Where to Start: Caribbean Boating

TiltonBB · 04-25-2019, 06:39 AM

Becoming a "looper " is defined as someone who has cruised the Great Loop. That is the 5,000 to 7,500 mile trip mile trip on the water through the Eastern United States

The American Great Loop Association is comprised of a niche group of individuals with a passion for cruising the Great Loop.

By definition, The Great Loop is the circumnavigation of Eastern North America by water also referred to as America's Great Loop and the Great Circle Route, the trip varies from 5,000 to 7,500 miles (8,000 to 12,000 km) depending on route options and detours taken. It has been said to be the world's safest and most scenic continuous waterway. It is the boating adventure of a lifetime that will take you to shorelines from the Florida Keys to Canada. On the trip you will pass the Statue of Liberty by way of the Hudson River, journey through the Historic Erie Canal, across downtown Chicago, down inland rivers of the heartlands and finally to the Gulf of Mexico.

joey2665 · 04-25-2019, 07:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TiltonBB

Becoming a "looper " is defined as someone who has cruised the Great Loop. That is the 5,000 to 7,500 mile trip mile trip on the water through the Eastern United States

The American Great Loop Association is comprised of a niche group of individuals with a passion for cruising the Great Loop.

By definition, The Great Loop is the circumnavigation of Eastern North America by water also referred to as America's Great Loop and the Great Circle Route, the trip varies from 5,000 to 7,500 miles (8,000 to 12,000 km) depending on route options and detours taken. It has been said to be the world's safest and most scenic continuous waterway. It is the boating adventure of a lifetime that will take you to shorelines from the Florida Keys to Canada. On the trip you will pass the Statue of Liberty by way of the Hudson River, journey through the Historic Erie Canal, across downtown Chicago, down inland rivers of the heartlands and finally to the Gulf of Mexico.

Wow that is some awesome trip. Definitely adding it to my bucket list!

8gv · 04-25-2019, 07:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TiltonBB

Becoming a "looper " is defined as someone who has cruised the Great Loop. That is the 5,000 to 7,500 mile trip mile trip on the water through the Eastern United States

The American Great Loop Association is comprised of a niche group of individuals with a passion for cruising the Great Loop.

By definition, The Great Loop is the circumnavigation of Eastern North America by water also referred to as America's Great Loop and the Great Circle Route, the trip varies from 5,000 to 7,500 miles (8,000 to 12,000 km) depending on route options and detours taken. It has been said to be the world's safest and most scenic continuous waterway. It is the boating adventure of a lifetime that will take you to shorelines from the Florida Keys to Canada. On the trip you will pass the Statue of Liberty by way of the Hudson River, journey through the Historic Erie Canal, across downtown Chicago, down inland rivers of the heartlands and finally to the Gulf of Mexico.

That looks like a great trip!

I guess I should have bought a bigger kayak...

Andromeda321 · 04-25-2019, 10:31 AM

I have some friends who have actually circumnavigated the world on their sailboat (the ultimate loop!)- took them about ten years, and they homeschooled their three children. It's been a blast following them, and getting random postcards from places like St Helena and Papua New Guinea.

They run a cool blog here- https://www.sailingtotem.com/ and make money via coaching people who also want to cruise full time. To hear them tell it, the Bahamas is the place to start because it's easy to reach from the mainland USA (you don't need to do a long passage to get there), and there are a ton of islands close together and it's easy getting supplies/repairs and you meet a ton of other cruisers. Most people apparently who are only cruising for a short period never even get further than the Bahamas for various reasons.

Personally my only issue with the entire thing is to paraphrase Kurt Vonnegut, I am a freshwater person and whenever I swim in an ocean I feel as though I'm swimming in chicken soup.

Puffin · 04-25-2019, 10:48 AM

Lots and Lots of people post their adventures on youtube, some are better than others, Many start out with high hopes but run into setbacks like running out of Money, loose interest, or worse, have major fails.

There are a few that I fallow, both Sail and Power,

Tula's Endless Summer
MJ Sailing
Sailing Delos
Searching for C-Shels
Lady K-Sailing
Barefoot Sailing adventures
Technomadia

It can be addicting once you start watching, at least for me, my wife thinks I'm crazy. I think she may be right.

TiltonBB · 04-25-2019, 11:17 AM

I love YouTube.

When you get tired of watching all the great boat trips that you and I will probably never have the opportunity to go on search "Boat Ramp Failures".

You will see hundreds of people making the mistakes that all of us hope we never make! Those trips also started out with high hopes!

04-25-2019, 06:39 AM	#1
TiltonBB Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Gilford, NH and Florida Posts: 3,014 Thanks: 702 Thanked 2,203 Times in 937 Posts	Great Loop Becoming a "looper " is defined as someone who has cruised the Great Loop. That is the 5,000 to 7,500 mile trip mile trip on the water through the Eastern United States The American Great Loop Association is comprised of a niche group of individuals with a passion for cruising the Great Loop. By definition, The Great Loop is the circumnavigation of Eastern North America by water also referred to as America's Great Loop and the Great Circle Route, the trip varies from 5,000 to 7,500 miles (8,000 to 12,000 km) depending on route options and detours taken. It has been said to be the world's safest and most scenic continuous waterway. It is the boating adventure of a lifetime that will take you to shorelines from the Florida Keys to Canada. On the trip you will pass the Statue of Liberty by way of the Hudson River, journey through the Historic Erie Canal, across downtown Chicago, down inland rivers of the heartlands and finally to the Gulf of Mexico. Attached Images

04-25-2019, 10:48 AM	#5
Puffin Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Posts: 43 Thanks: 10 Thanked 7 Times in 7 Posts	Youtube! Lots and Lots of people post their adventures on youtube, some are better than others, Many start out with high hopes but run into setbacks like running out of Money, loose interest, or worse, have major fails. There are a few that I fallow, both Sail and Power, Tula's Endless Summer MJ Sailing Sailing Delos Searching for C-Shels Lady K-Sailing Barefoot Sailing adventures Technomadia It can be addicting once you start watching, at least for me, my wife thinks I'm crazy. I think she may be right.

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04-25-2019, 10:31 AM	#4
Andromeda321 Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2019 Posts: 80 Thanks: 17 Thanked 32 Times in 19 Posts	I have some friends who have actually circumnavigated the world on their sailboat (the ultimate loop!)- took them about ten years, and they homeschooled their three children. It's been a blast following them, and getting random postcards from places like St Helena and Papua New Guinea. They run a cool blog here- https://www.sailingtotem.com/ and make money via coaching people who also want to cruise full time. To hear them tell it, the Bahamas is the place to start because it's easy to reach from the mainland USA (you don't need to do a long passage to get there), and there are a ton of islands close together and it's easy getting supplies/repairs and you meet a ton of other cruisers. Most people apparently who are only cruising for a short period never even get further than the Bahamas for various reasons. Personally my only issue with the entire thing is to paraphrase Kurt Vonnegut, I am a freshwater person and whenever I swim in an ocean I feel as though I'm swimming in chicken soup.

04-25-2019, 11:17 AM	#6
TiltonBB Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Gilford, NH and Florida Posts: 3,014 Thanks: 702 Thanked 2,203 Times in 937 Posts	I love YouTube. When you get tired of watching all the great boat trips that you and I will probably never have the opportunity to go on search "Boat Ramp Failures". You will see hundreds of people making the mistakes that all of us hope we never make! Those trips also started out with high hopes!