Sailing the US East Coast: ICW, Chesapeake and New England

The US East Coast is a cruising ground for the whole year if you move with the seasons: the Snowbirds head south on the Intracoastal Waterway in autumn and north again in spring. In winter Florida and the Keys are warm and dry, in summer New England and Maine are cool and green, and in between lies the Chesapeake Bay, one of the largest sheltered cruising areas in the world.

Which cruising areas does the US East Coast have?

From Key West to Eastport on the Canadian border it is a good 1,400 nm as the crow flies. Almost the whole distance can also be sailed on the inside, on the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) behind the islands.

The Chesapeake Bay is around 170 nm long, with hundreds of coves and rivers and mostly calm water. In New England, Newport, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket lie close together, with strong tidal streams and frequent fog. Maine has thousands of islands and granite shores, a tidal range of up to 6 m in the east and cold water.

What is the Intracoastal Waterway?

The Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway runs a good 1,090 statute miles from Norfolk to Miami behind the barrier islands, through rivers, sounds and canals. It was laid out for a depth of 12 ft (3.7 m), 10 ft south of Fort Pierce, but in reality it is often shallower; in Georgia and at narrow spots in the Carolinas it is only 1.5 to 2 m deep in places at low water.

• Bridges: most fixed bridges have 65 ft (19.8 m) vertical clearance, the Julia Tuttle Causeway in Miami only 56 ft (17 m). Many opening bridges open on request, in Florida often only on the hour and half hour, and some not at all during rush hour. Call them on VHF 9.
• Locks: at the northern end the Great Bridge Lock in the Albemarle and Chesapeake Canal, with the Dismal Swamp Canal and its fixed lock times as an alternative. The Okeechobee Waterway runs across Florida with five locks and the railway bridge at Port Mayaca, which limits mast height to 49 ft (15 m).
• Canals in the north: the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal links the Chesapeake Bay with the Delaware Bay, the Cape Cod Canal links Buzzards Bay with Cape Cod Bay; both have strong currents and are taken with a fair tide.
• Buoys: on the ICW the marks carry a yellow triangle (to starboard heading south) or a yellow square (to port heading south), regardless of the buoyage of the channels that cross it.

When is the best time to sail on the East Coast?

Florida and the Keys from December to April, the Chesapeake Bay in spring and from September to October, New England and Maine from June to September. In high summer the south is hot, humid and prone to thunderstorms; in winter the north is too cold. In late autumn, Nor'easters bring days of strong northeasterly wind and high seas to the whole coast.

What applies in the hurricane season?

From 1 June to 30 November, peaking from mid-August to mid-October. The whole coast up to New England is affected. Many insurers require the yacht to be north of Cape Hatteras during the season or to have a hurricane plan; check your policy. The forecasts and warnings of the National Hurricane Center (NHC) and the National Weather Service offices are authoritative.

How does the Gulf Stream affect you?

The Gulf Stream runs north between Florida and the Bahamas at 2 to 4 kn and turns northeast at Cape Hatteras. With a northerly wind against it, a steep, dangerous sea builds: plan the crossing from Florida to the Bahamas and the passages around Cape Hatteras only when there is no wind from a northerly direction. Cape Hatteras, Cape Lookout and Frying Pan Shoals have shallows that reach far out to sea.

How do you enter the US on your own boat?

If you arrive from abroad, report your arrival immediately to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), via the CBP ROAM app or by phone. Anyone who needs an I-94, and that includes Europeans arriving on their own boat, must report in person at a designated reporting location. ESTA and the Visa Waiver Program do not apply on a private yacht: the crew needs a B1/B2 visa. Boats from Germany, Austria, Switzerland and many other countries receive a Cruising License for up to one year, and from 30 ft a User Fee Decal is due.

IALA System B applies: red to starboard when entering from seaward. North Atlantic right whales migrate along the East Coast: by law you must keep at least 500 yards away from them, and in the protected zones boats of 65 ft and over are limited to 10 kn at certain times. Florida has manatee zones with speed limits, and the Keys are a marine sanctuary with mooring buoys and no-anchoring areas.

How does Sailseer help on the US East Coast?

On the map you plan between around 1,300 harbours from the Keys to Maine, including on the inside via the Intracoastal Waterway, the Okeechobee Waterway, the Dismal Swamp Canal and the canals in the north, with bridges, locks and their opening times. Sailseer shows the National Weather Service warnings for the coastal zones, the coastal and offshore forecasts of the offices from Caribou to Key West, the NHC hurricane warnings and, alongside GFS and ECMWF, NOAA's high-resolution HRRR model. Observations come from around 110 buoys and coastal stations of NOAA and its partners and from 64 tide gauges with tide above chart datum. NOAA's official ENCs lie under the route as the chart, together with the traffic separation schemes off Boston, New York, the Delaware Bay and the Chesapeake Bay. The country has its own page for formalities: USA.

Sailseer is a planning aid and not for navigation. Official charts, the Coast Guard's Local Notices to Mariners and the forecasts and warnings of the NWS always take precedence.