Many times I have seen people, including myself, ask whether any houseboats can make the Great Loop or cruise the Intercoastal. The answer from wiser heads than me has always been that maybe a Pluckebaum or Whitcraft but generally no other houseboats should attempt it. Now I can answer the question from firsthand knowledge. In mid-May we met friends who are doing the Great Loop in a Carver 42 Aft Cabin Motor Yacht. That is a fancy name for a vessel never designed to handle rough seas. Nonetheless we boarded in North Myrtle Beach, SC and cruised to Elizabeth City, NC in a week. If you want to read about our adventures go to justusboating.com and click on all entries for the log and scroll to May 13 and read all the postings by Rusty(that's me). You will get a real flavor of the trip and see what can go wrong. When we hit a WRONG FORECAST by NOAA crossing the Abemarle Sound and ran into 5-8 foot beam seas in the area known as Deadman's Circle and we found out that my Gibson 44 would be at the bottom of the Sound with all those other wrecks on the chartplotter. One time we tried to make a turn to get back on course and heeled over 20 degrees. Spray from the waves was going over the top of our 19 foot bimini. That is measured from the waterline. On a tall flybridge you think you are about to experience the Posieden Adventure. Now granted on most days the old Gibson or most other houseboats would do fine with no other boats around but there are other crazy people out there on even the calmest days. We weathered a tornado one night tied to a dock in Swansboro, NC with winds in excess of 45mph. And on totally calm days a big sportsfish driven by some idiot who never took a boat course will run by kicking up a 4-5 foot wake and rock your world. My friend is one of the best boat pilots I ever saw. He can make a boat dance. We spent nearly 6 months prepping his boat in Chattanooga for this trip. Even so he has had to have that boat pulled five times since October when this trip started and has spent untold thousands in repairs. One incident in the Bahamas cost over $17,000. And the day we left the boat he tore up a prop in the Dismal Swamp and had to pull the boat in Hampton, VA. So DO NOT ask anymore about taking houseboats out in such conditions. I truly think that choosing the right vessel and never taking a chance on the weather is the best advice. administrator38876.7156134259

Rusty

Great post. Most new boaters think weather forecasts are 100% and some stretch forecasts to fit in with their desire to GO. I have book marked this post and will use it for reference when this question comes up on this and other boards I participate in. Again THANKS for a great post.
OLD HOUSEBOATER38877.300625

As an additional note I heard that within the last two weeks a 38 Silverton Cruiser was crossing the same area of the Abemarle Sound and hit rough seas. The deck separated from the hull and the next wave took them to the bottom. Luckily they were in relatively shallow water and the radar arch remained above water so the crew had something to hold onto and no-one was injured. That could have been us.

I made this topic a sticky.

How's this for a suggestion: How about instead of plowing straight across the roughest, most treacherous part of the Albemarle Sound, why don't more boaters consider taking an extra couple of days, and heading westward along the shoreline, visiting some of the beautiful little historic villages along the way, and crossing the Sound much further west, where it's generally calmer? Many of the towns along the way offer free dock space, some with electricity and free showers. Most of these well-protected little harbors are a short stroll from excellent restaurants, nice shopping, and historical sites. Crossing from the Alligator River directly across to Elizabeth City and the A&C canal on a windy day seems like the hard way to me.

I don't know. Sounds like if people really took your advice they would never get out of bed in the morning. It is too dangerous. God knows what may happen!! Better yet lets stay under the bed instead of on top of it - you could fall off the bed!

I know you are well meaning and it is good advice to be careful. However everything you do has risk. I live in Florida. My boat could be crushed on the dock in my backyard by a tornado or hurricaine at any moment. What am I crazy? Am I irresponsible? Am I looking for trouble?

Form your own opinions.

My job is an Airline Captain for a Major Airline. Every time I leave the gate I am taking a risk. Weather, mechanical failure, terrorists, .... black holes and UFO's!

Hell I would be most safe by never boarding the aircraft and never moving it. But then we'd go outta business and I couldn't afford to buy a houseboat.

Good horror story, and yes it did scare me a little. I will be a little extra careful going down the intercoastal. And I like the advice about maybe going west a bit from the last guy.

Frankly, the main risk you take going down the intercoastal is to your insurance carrier. Unless you are reckless any mishap would at most result in a big insurance claim - how many people transiting the intercoastal on their large boats for a long distance die each year due to weather? I don't know the answer, but I bet it is less than one per year on average.

After 911 we started flying again and all the airplanes were empty. I flew 5 people from ATL to Orlando in an aircraft that holds over a hundred. The tourest town of Orlando was a Ghost town. Cowardly Americans too scared to get on an airplane.

As I was taking the hotel shuttle from the airport we passed a place where they give helicopter rides. There were 20 people standing in line. A ramshackle helicopter that is inherently a thousand time more dangerous than an airliner and they were full.

Sometimes emotion triumphs logic.

I agree with your point that we cannot be frightened of everything and life and living is a calulated risk.

However: this is a public forum and agreeing that its an acceptable idea to take a vessel not designed for open water use out into unprotected areas of the intercoastal would, IMHO, be irresponsible. I will continue to advise against it.

BTW is your houseboat insured for offshore operation?



OLD HOUSEBOATER38877.8843287037

You are right. It is a calculated risk. You'd be fool to not take those risks into account and certainly you should take actions to minimize them.

I've decided to take a boat I bought in NJ all the way down to Tampa. I am genuinely concerned about parts of the route. Those parts are Delaware Bay and the Sound of which we are speaking.

Of the two Delaware Bay scares me more. There is hardly a marina or harbor in the whole bay. Yeah, a couple of both but it is not a very boat friendly transit. They say you can get 8 footers pretty quick.

I'm at the stage now where I'm just starting to chart plan. Theroretically my boat will be ready and I will start the trip in July.

You better believe that I am going to watch the weather for a solid window before trying it. I will try to use a route where I can duck to cover (the little that exists) if things start to go bad.

Basically you have to have pre-conditions for going and several plans about what to do if the conditions change or you suffer a setback like a mechanical failure.

I plan on making most of the trip with my wife, but that stretch, I'm thinking about hiring a professional Captain to partner with.

I wish I knew more about Delaware bay. Anyone out there familar? My boat only draws 20 inches, can take up to 3 foot chop with ease, but after that things start going bad quick.

Any suggestions? I mean besides trucking my boat down?