TWL: GreatCircle Waterway - Counter Clockwise?
Somewhere along the way I took the perception that the
loop is better done clockwise due to currents and
prevailing winds. Yet it seems that many sail south
along the Atlantic ICW while snowbirds cruise north
on the Inland Rivers to return home.
What kind of winds and currents would I be fighting
were I to take the loop counter clockwise? Advice?
Warnings?
Wayne Busselle
Journey - Prairie 29
St Petersburg Florida
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Hi Wayne,
Wayne wrote:
Somewhere along the way I took the perception that the
loop is better done clockwise due to currents and
prevailing winds.
Most of the people I'm familiar with who have done the complete Great Circle
have gone counter-clockwise. That's not to say that many folks haven't gone
clockwise. I guess the thought is that the current down the mighty
Mississippi and the Tenn-Tom towards the Gulf is easier to deal with than
fighting an upstream battle. I suppose an argument could be made that the
Hudson presents an upstream element in a counter-clockwise, but no one seems
to complain about it, perhaps because the journey up the Hudson to the Erie
Canal is much shorter than the trip down the Mississippi/Tenn-Tom.
The timing of a counter-clockwise cruise (leaving the south in the spring)
also avoids the higher water and debris prevalent during the spring run-off
down the Mississippi.
Actually, now that I begin to think about it, there are so many variables,
it's not which way you go, just make sure you go!
John
"Just Keel-ing Time"
Lake Norman, NC
Hi Wayne
In my opinion going counter clockwise is the direction of choice for
some of the following reasons.
-
in the spring the run off is occurring in the north and it is up
hill from Mobile to Chicago (except for the short stretch on the Ohio). -
going from Chicago to Mobile you are running with any current and
therefore with any debris in the water as opposed to directly at it. -
it is much easier to lock down than lock up.
-
in the Hudson if you time it right, you get a lift with the tide and
therefore you do not have to fight any current, so ignore the Hudson as
far a current -
the fall colours in the Kentucky lake, Pickwick Lake and Tenn-Tom
are great -
less traffic on the way south in the fall on the Tenn-Tom than on
the East Coast Intracoastal -
either way the summer months in Georgian Bay and the North Channel
are fabulous.
These are just a few thoughts that pop into my mind at a moments notice.
So pack the ship and head out, if still can't decide, flip a coin and
go, you won't regret it.
Cheers
Al Binnington
GB 36 FALKOR
Guelph, Ontario
MV Journey wrote:
Somewhere along the way I took the perception that the
loop is better done clockwise due to currents and
prevailing winds. Yet it seems that many sail south
along the Atlantic ICW while snowbirds cruise north
on the Inland Rivers to return home.
What kind of winds and currents would I be fighting
were I to take the loop counter clockwise? Advice?
Warnings?
Wayne Busselle
Journey - Prairie 29
St Petersburg Florida
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<<I suppose an argument
could be made that the
Hudson presents an upstream element in a
counter-clockwise, but no one seems
to complain about it,>>
Current on the Hudson can often be 2-3 kts, which can
slow us full-displacement types down quite a bit, but
the river is tidal all the way to Troy and the Federal
Lock there. For maximum speed and efficiency, we
travel with the flood current, upstream, for 8 hours
or so (depending on your speed), then anchor for
approximately 7 hours during the ebb. The flood lasts
longer if you are faster than our 7.5 kts.
Navigation is easy, even at night, as the river is a
deep-ship channel with large buoys, many lighted.
Mark Richter, Winnie the Pooh
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