If you’re not a boater, it’s likely you don’t know what the Great Loop is. Since most people visiting these pages are either boaters, sleep with boaters, or admire boaters, you might know what the Loop is. But since only about 150 people accomplish this feat each year, fewer than climb Mt. Everst, we’ll assume you’re not an expert. Neither are we… yet.
In about 18 months, we plan to be experts. We’ll share what we learn here – as we prepare to leave from our Houston base in 6 months, targeting the first good weather window from November 1-15, 2019.So, what is The Loop? Simply, the Great Loop describes the circumnavigation of Eastern North America. It usually begins down South during North American winter, and ends when The Loop is closed roughly a year later. Loopers generally follow Spring up the US east coast, enjoy Summer and early Fall in the Great Lakes, then run from winter down the interior river system. It usually takes a year, but can take longer depending mainly on one’s tolerance for cold.
There are thousands of permutations of “how” to do The Loop. Tactical choices involve where to stop and explore, whether to anchor or stay in a marina, and whether to stay in the Intercoastal Waterway or go “outside” into the Gulf of Mexico or Atlantic Ocean. The more strategic choices will be how to get from New York City to the Great Lakes, and how to get from Chicago to the Gulf of Mexico.