The Great Loop
Our trip will take us away from South Dakota for one year as we travel 5,000 to 6,000 miles on our Ranger25 tugboat. We will celebrated 40 years of married life May 2017 so we figure we can stand the close quarters as we adventure together.
Or as we often say..."What could possibly go wrong?"
Or as we often say..."What could possibly go wrong?"
What is The Great Loop? This article explains the Who, What, Where and How of this great adventure on the Intracoastal Waterway.
"Every year around a hundred boats prove this point by completing a circumnavigation of the entire eastern U.S. The path, called the Great Loop, is a continuous waterway connecting lakes, rivers, sounds, canals, the Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic Ocean and the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway."
The circumnavigation of Eastern North America by water is known as the Great Loop. Also referred to as America's Great Loop and the Great Circle Route,[1][2] the trip varies from 5,000 to 7,500 miles (8,000 to 12,000 km) depending on route options and detours taken. The boats used range from personal watercraft to 60-foot-long (18 m) yachts. Both sailboats and powerboats travel the loop, but the most common boats are 34–45-foot (10–14 m) recreational trawlers. The main factors that govern the size of the boats are the limited draft (5 ft, 1.5 m) in some locations on the loop and the height of one bridge (19 ft, 5.8 m) in Chicago. People traveling the Great Loop are known as "loopers". The number of people attempting this voyage is growing as baby boomers reach retirement age.[3] In 2007, more than 150 boat owners notified America's Great Loop Cruisers' Association (AGLCA) that they planned to attempt the loop in the coming season.
"Every year around a hundred boats prove this point by completing a circumnavigation of the entire eastern U.S. The path, called the Great Loop, is a continuous waterway connecting lakes, rivers, sounds, canals, the Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic Ocean and the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway."
The circumnavigation of Eastern North America by water is known as the Great Loop. Also referred to as America's Great Loop and the Great Circle Route,[1][2] the trip varies from 5,000 to 7,500 miles (8,000 to 12,000 km) depending on route options and detours taken. The boats used range from personal watercraft to 60-foot-long (18 m) yachts. Both sailboats and powerboats travel the loop, but the most common boats are 34–45-foot (10–14 m) recreational trawlers. The main factors that govern the size of the boats are the limited draft (5 ft, 1.5 m) in some locations on the loop and the height of one bridge (19 ft, 5.8 m) in Chicago. People traveling the Great Loop are known as "loopers". The number of people attempting this voyage is growing as baby boomers reach retirement age.[3] In 2007, more than 150 boat owners notified America's Great Loop Cruisers' Association (AGLCA) that they planned to attempt the loop in the coming season.
