Great Loop Boats for Sale
The Numbers That Qualify Your Vessel
6,000 Miles. Three Numbers. No Second Chances at the Chicago Bridge.
Three Numbers. That’s the Qualification.
The Great Loop is 6,000 miles of connected waterways — the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, the Erie Canal or the Canadian Trent-Severn, the Great Lakes, the inland rivers from Chicago to the Gulf, and back up the coast to where you started. It is the only continuous navigable loop in North America. It crosses 15 states and two Canadian provinces. It takes most people 12–18 months.
But before any of that matters, your boat has to qualify. And the qualification comes down to three numbers:
• Air draft: 19’6” or under • Draft: 5 feet or under • Fuel range: 208 nautical miles or more
The air draft is the hard limit — the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal fixed bridge at Mile 300.6 clears 19’6” and there is no alternate route. The draft limit comes from the Trent-Severn Waterway in Ontario, where Parks Canada maintains a 5-foot controlling depth. The range requirement comes from the stretch between Hoppies Marina on the Mississippi (Mile 158.5) and the next reliable fuel stop — 208 nautical miles of river with nothing in between.
If your boat meets all three numbers, you can do the Loop. If it misses any one of them, you need a different boat.
Why Listen to Us?
Yacht Access has been placing buyers into Great Loop vessels from Fort Lauderdale for 45 years. We know which boats finish the Loop and which ones don’t. We know the specific models that handle the Chicago bridge, the Trent-Severn locks, the Mississippi current, and the Great Lakes crossings. When you’re ready to find your Loop boat, we’re here — no pressure, no obligation, just straight answers from people who do this every day.
The Great Loop Constraint Table
Every number below represents a hard physical limit on the route. These are not recommendations — they are the dimensions of the locks, bridges, and waterways your vessel must fit through.
| Parameter | Limit | Location | Consequence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air Draft | 19’6” maximum | Chicago Sanitary & Ship Canal | Cannot complete the Loop. No alternate route exists. |
| Draft | 5’0” maximum | Trent-Severn Waterway, Ontario | Cannot transit the Canadian route. Erie Canal alternative has 14’0” clearance but different challenges. |
| Beam | 23’0” maximum | Trent-Severn lock chambers | Cannot fit through the narrowest locks on the Canadian route. |
| LOA | 84’0” maximum | Trent-Severn lock chambers | Cannot fit in the lock. Most Loop boats are well under this limit. |
| Fuel Range | 208nm minimum | Hoppies Marina to next fuel (Mississippi River) | Stranded on the river with no fuel. Towing on the Mississippi is expensive and dangerous. |
| Mast Height | 19’6” (same as air draft) | Chicago fixed bridge | Sailboats must unstep the mast. Most powerboats clear this if air draft is under limit. |
| Speed Capability | Minimum 6 knots sustained | Mississippi & Tennessee-Tombigbee rivers | Current on the rivers runs 2–4 knots. A boat that cruises at 5 knots makes 1–3 knots over ground going upstream. Impractical. |
| Anchor Ground Tackle | Must hold in current | River anchorages throughout | River current is constant. A dragging anchor on the Mississippi puts you in commercial shipping lanes. |
| Fender Protection | Heavy-duty required | All lock chambers | Lock walls are rough concrete. Standard marina fenders will be destroyed. Carry dedicated lock fenders. |
| VHF Radio | Required, with handheld backup | Inland rivers, lock approaches | Commercial traffic communicates on VHF. Lock approaches require radio contact. No radio, no transit. |
| Holding Tank Capacity | Adequate for 3–5 day stretches | Remote river and canal sections | Pump-out stations are scarce on the inland rivers. Plan accordingly. |
The Route — 11 Segments, 6,000 Miles
The Great Loop is typically run counterclockwise from Fort Lauderdale. Here is the route broken into its major segments with the key challenges and distances for each.
Fort Lauderdale to Norfolk
Bridge schedules, shoaling in Georgia/Carolinas. Air draft under 65ft for this segment.
Norfolk to New York
Open water on the Chesapeake and Delaware Bays. Weather windows required.
New York to Lake Ontario
Erie Canal locks (35 locks, 14ft air draft clearance). Slow transit — plan 7–10 days.
Lake Ontario to Georgian Bay
44 locks, 5ft draft limit, 23ft beam limit, 84ft LOA limit. The most restrictive segment.
Georgian Bay
Open water, rocky shoals, remote anchorages. Real seamanship required. Weather can change fast.
Lake Michigan to Chicago
Open Great Lakes crossing. September storms are real. This is not protected water.
Chicago to the Mississippi
19’6” air draft bridge. Commercial barge traffic. Current.
Upper Mississippi
208nm fuel range required. Commercial traffic. Strong current. Limited services.
Lower Mississippi to Tenn-Tom
Commercial shipping, strong current, precise navigation required at the Tenn-Tom junction.
Tenn-Tom to Mobile Bay
10 locks, relatively straightforward. Good marinas. The ‘easy’ segment.
Gulf Coast to Fort Lauderdale
Okeechobee route has 49ft air draft limit. Offshore route around the Keys requires weather window.
Why Fort Lauderdale Is the Best Starting Point
Marine Infrastructure
Fort Lauderdale has more marine service providers per square mile than anywhere else in the world. Every system on your boat can be inspected, repaired, or upgraded before departure. Engine mechanics, electronics technicians, canvas shops, bottom painters, rigging specialists — they’re all within a 15-minute drive of each other. Try finding that in Annapolis or Charleston.
