BerettaRacer
Senior Member
One of the reasons I am not sure I would do the Great Loop (at least at first) is missing places like Camden, Rockport, Southwest Harbor (and other places near Acadia) and possibly Nova Scotia.
Regarding size, I find the idea of a larger boat more attractive when it comes to big water and bad weather. I know that the Cheasapeake Bay can get ugly as can Delaware Bay, LI sound, Pamlico Sound, etc. I would avoid bad weather/wind when possible, but how do you avoid wind in places like Maine? I have to assume that there are times when you have to suck it up and go regardless of less than ideal conditions, not to mention those times when you get caught in a storm or bad tide/wind combination. However, I would never leave port under any condition that was borderline unsafe for my particular vessel.
One of your big concerns cruising the coast of Maine and Nova Scotia is FOG!! It rolls in out of nowhere, and can be so dense you can hardly see your hand in front of your face. Totally disorienting.
Second is lack of forgiveness in the terrain, it's all pure granite. Generally you'll only make one mistake, per boat, lol. (Unlike the Chesapeake, where, if you don't run aground either you're a liar, or you don't actually use the boat. You just pull out of the mud and try again, no harm no foul. <wink>)
Then you've got major tides, currents and often sea swell to deal with. Bay of Fundy, some of the largest tides in the world, and all that tide gets funneled between thousands of islands along the coast. Casco Bay (Portland) also known as Calendar Bay, because it alone has 365 islands.
And we won't even mention trying to navigate the maze, known as "Lobster Pot Hell"
When conditions are good, the area can be beautiful, when things go bad it can be the perfect storm of terror.
Multiple times I've had to sit and wait at either Prince Edward, Halifax, Boothbay, or Portland for a weather window, (and I run a 120')
(And yes we've had the 120 into Camden many times, and this past summer we had our new 160'. Same with Annapolis)