The Great Loop Guide

with Crucial Clearances, Secrets, Tips & Free Moorings

Not that the Great Loop requires an introduction, but in short: A popular boating “loop”, ideally completed in a year, while loosely following the seasons as summarized below:

Spring: North along the Atlantic Coast to New York City

Summer: Westbound through canals and the Great Lakes to Chicago

Fall: Southbound along and/or through the Mississippi river towards the Gulf

Winter: Circle southern Florida to the Atlantic Coast

…or skip the introduction and jump straight to the first part in the Great Loop Guide series:

The Great Loop Guide – Part 1 – City Lights to Riverboat Fantasy

The Great Loop offers plenty of opportunities to customize your own route to suit your vessel and cruising style. The spring time segment, northbound along the East Coast, brings a choice of either staying safely tucked in, motoring along the Intra Coastal Waterway, or venturing out on the Atlantic Ocean with sails hoisted. There are multiple routes from the Atlantic to the Great Lakes. Some Sailors may opt to go all the way North to the St. Lawrence Seaway and thus avoid unstepping the mast. Other options include canals from NYC to Lake Ontario or Lake Erie, as well as through Lake Champlain entering into the tail end of the Saint Lawrence Seaway. With summer underway in Lake Ontario, you can choose to venture north through Canada’s Trent-Severn Waterway, eventually terminating in Georgian Bay at the northeastern end of Lake Huron, skipping Lake Erie altogether. Another choice is through Lake Ontario via Lake Erie to Lake Huron. From Lake Huron through the Straights of Mackinac then south through Lake Michigan to Chicago.

Approaching the city of Chicago offers choices of the very low 19′ clearance route or the even lower 17′ clearance route via downtown Chicago through the Chicago River to Des Plains River. The great Mississippi River and further choices of rivers and lakes eventually take us all the way down to the Gulf. Just in time for the beginning of winter. Once in the Louisiana – Alabama area of the Gulf, we can either straight-line it right across the Gulf to Southern Florida, or take the more protected Intra Coastal Waterway along the Florida Gulf Coast. If you can clear a 49′ air draft the Okeechobee Waterway through the Okeechobee Swamp is a much calmer and shorter route which brings you to the Atlantic Coast a bit north of the Greater Miami Area. The other option is to round the tip of Florida or even around the Keys and Key West, with some venturing across the Gulf Stream to the Bahamas. Join SailSavvy.org on this journey, with crucial information such as bridge heights and limiting shallows, Scenic moorings and Secret gunkholes, Hidden lagoons and Tropical Tiki Bars, Alternative waterways and unbeatable fishing spots, Sunsets and Sunrises and the voyage of a lifetime! This journey starts in Lake Michigan, approaching Chicago.

The Great Loop Guide – Part 1 – City Lights to Riverboat Fantasy

Additional Resources:

Capt John’s Interactive Great Loop Map. This interactive map makes a fantastic route and trip planner. It is a great tool for planning your cruise around America’s Great Loop. It’s free: https://www.google.com/maps/d/embed?mid=1nV-lUkJ4eTi51hm1LH3wr5vCu20&hl=en&ehbc=2E312F

America’s Great Loop Cruisers’ Association Lots of great info even for non-member visitors including an interactive map: https://www.greatloop.org/

Adventures in Boating: Sites and Scenery Along the Great Loop A comprehensive yet short summary with some attractions highlights: https://piershare.com/blog/adventures-in-boating-sites-and-scenery-along-the-great-loop