Map showing the Great Loop (image courtesy of Raven Cove Publishing). But it’s only the midpoint of your Florida Mini-Loop adventure. "Loopers" take on this adventure of a lifetime aboard their own boat. Walls: 15. Please leave a comment and share for those in your wake! Those who choose to sail it will be able to explore at least 15 US states and some Canadian provinces. Twitter. Here are some real-world answers from our 10 days. While a few people stay on the Mississippi all the way to the Gulf of Mexico, most 'Loopers' choose to exit at the Tennessee River to avoid heavy barge traffic on the larger waterway. Get the Great Loop Map and Meet a Different Side of U.S. Boating. Some choose to make it a lifestyle and liveaboard their boat full time for years, stopping for extended stays at various ports. Sailboats must have dependable … That is a typical, good size for full time liveaboard cruising. Not long after, a friend called from Chicago and mentioned her parents had just completed something called The Great Loop. 17-feet 0 inches – If you can clear 17’, you can cruise through downtown Chicago. Share this page on Twitter The entire loop stretches about 6,000 miles. The map can be framed or rolled and is excellent for planning the Great Loop trip. The Great Loop is 6000 miles plus, all motoring, sometimes against the current… At 7 knots, that’s over 850 hours. Preparing to do the Great Loop is no easy feat but AGLCA is here to make that preparation as painless as possible with these valuable resources. The Great Loop Experience - From Concept to Completion A Practical Guide for Planning, Preparing and Executing Your Great Loop Adventure. I can understand why. If you’ve completed or are in the process of cruising the Great Loop, we’d love to hear about your favorite Great Loop Waterways. Author: NOAA Fact is, one should consider the entire Great Loop route. Great Loop powerboats typically have either inboard engines driving a shaft through the hull to a propeller or inboard-outboard engines which puts the gear box and propeller on the transom. Locks: 100. A useful free guide to the Great Loop experience. CLASSIFIED ADS The AGLCA website has a classified ad section where members can post boats for sale, miscellaneous items for sale like charts or electronic equipment and they’ll even offer up crew. We recommend making a list of required features and a list of nice-to-have features. Regardless of the Southern route selected, boaters can float downstream to the warm waters of the Gulf and explore the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary. One Canadian boater’s experience. Find local businesses, view maps and get driving directions in Google Maps. and Inland rivers. It makes cruising the Loop about as safe and easy as it can possibly get. It is a great tool for planning your cruise around America's Great Loop. With an easy entrance and great holding, this protected anchorage has superior fishing. The Great Loop is a sailing route that circumnavigates the entire east coast of North America. Facilities for pleasure craft are few and far between, but fuel can be purchased at Kidd River City Fuel, located at Mile 51.9. It gives you every single travel day's distance, fuel range, bridge heights, free docks, anchorages and marinas - while leaving you … During our day's cruising both through the Trent Severn Waterway and Georgian Bay, we regularly pass by boaters who are doing the Great Loop. Depending on which routes you take, the Great Loop will put anywhere between 5,000 and 7,000 miles under your keel. This is it. Red icons show our progress from September 2019 … Anyway, you go, your Great Loop capable vessel must meet the following basic requirements: 1. These days it seems every boater we meet is flying the AGLCA (America's Great Loop Cruising Association) flag. Google+. 2. Depending on your vessel, the full loop can be completed in as little as two months. The best boat for YOUR Great Loop adventure is a very personal choice. I can understand why. Anything you didn’t anticipate on your Great Loop? Most importantly, it must be safe, suitable, seaworthy and comfortable. Always being close to shore allows you the comfort and security of moving through waterways that have easy access to hospitals, banks, pharmacies, airports, etc., should you need to utilize these conveiniences. Boaters may visit Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary when sailing up Lake Huron and then finally returning back to Chicago. From there, cruise east on the Gulf's Intracoastal Waterway. The Great Loop has been done in as little as two months and in as much as 12 years. Every time I mentioned doing part of the Great Loop, the person I was speaking with, sooner or later, would ask how much it would cost. At Mile 0 on the Upper Mississippi, the Great Loop route for most Loopers takes a turn onto the Ohio River. Find local businesses, view maps and get driving directions in Google Maps. Red icons show our progress from September 2019 unti our COVID hiatus in March 2020. LDWA Long Distance Paths - London Loop - Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Gtr London, Surrey We use cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. Aside from safe handling, lots of things happen once a vessel exceeds 42-feet in length. Short daylight hours, two locks, no marinas and few anchorages capable of holding more than a couple of boats add to the challenge. By Liz Pasch, Southern Boating January 2019 This path leads to the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway, which also flows to the Gulf. We will keep our map current as we move along. Hang out awhile and then head south to Key West. The Great Loop is a circumnavigation of the eastern U.S., and part of Canada. This interactive map makes a fantastic route and trip planner. We head from Marathon to Key West. The entire loop stretches about 6,000 miles (9,700 km). Rev & Sam are in the process of making their very own Great Loop Documentary. The burgees feature three different colored backgrounds. If you start in Chicago, continue south in a counter-clockwise direction to take advantage of the river currents that run into the Mississippi River. Equipping the boat for the Loop is another matter which we have addressed in several long-range cruising articles on our America's Great Loop Cruise "Smellin da Roses" web site, so we will limit this discussion to the vessel selection process and its amenities for individual lifestyles and cruising needs. America's Great Loop Cruisers' Association (AGLCA)TM is an organization of people who share a sense of adventure and a curiosity about the boating adventure known as America's Great Loop. The Great Loop has become hugely popular among boaters in recent years. America's Great Loop on Google Maps shows the entire Great Loop route, with favorite over-night anchorages, Marinas and waterfront restaurants along the way. It is made up of both natural and man-made waterways, including the Atlantic and Gulf Intracoastal Waterways, the Great Lakes, the Rideau Canal, and the Mississippi and Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway. We will keep our map current as we move along. David would have loved twin diesels for maneuverability, but we quickly decided we couldn’t afford the fuel for twins. Facebook . (See map of their route.) For many boaters, The Great Loop is a trip of a lifetime. An excellent book guide for the Great Loop. Below are maps of the entire Great Loop route (with alternatives) and of our travels so far. Your Great Loop distance on the Ohio River is a shore 46 miles, but keep in mind that it will be against a strong river current. See our itinerary below (click on the links to take you to a corresponding blog post) as we moved around America’s Great Loop. Luckily, challenges create lasting memories and we definitely have our share! The Great Loop is a system of waterways that encompasses the eastern portion of the United States and part of Canada. Share this page on Linkedin. The Great Loop, the 6,000-mile system of natural and man-made waterways that encompasses the eastern portion of the United States and part of Canada, has that same allure, but without the somewhat intimidating bluewater miles. The route includes the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, the New York State Canals, the Canadian Canals, the Great Lakes, the inland rivers, and the Gulf of Mexico. From the Big Apple, it's a straight shot up the Hudson to the Erie Canal. 23", x 27" H. If you don’t, you really should make one and get to striking things off of the list. Sometimes we will be stayed at marinas and sometimes we anchored. 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