Intracoastal Waterway System (ICW)
What is the Intracoastal waterway system?
The Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) is a series of parallel channels that run along the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts from New Jersey to Texas at the Mexican border.
How do you read Intracoastal waterway markers?
Aids to navigation marking the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) display unique yellow symbols to distinguish them from aids marking other waters. Yellow triangles indicate aids should be passed by keeping them on the starboard side of the vessel. Yellow squares indicate aids should be passed by keeping them on the port side of the vessel. A yellow horizontal band has no lateral significance, but simply identifies aids as marking the ICW.
Otherwise, the colors and numbering of buoys, day marks and lights follow the same system as that observed in all other waterways.
What is the purpose of building the Intracoastal waterway?
The ICW was built to improve transportation routes for circumnavigation using minimal ocean travel.
Which way does water flow on Intracoastal waterway?
There are two important facts to remember about aids along the Intracoastal Waterway: they run clockwise around the coast and they are uniquely marked. Because the ICW runs along the shore, the conventional adage of “red, right, returning from seaward” becomes unclear.
Can you anchor in the ICW?
Depending on your draught, there are plenty of places to anchor for the night along the ICW, and no shortage of town docks and marinas.
How fast can you go on the ICW?
You must maintain safe passage at 25 miles per hour maximum speed and pay attention to your wake.
How deep is the Intercoastal canal?
The ICW has a depth of 12-feet.
Can you sail down the ICW?
The best boats to travel down the ICW are motorboats or sailboats with a mast no higher than 64' or a keel not too much deeper than 5'.
What is the bridge clearance on the Intercoastal waterway?
The minimum overhead clearance of fixed bridges over the Intracoastal Waterway is 56 feet at the Julia Tuttle Causeway in Miami.
How big of a boat do you need for the Intracoastal waterway?
The best boats to travel down the ICW are motorboats or sailboats with a mast no higher than 64' or a keel not too much deeper than 5'. There's a stretch of the ICW that will, however, allow boats with tall masts (over 64') and deeper keels (7' or so) running from Palm Beach to Fort Lauderdale.
How long does it take to cruise the Intracoastal waterway?
To optimize the time, most cruisers have the lines in at “crack of dawn” (COD) and plan to be off the water with an hour or two of daylight left. This allows them to travel between 40 and 70 nautical miles each day. At that pace, completing the ICW would take three to four weeks, provided you do not stop.
