About 2012, I plotted an alternate route across the northern part of St. Andrews Sound, but I never had the nerve (conditions) to run it.  Last year, Bob Sherer (Bob423) published an alternate that was nearly identical to mine.  To test the route, I wanted high tide and good sea conditions.  Today was the day.  High tide, bright sunshine, SSW 15 – 20.  I could feel Claiborne [Claiborne Young, founder of Cruisers Net] looking over me as I motored forth, laughing and chuckling approvingly!

 

Here are my tracks southbound through St. Andrews Sound at today’s high tide:

The alternate route is 6 statute miles from Jekyll Creek back to the Cumberland River.  The route is significantly more protected that the ICW route.  Note also, the “ICW Route” I follow is NOT the charted ICW route; I cut the bottom of Horseshoe Shoal, but I don’t recommend that unless the captain knows the route and tides well.As luck would have it, just as I turned off the main ICW route, I passed a sailboat running under power.  OK, I travel ever so slightly slightly faster than most sailboats, but when I rejoined the main ICW route in the Cumberland River, that sailboat was still behind me, just about where I’d left him.  I’d guess I didn’t lose more that 10 – 15 minutes taking the alternate route, and I never saw less than what would be 10 feet depth at MLLW.  I did pass two ActiveCaptain hazard markers.  Neither were representative of what I actually saw.  So my net is, keep this alternative route in mind for those days that aren’t so ideal on St. Andrews Sound.  It works.The actual .gpx route can be downloaded from http://fleetwing.blogspot.com, which is Bob Sherer’s website (Bob423).  It’s name is BStAndAlt. [Also try http://bobicw.blogspot.com. Thank you Hank}

Jim