Time for some more fun

Benny · Dec 28, 2007

Ross, I could not get the link to work but

if you already bought the boat the only value to the information that the highway distance is 75 miles is to calculate how long of a ride it is to go pick it up.

Benny · Dec 28, 2007

Ross, I could not get the link to work but

if you already bought the boat the only value to the information that the highway distance is 75 miles is to calculate how long of a ride it is to go pick it up.

RichH · Dec 28, 2007

125.6 statute miles

Thats for staying in the middle of the river and not cutting any corners closely.

RichH · Dec 28, 2007

125.6 statute miles

Thats for staying in the middle of the river and not cutting any corners closely.

sailaway78 · Dec 28, 2007

Hell of a trip

Interesting problem Ross. It is about 125 miles by river from the I 10 bridge in Baton Rouge to New Orleans. Another couple of miles to anywhere to get out of the river. The bigger deal is there is no place that I know of to anchor up or tie up for the night. Far as I know there isn't a single anchorage or marina anywhere in there. You would probably have to tie up to a private barge dolphin and hope you didn't get run off or run over. Current could be a big factor, depending on the weather anywhere south of Chicago. But wouldn't be enough to make it in a day regardless. Biggest problem is the shipping traffic. I know the NE guys will scream that I don't know what I'm talking about, but this is probably a busier stretch of water than New York Harbor. And yeah, I have been through there a couple of times. But they have ocean going freighters and tankers up to Baton Rouge, and the barge traffic is almost unbelievable. Keep in mind you NE guys, that we get barge traffic coming down river from way above St.Louis. Grain and coal and who knows what else. Just thinking of running anywhere between Baton Rouge and New Orleans at night gives me goose bumps.

sailaway78 · Dec 28, 2007

Hell of a trip

Interesting problem Ross. It is about 125 miles by river from the I 10 bridge in Baton Rouge to New Orleans. Another couple of miles to anywhere to get out of the river. The bigger deal is there is no place that I know of to anchor up or tie up for the night. Far as I know there isn't a single anchorage or marina anywhere in there. You would probably have to tie up to a private barge dolphin and hope you didn't get run off or run over. Current could be a big factor, depending on the weather anywhere south of Chicago. But wouldn't be enough to make it in a day regardless. Biggest problem is the shipping traffic. I know the NE guys will scream that I don't know what I'm talking about, but this is probably a busier stretch of water than New York Harbor. And yeah, I have been through there a couple of times. But they have ocean going freighters and tankers up to Baton Rouge, and the barge traffic is almost unbelievable. Keep in mind you NE guys, that we get barge traffic coming down river from way above St.Louis. Grain and coal and who knows what else. Just thinking of running anywhere between Baton Rouge and New Orleans at night gives me goose bumps.

CalebD · Dec 28, 2007

Interesting problem indeed.

Being from the northeast I am not sure at all about the currents and tides in all the different bodies of water down there. The effects of the tides on the currents on the Mississippi around New Orleans has always amazed me. Lake Pontchartraine and all the interconnected waterways; there seems as though there should be a lot of areas to explore. As NiceNEasy points out there is also a lot of commercial traffic on this route and it would only be prudent to do with a Plan B (anchorage or tie up) as 125+ miles at a steady 5 knots would take 21+ hours motor sailing. NnE also pointed out that weather happening above St. Louis MO could affect the current. Navigating on a river at night, even a wide one, with commercial traffic even with a full moon out is not a total picnic. Ross did not specify the make or model of his new boat but this is largely irrelevant if you assume it is a sailboat What is a "private barge dolphin"?

CalebD · Dec 28, 2007

Interesting problem indeed.

Being from the northeast I am not sure at all about the currents and tides in all the different bodies of water down there. The effects of the tides on the currents on the Mississippi around New Orleans has always amazed me. Lake Pontchartraine and all the interconnected waterways; there seems as though there should be a lot of areas to explore. As NiceNEasy points out there is also a lot of commercial traffic on this route and it would only be prudent to do with a Plan B (anchorage or tie up) as 125+ miles at a steady 5 knots would take 21+ hours motor sailing. NnE also pointed out that weather happening above St. Louis MO could affect the current. Navigating on a river at night, even a wide one, with commercial traffic even with a full moon out is not a total picnic. Ross did not specify the make or model of his new boat but this is largely irrelevant if you assume it is a sailboat What is a "private barge dolphin"?

sailortonyb Allied Mis · Dec 28, 2007

Dolphin

A dolphin is a group of pilings (usually 3) driven next to and touching each other and lashed together to act as a single piling. They are for tieing up to. I have seen some dolphins with 4 and 5 piling posts. Some of these are private and some are public. The really scarey part is that when its really foggy, like in 50' visability, the pushboat and barges just push the barges up onto the mud and sleep the night. So, we have 50' or less visability and a man with a push boat and 300' of barges in front of him pushing up on the mud banks and you have to hope you are not in the way. This is akin to a really bad rain storm when in your car and vis goes down to zero. You pull up under a bridge and hope a semi dont plow into you.Tony B

sailortonyb Allied Mis · Dec 28, 2007

Dolphin

A dolphin is a group of pilings (usually 3) driven next to and touching each other and lashed together to act as a single piling. They are for tieing up to. I have seen some dolphins with 4 and 5 piling posts. Some of these are private and some are public. The really scarey part is that when its really foggy, like in 50' visability, the pushboat and barges just push the barges up onto the mud and sleep the night. So, we have 50' or less visability and a man with a push boat and 300' of barges in front of him pushing up on the mud banks and you have to hope you are not in the way. This is akin to a really bad rain storm when in your car and vis goes down to zero. You pull up under a bridge and hope a semi dont plow into you.Tony B

sailaway78 · Dec 28, 2007

Mississippi River

I have only been in the river once down here. When I brought my boat up from Texas I had to run downstream, through downtown New Orleans, and over into the lake. All boat traffic up and down the river is controlled by radio. Going under the Crescent City Bridge, and around a bend in the river, Algiers Control called on the radio and told me to get the hell out of the way. There was a tanker coming up behind me, which because of the bend in the river was not even visible. When they make the bend, they pretty well take up the whole river. The current was running at probably three knows, and I ended up ducking in behind a string of barges tied up on the bank, and just letting the boat hang on the prop while I waited. PUCKER TIME Running the river is not impossible to do, but it certainly isn't for the faint of heart. Coming through the narrows out of New York, or running Hells Gate is a picnic in comparison. You can pull up google earth and get a look at the traffic.

sailaway78 · Dec 28, 2007

Mississippi River

I have only been in the river once down here. When I brought my boat up from Texas I had to run downstream, through downtown New Orleans, and over into the lake. All boat traffic up and down the river is controlled by radio. Going under the Crescent City Bridge, and around a bend in the river, Algiers Control called on the radio and told me to get the hell out of the way. There was a tanker coming up behind me, which because of the bend in the river was not even visible. When they make the bend, they pretty well take up the whole river. The current was running at probably three knows, and I ended up ducking in behind a string of barges tied up on the bank, and just letting the boat hang on the prop while I waited. PUCKER TIME Running the river is not impossible to do, but it certainly isn't for the faint of heart. Coming through the narrows out of New York, or running Hells Gate is a picnic in comparison. You can pull up google earth and get a look at the traffic.

Time for some more fun

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Benny

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