Doing the Loop - Our Way

Doing the Great Loop is a dream of many boat owners. Essentially a circumnavigation of the eastern half of North America, this 6,000-mile-plus route provides a fascinating tour of American and Canadian waterways. It's comprised of coastal ocean passages, bays, lakes, rivers and canals. While the route boasts many different scenes, there are also a variety of ways to do the Loop. Many boaters complete it in one long, continuous cruise. Some do it in installments, leaving their boat in storage to return home. Some go one way and others the opposite. Best of all, boats of all types and sizes have done it. Most of the route is in relatively protected waters, and by keeping a close eye on the weather and not trying to stick to a tight schedule, rough passages can be kept to a minimum. Here's a look at how three different Loopers, in three types of boats, enjoyed the voyage of a lifetime.

Al Voras and His Sundancer 29

Al Voras lives in Northport, Mich., and is a retired American Airlines pilot and ex-Navy pilot. He's spent most of his life going faster than most humans, and his choice of boats and ambitious itinerary for the Loop show that he hasn't slowed down. But even at his fasterthan-usual-pace, the people and places he encountered along the way made a lasting impression on him.

Voras' twin-engine Sea Ray Sundancer cruises at 22- knots, and because he was willing to make 10- or 11- hour runs, he was able to cover over 200 miles a day. He started in Clearwater, Fla., with his brother and sister as crew, and headed west on the ICW along Florida's coast to Mobile, Ala. "Unfortunately, we had to make these long runs because of my crew's schedule, and we were often exhausted at the end of the day," says Voras. After leaving his boat in Mobile for two weeks, Voras returned with his wife, Cyndi, who joined him on his next leg from Alabama to Kentucky via the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway. "I still wasn't sure of my boat's range, especially going up-river," says Voras, "and finding enough fuel along this route was a challenge." He made it to Demopolis, Ala., a distance of 220 miles, with one fuel stop at Bobby's Fish Camp.

Voras and his wife slowed down enough to enjoy their up-river trip, safely arriving at the Green Turtle Marina in Grand Rivers, Ky. "The marina was top-notch, but what I remember most are those thick pork chops at Patti's." This restaurant, established in 1880, seems to have made an impression on nearly every Looper passing through "The Land Between the Lakes," a beautiful resort area with Kentucky Lake on one side and Lake Barkley on the other.

A typical scene along the Mississippi River.

Because of an unusually turbulent Mississippi, Voras left his boat in Kentucky for three weeks before returning with his daughter, Stacy, for his next leg to Chicago. This was his least favorite part of the trip, as his 130-gallon fuel capacity was stretched to its limit, and the heavy debris of the river was a constant worry. "For miles and miles, there's no place to go if you have trouble, and the constant barge traffic was a big concern, especially in bad weather." The highlight of this leg was transiting the Chicago River and gazing at the city's skyline. Cyndi again joined him in Waukegan, Ill., and they cruised up Lake Michigan, returning to their cottage in Northport where he made plans to complete the Loop.

Instead of one continuous journey, Voras broke his voyage into a series of mini cruises, each lasting about 10 days, after which he would fly home and return with a different crew. Following a layover in Michigan, he trucked his boat to St. Petersburg, Fla., and spent six months exploring the West Coast before crossing Lake Okeechobee. From the East Coast he crossed the Gulf Stream, cruised the Abacos for several weeks and then returned to Florida to begin his final leg.

Voras' logbook is full of fond memories of his cruises up the ICW with a constantly changing crew of friends and family. The Carolinas, Chesapeake Bay and New York City are listed as highlights. But perhaps his most memorable leg began in Oswego, N.Y., where his old friend and frat brother from Purdue University, Len Tucker, joined him for the trip home. Both in their 60s and with an equal propensity to find, if not create, humor in every situation, Voras and Tucker had a ball cruising the Trent-Severn Waterway, Georgian Bay and the North Channel in search of good food, abundant drink, interesting characters and spectacular scenery. With unshaven faces and mischievous twinkles in their eyes, these two college buddies pulled into Northport Marina on Grand Traverse Bay knowing they had just experienced one of the most memorable adventures of their lives.

The Clares: Two Boats, Three Years

Tom and Gerry Clare of Amelia Island, Fla., negotiated a deal between themselves before starting the first leg of their adventure. While long-term cruising was Tom's dream, Gerry agreed to participate if he took her to Europe. So for the past three years, they've split their time between cruising the Loop, living at home and touring London, Paris, Austria, Ireland and Spain. To Gerry's surprise, she's had a lot more fun doing the Loop than she expected. "Frankly, I was worried about the two of us spending so much time in a small space," she says. "But we met so many interesting people and made so many lasting friendships, it turned out to be a wonderful experience."

The Clares started their trip on SeaKnight, a Mainship Pilot 34. From their homeport they traveled up the ICW to the Hudson River, across the Erie Canal to Lake Ontario, up the Rideau Canal to Ottawa and along the Ottawa River to Montreal. From there they began their return trip to Florida cruising Lake Champlain before heading down the ICW.

The Canadian city of Ottawa,where many Loopers choose to stay for several days while moored along the canal wall.

