Hi Star Scream!
The link is doie thingie doesn’t seem to working….
Hi lnquisitor!
First let me say:
There have been several people on the forum who have made the trip around the “LOOP” or at least really significant portions of it who are much more qualified to speak on the realities of 5he adventure you’re wanting to undertake. I would get their perspective over anything I might suggest… they have the experiences.
That said:
There was a guy from down in Florida that was posting about a 25 hp on a Mac26 a while back.
Seemed that he could move around ok by was limited to about 8 or 10 mph as a top speed.
Portions of the Great Loop are on rivers with the route pointed up stream on the likes of the Hudson River & St Lawrence (and others) of similar velocity.
Now there are ways around those but then it get more complicated such as trailer pst those up current sections or using the Erie Cannal.
But to do the “LOOP” in full at some point one will be going down current on the Mississippi and other big rivers. Not sure if a smaller motor would be able to allow you to turn about and head up current when you might need to… like to get back to that marina that just slipped by. There are long stretches between gas stops on the western side of the “LOOP”… there are a couple long stretches on the Eastern side too come to think about it..
Of our own preparations to do the “LOOP” we’re looking at doing it in smaller ‘bite-size’ increments (which is sorta cheating but we don’t
).
We’re looking to have a slide down auxiliary 5 hp engine for a ‘Plan B’ to self rescue should the need arise… (hopefully NOT.
) when on the more lonesome stretches like the Dismal Swamp for example… but not as our primary mover. This auxiliary engine would also serve as our dinghy engine. We have a Suzuki DF60AV four stroke for our prime mover.
It’s pretty quiet and handle the low RPM 6 MPH hull speed quite nicely on our excursions on the South Carolina estuaries and rivers. (SIGNIFICANTLY quieter than our old Tohatsu 50 hp).
From some of the discussions we’ve had sailing with just a jib or Genoa seems to be a common approach when using sails on the “LOOP”. Something to quickly deploy and retract when the winds align to the course. There shouldn’t be much that would require a Mac26 series boat to drop the mast for unless one didn’t want to wait for an occasional bridge opening ( although there are several bridges so low that only a kayak or small runabout could safely pass under without the bridge opening/swinging but those are few and far between from what we’ve read and head about).
It sounds exciting! You should have a great time!
Best Regards,
Over Easy
