Vic Smith wrote:

On Fri, 17 Aug 2007 18:04:27 -0400, Rosalie B.
wrote:


I also wanted to say that 50 miles a day is good progress in the ICW.
I try not to schedule that much. When we go south, we try to stop by
2 or 3 pm because otherwise (since we are usually going south in
November) the sun is in our eyes. That's something to remember for
next fall.

On our yearly road trips to Florida, never pushing hard, I used to
stop early at motels, maybe 1-2 PM. The kids would spend hours
playing in the pool, and the wife and I would unwind with local
newspapers and TV. Our driving started at daybreak.

Back in the old days when we were traveling across country to a new
duty station with the kids, that's what we did. Started as early as
any nearby place had breakfast, got on the road ASAP, stopped for gas
and bathroom break at 10, lunched in the car, stopped for gas etc at
2, and stopped early for the kids to work off some steam in the pool
or by going to some local attraction or playground. [The last time we
did that it was in Oct '66 and we were driving two cars.] We had a
rough schedule in mind, but didn't generally make reservations in
advance except maybe at the National Parks (like the Grand Canyon or
Mesa Verde).

I never made reservations, and had my pick the rooms.
Is there a marina equivalent to that while cruising the ICW?
Or do you always have to reserve a mooring/berth?

You don't have to make a reservation if you just anchor, and if you
can't get a slip, anchoring is always an option. In that case you
just have to know where appropriate spots to anchor are using charts
and/or guides.

We normally travel in what would be called the shoulder season on
land. That is, normal traffic goes south in October leaving the
Chesapeake after the Annapolis Boat Show on Columbus Day weekend, and
we almost always wait until at least Halloween. Normal traffic comes
north in May, and we are usually back by late March. So that's less
crowded and most of the time we have no problem getting slips.

Each night, I would call my son (who at that time worked nights and
the cell phone rates were cheaper at that time of day) and file a kind
of float plan - that is I would tell him where we were and where we
expected to be the next day. He followed our progress on a map.

After the first trip, I knew where we'd been before and would like to
go again and how likely they were to have a place.

(Because it isn't just driving along the highway and spotting a
vacancy sign, you need some kind of cruising guide so that you know
where the places ARE. I usually have three or four to help me make a
decision.)

Most of the time I would call the next day.. Sometimes on the radio
an hour or so before we get there and sometimes on the cell phone.
Some places don't take reservations but take the first to get there,
which is another reason to stop early. I still call just to find out
whether they will probably have space and also to find out whether
they will still be open when we get there.

I haven't had much luck making reservations very far in advance
because even when they take reservations, the weather may intervene
making our trip slower or faster than I expected. I do sometimes try
to make reservations in Charleston or Miami where we usually stay for
a week visiting grandchildren.