Among the highlights of this leg were the Rideau Canal and Ottawa, where they stayed for several days moored along the canal wall in the middle of the city. Also high on their list was the "Old Port" section of Montreal. "The best part of our trip, though, was the community of cruisers that we met along the way," says Tom. "And it doesn't matter what kind of boat you have. Even sailors and powerboaters enjoy each other's company."

While the Clares were happy with the performance of SeaKnight, they agreed that a different type of boat would be better for long-term cruising. "We wished we had a flybridge, and we didn't like having the galley and salon down below, especially on those dreary, rainy days," says Gerry. So before continuing on the next leg, the Clares bought a new Camano 31 trawler, also named SeaKnight. The Clares and their Camano embarked on a six-month cruise across Florida's panhandle and the "Big Bend," and then up the Tenn-Tom Waterway with side trips on the Cumberland River to Nashville and the Tennessee River to Knoxville and Chattanooga. "Seeing things from the water provides a totally different perspective," says Gerry.

This leg totaled 5,000 miles round-trip, during which SeaKnight normally ran at 7.5 mph on her single Volvo diesel. Averaging 3 mpg, the Camano 31 proved to be a fuel-efficient, comfortable cruiser that showed its seakeeping ability during open-water crossings.

After more European travel, the Clares set out from their Florida home this past March to complete the Loop. Heading up the ICW, they plan to travel the Erie Canal, cross Lake Ontario to Toronto, transit the Trent- Severn Waterway and explore Georgian Bay and the North Channel before heading back down the rivers to Alabama and then back home. Tom took an early retirement from AT&T, and Gerry continues to work part-time in real estate. Dividing their once-in-a-lifetime cruising adventure into three separate six-month installments over three years meant they could each keep their end of their bargain.

Tom got to go cruising and Gerry got to see Europe. And while they think this last leg might be the end of their serious cruising days, Tom hinted, "Well, it sure would be nice to do the Keys and the Abacos." To which Gerry added, "And I haven't seen Italy yet."

Ray, Camille and Taylor Lesoine

Ray worked for a power utility company in Norfolk, Va., and Camille had a successful career as a corporate financial manager. Yet together they developed a burning desire to do something different with their lives before they got older and before their 8-year-old son Taylor began his high school years. Their approach to doing the Loop was dictated in part by financial considerations and also by their wonderfully positive, gutsy attitude. To make the trip, Ray and Camille quit their jobs, sold their house and furniture and bought an older 43-foot Marine Trader sundeck trawler, We-3. They took off for a year to go cruising and to never look back. Also aboard were their two dachshunds.

Their itinerary and route were more traditional than Voras' or the Clares, as they stayed aboard the entire year traveling up the ICW from Norfolk to Canada, cruising down Lake Michigan to Chicago, and then undertaking the 1,500-mile down-river run to Alabama and Florida. Their boat was ideal for living aboard for extended periods of time and traveling long distances in relatively protected waters. Its twin diesels provided a comfortable, fuel-efficient cruising speed between 8 and 9 knots, and its interior space offered a good amount of privacy.

In an attempt to avoid emptying their bank account, the Lesoines were practical. They anchored out when they could and kept their restaurant hopping to a reasonable level. Like many other Loopers, they soon discovered their own boat was often the best waterfront restaurant in town. Camille, who was not an avid boater before starting this trip, learned to adjust to some of the inconveniences of cruising and always seemed to find a positive twist to challenging situations. "Yes, the boat banging on the dock woke me up at 4 a.m., but I got to watch the sun rise over Manhattan," she says.

Cruising with a child also called for adjustments. Taylor was being home schooled and at first didn't like the fact that he had to study during the summer. But Camille explained that he'd be studying only three hours a day during the school year, and he eventually got into a routine of hitting the books in the morning and playing later in the day. Full-time cruisers also worry about their children missing their friends, but the Loop is full of families.

On the downside, of course, boats don't usually stay together for long, so most of these friendships with other kids are short-lived. In some cases, however, cruising families that enjoy each other's company stay in contact for years to come. "I had to remind Taylor that he would never have met all these children if we hadn't gone on our Great Loop adventure," says Camille. Taylor kept his own journal of the trip (at the urging of his parents), and an excerpt includes, "Today I'm going to write about my favorite part of this trip. It is making new friends. This year I made over 99 friends."

Today, the Lesoines talk enthusiastically when they recall their favorite places along the Loop, such as the Chesapeake Bay, Georgian Bay and downtown Chicago. But perhaps the best part of their one-year adventure was how it ended. When they reached Bradenton, Fla., they stopped, took a good look around, loved what they saw, bought a new home, sold their boat and started their own business, a portrait photography studio. "I was in corporate finance all those years but always had this yearning to do something more creative," says Camille. "Taking that year off allowed me to think about what I really wanted to do with my life. I never would have made such a drastic change if it weren't for our trip."

If there is one thing all of these Loopers agree on, it's that you should not put off doing this trip. On a very poignant note that should be a lesson to us all, Al Voras' old buddy Len Tucker passed away not long after their last voyage together. So go now. You probably don't need a bigger, better boat. You might not have to quit your job to start cruising. But if you do, you might discover something wonderful about yourself.