First-time stream crossing on 5-27-17

TitanTn

TitanTn

Active Member
Jul 12, 2015
386
Chattanooga, TN
Boat Info
1986 Saltare, 1998 400 Express
Engines
454 direct drive; twin 3116TA
I'll be making my first gulf stream crossing to West End (and beyond) this coming Saturday. Leaving from West Palm. So far the forecast looks good, and we're all excited. If you see me out there, be sure to say hello.
 
Good luck with your trip. Call ahead to make sure they're pumping gas. As of last month, they still didn't have electric on the docks, which was result of hurricane Mathew in fall of 2016.
 
Alex F said:
Good luck with your trip. Call ahead to make sure they're pumping gas. As of last month, they still didn't have electric on the docks, which was result of hurricane Mathew in fall of 2016.
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Oh geez. You talking about West End? They're not pumping gas? I'll call tomorrow, but if they're not then all of my plans may not work. I really don't want to push my range without having done the trip before.
 
If you're checking in at Old Bahama Bay, I think they're back up running. But either way, you can easily make Lucaya or other ports on Freeport for fuel. Although I'd be surprised if you need it. We go out of Jupiter in our CC's with a full tank and return back with plenty of fuel left.


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Active Captain has some reviews saying that Old Bahama Bay Marina has power on the docks. Nothing is said about fuel, but I would think they can pump fuel if they have power for transient boats. We'll see when I call tomorrow.
 
TitanTn said:
Active Captain has some reviews saying that Old Bahama Bay Marina has power on the docks. Nothing is said about fuel, but I would think they can pump fuel if they have power for transient boats. We'll see when I call tomorrow.
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The main point I was making is that when going to Bahamas, don't assume anything, especially availability on most important items. Call to every place you plan on going and verify the information. When we did our trip to Eluthera, we stayed in the best marina in the area, which was full of yachts and mega-yachts. The usual case scenario, when we arrived, they ran out of fuel and didn't expect new delivery until a week from that day. We had plenty of fuel I was just planning to top off the tanks there. We had another place in mind, as a plan B. But, as you can see, if we had come in there low on fuel, it could have been a difficult situation. My advice is, always have plan B for your fuel stops.
 
Thanks guys. Yes, point taken. I do have plan A, B, and C, but I guess I was relying on active captain more than telephones. I just called and they are indeed pumping fuel. I may not need it but I'm going to fill up often. I really dislike being unprepared.

And yes, I'm taking the 300 Weekender. On the road now from Chattanooga.
 
Ok guys, I'm back now. Everything worked out in terms of fuel range, but I did pick up some trash in the fuel which caused some problems. We had a great time and will do it again some day. The boating part wasn't too taxing, but towing from Chattanooga to West Palm was quite a chore (tiring).

Anyway, here are a few pics from our trip.






 
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Looks like a good time! Any advice for those planning to follow in your footsteps?
 
Blkbird said:
Looks like a good time! Any advice for those planning to follow in your footsteps?
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Great question. Here are a few thoughts:

- watch the weather and have flexible plans
- rent an EPIRB. It's extremely cheap peace of mind
- have a way to get weather forecasts over there
- take more than one spare of your filters
- pack food in such a way as to limit the amount of trash you'll generate
- bring more drinking water than you think you'll need

Those are a few random thoughts anyway.
 
Sounds great. This is something I hope to try someday. Living in PA it might be awhile though...lol. How long did it take you to get the boat to FL? Its about 20 hours to Orlando from here without a trailer so I'm guessing maybe 30 hours with a trailer to that far down the coast?

Edit: just checked Google maps and its 1150 miles from my house to West Palm. Yikes!
 
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Boatman, I had a Glacier Bay 2685 that we trailered to Key Largo 4 times. Went to the Bahamas 3 times from there. Never had a problem. Went slow. Drove slow and steady. Had one blow out but had spare and tire changing tools already set up in advance. Took about 30 minutes if that. I have never thought trailering a some what bigger boat was a problem if if the set up was good. JC
 
i wouldn't be doing it with this boat. not too concerned with towing as i have been pulling trailers since i got my drivers license but just the logistics of it. it would take me 2 days to get it to FL then 2 days to get it back home. i'm already thinking about my next boat and it will be a 29-31'er so a new tow rig would be in the plans as well. my Ram 1500 Hemi pulls mine fine but i also know its limits...lol
 
Bet that was a GREAT trip....one I'll make some day.
 
You can see my tow setup in one of the pics. It's a great setup and handles the boat without a problem. The distance wasn't an issue, but being 11' wide, you take up a lot of your lane. I pretty much drove in the right lane only but sometimes there's guardrails or some barrier that prevents you from hugging that side. And something I've never noticed before, but on all of the road that's asphalt, there's a lip of asphalt about 6 inches past the right lane stripe. It's about 2-3 inches high and keeps you from cheating too close to the line because you don't want your trailer tires to fall off that edge.

I'm actually shocked that a semi-trailer didn't hit my boat. I know some had to come within inches. So for me, the largest stressor about the trip was the towing - and I'm not new to large load towing.
 
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