Bob and Donnell from Grand Haven, MI, on their Island Packet 440 at the rendezvous. Notice the VHF antennae and the PVC pipe mast for their anchor light behind them.
Both power and sail make up the boats doing the Great Loop. Almost the entire marina at Joe Wheeler State Park was reserved by loopers.
cruising speed of about 6 knots and 3 miles per gallon will get them a long way down the river system, back to their mast waiting for them in Mobile. One question often heard is what is the best type of boat to loop in? Online forums are filled with lengthy discussions of widely varying answers. For many of us, the answer is: The best boat to loop in is the one you have now. We met one such couple at the fall rendezvous who agree with this philosophy. Jerry and LuAnn own a 26-foot McGregor sailboat, and they decided to go for it! Aboard this less than traditional sailboat, they enjoy the pure pleasure of sailing combined with a 70 HP outboard to get somewhere quick when the wind is not cooperating. Their mast can easily be raised and lowered while the boat is in the water and they can do it themselves. No boatyard or truck transport needed. Their boat holds 24 gallons of gasoline and they often carry four five-gallon jugs of gas on deck. They get between three and five miles per gallon cruising under power at eight to ten MPH, so they can make even the longest stretch on the rivers between fuel docks. This looping couple plans a marina stop every evening whenever possible to shower and eat out. They do have a cold plate refrigeration system, additional deep cycle batteries for house service, complete LED lighting to reduce demand on the batteries and a small inverter to operate the
computer, cell phone and hand-held VHF recharger. All the comforts of home in a compact 26 feet. Their method of dealing with the low bridges is to arrive just before the bridge and drift while they lower the mast. This process takes about 15 minutes now that they have their learning curve complete. Once they are through the bridge they slowly drift while raising the mast and continue on. Easy as pie! Jerry and LuAnn started their loop on July 11th in Perrysburg, OH, and plan to take about a year to do the full circle. They follow the weather south for three to four weeks, then rent a car and go home for a few weeks. Because the boat does not have air-conditioning, the idea of following the weather is working fine for them. Some nights may be a little stuffy, so a few fans solve that problem. They plan to continue this pattern for their northerly trek in the spring, too. Watch the waterways and marinas for this parade of looping boats as they come through your neighborhood. You can tell the first-timers by their white AGLCA burgee, or if they have completed the circle, their bow will proudly sport a gold burgee. Sure, most of these boats will be trawlers, but a few special sailboats will have a story to tell including the magic of their mast and how they did the limbo under the 19.1-foot bridge. To learn more about looping in your boat, drop us a line, or visit the AGLCA website www.greatloop.org.
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