exposed. Certainly the nature of the hull and appendages is important.
  10. Capt Bill11

    Capt Bill11 Senior Member

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    6’ is doable, 5’ or under is even better.

    I used to love running around the ICW, Keys and Bahamas in the original Lazzara 76’ and 80’s because they drew less that 5’.
  11. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    Yeah, AND running offshore would scare the living daylights out of you. I had 2 different episodes in relatively calm seas where we got hit on the beam with a 3-4' wave and it felt like you were getting launched out of the flybridge!!!! One of them the refrigerator door flew open on the FB uline and soda's flew across the flybridge and hit the wall on the opposite side of the boat without even hitting the floor first!!!!
  12. Capt Bill11

    Capt Bill11 Senior Member

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    Actually I found the 80’, to be a fine sea boat. And never had a bad experience with either.

    In fact we ran the 80’ from St. Pete to Key West on it’s first trip out of the factory in 6’- 8’ + ( and no, I’m not exaggerating) following seas.

    Arrived in Key West in daylight. So you can guess our average speed.

    They were also some of the driest boats I ever ran.

    On a calm day, 3’ or less, we could make the run from Sarasota to Key West and about all the mate would have to do is rinse the boat off.

    Can’t say that about a lot of boats I’ve run.

    But YMMV.
  13. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    The 76' I ran was different. I think the extra 4' of cockpit made the 80' ride better. The 76' I ran had some trim tab looking plates the shape of the tunnel that extended behind the tunnels for about a 1'. Certain wakes off of the stern quarter were really bad.......following was ok.
  14. Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    I ve emptied the flybridge fridge a few times over the years with the johnson 70 which drew over 6'... unstabiilzed skylounge with tender and jet ski up top. I ll always remember one time it happened between woods hole and th vineyard. Or when a failed latch on the subzero fridge send the top drawer crashing to the galley floor spiling eggs, milk and other goodies.

    The Lazzara 84 doesnt have the ride of hatteras. But the 5' draft is fantastic in the exumas as we can go where many boats dont go. We can also thread our way inside many places when the sound is too rough. The lighter weight is a trade off when it comes to ride quality in head seas but we burn 72 to 80gph at 20kts depending on sea conditions. At 25kts 70% cruise we burn 100 to 110gph. Makes it worth waiting a day for things to calm down.

    Running the AICW with a 6' draft is not a problem, you just need to use some tide at a hald dozen tricky spots. No big deal