Inventory Access
More Great Loop-qualified vessels are available for purchase in the Fort Lauderdale/Miami corridor than any other market in the country. The concentration of trawlers, motor yachts, and cruisers in this area means you can see 10 boats in a weekend without getting on a plane. That matters when you’re trying to find the right vessel for a 6,000-mile voyage.
Route Position
Fort Lauderdale sits at the southern end of the Atlantic ICW — the first 1,088 miles of the Loop. You buy the boat, prepare it, provision it, and head north when the weather breaks in March. No repositioning required. No delivery captain needed. You start the Loop from where you bought the boat.
Already Know What You Want?
Skip the reading. Tell us your budget, your cruising plans, and your timeline. We’ll match you with Loop-qualified boats within 24 hours.
The 5 Best Boats for the Great Loop
These are not theoretical recommendations. These are the specific vessels we have placed Great Loop buyers into from Fort Lauderdale — boats that have completed the route or are currently on it.
The 5 Mistakes Great Loop Buyers Make
Every one of these comes from real deals we’ve seen go sideways. Learn from other buyers’ expensive lessons.
When to Leave — The Great Loop Calendar
The Great Loop has a natural rhythm dictated by weather, lock schedules, and ice. Most Loopers follow this approximate calendar:
Depart Fort Lauderdale northbound on the Atlantic ICW
Transit the Carolinas and Virginia. Arrive Norfolk.
Chesapeake Bay, Delaware Bay, Hudson River
Erie Canal or Oswego Canal to Lake Ontario. Enter Trent-Severn.
Georgian Bay, North Channel, Lake Huron
Lake Michigan to Chicago. Watch weather carefully.
Illinois River, Mississippi River. The Hoppies stretch.
Tenn-Tom Waterway to Mobile Bay
Gulf Coast ICW to Fort Lauderdale. Loop complete.
This is the 12-month schedule. Many Loopers take 18–24 months, wintering in the Chesapeake or the Gulf Coast. There is no wrong pace. The Loop rewards slowness — the best experiences are the unplanned ones.
Equipment — What You Actually Need
The Loop takes you through every condition — open ocean, protected waterways, river current, lock chambers, and remote anchorages. Your equipment list needs to cover all of them.
Non-Negotiable
Anchor system — oversized for river current
River current is constant and strong. Your anchor needs to hold in mud and sand against 2–4 knots of flow. Oversized is correct. A 45lb anchor on a 45-foot boat is not oversized for the Mississippi.
Lock fenders — heavy-duty, not marina fenders
Lock walls are rough concrete. Standard white marina fenders will be destroyed in the first lock. Carry dedicated heavy-duty fenders or fender boards.
VHF radio — handheld backup
Commercial traffic on the inland rivers communicates on VHF. A handheld when you’re on deck in a lock is not optional.
Depthsounder — current calibration
The charts are not always right. The ICW shoals. The Trent-Severn shoals. Your depthsounder is your real chart.
Autopilot — working
Long river stretches with autopilot are manageable. Without autopilot they are exhausting. Fix it before you leave.
Shore power — 30 amp minimum, 50 preferred
Most Loop marinas have 30 amp. Some have 50. A 50 amp boat on a 30 amp dock needs an adapter. Carry both.
Dinghy — deployable without crew
Georgian Bay and the Great Lakes have anchorages with no dinghy dock. A dinghy you can’t launch alone is useless.
Recommended
Folding or removable radar arch
If your air draft is marginal, a folding arch gives you clearance buffer. Worth the retrofit cost if you’re at 18–19ft.
Watermaker
Not required. But marinas in remote sections of the route charge for water. A watermaker pays for itself in peace of mind.
Generator
Shore power is not always available. A reliable generator lets you anchor independently indefinitely.
Spare parts inventory
The Loop takes you to places where marine suppliers are 200 miles away. Impellers, belts, filters, zincs — carry multiples.
The Questions Every Great Loop Buyer Asks
What is the minimum air draft for the Great Loop?
19’6” is the hard limit — the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal fixed bridge at Mile 300.6. There is no alternate route. If your boat measures over 19’6” at the highest fixed point, it cannot complete the primary Great Loop route. Some components — radar arches, antennas — can be lowered or removed to achieve clearance. Measure before you buy.
Can I do the Great Loop in a flybridge motor yacht?
Yes — if the air draft clears 19’6”. Many flybridge motor yachts in the 38–50ft range have air drafts of 18–20ft. The ones with radar arches and tall hardtops push higher. Measure the highest point including every antenna and structure that cannot be removed. If it’s under 19’6”, you can do the Loop. If it’s over, you need a folding arch or a different boat.
How long does the Great Loop take?
The minimum reasonable completion time is 6 months pushing hard with few stops. Most Loopers take 12–18 months. Some take 2–3 years doing it in segments. The route rewards slowness — the best experiences are the unplanned ones, and those don’t happen when you’re running 80nm days to stay on schedule.
How much does the Great Loop cost?
Beyond the vessel purchase and operating costs, budget $15,000–$30,000 for the Loop itself in marina fees, fuel, locks (Canadian locks charge a seasonal pass — approximately $200 CAD), and provisions over the full route. Loopers who anchor more and stay at marinas less spend significantly less. Loopers who treat every stop as a destination and eat dinner ashore every night spend more.
Do I need to be an experienced captain?
The Loop has been completed by first-time boat buyers. It has also humbled experienced captains on the Great Lakes in September. The technical skills required are modest — maneuvering in locks, anchoring, docking in current, reading commercial traffic on the rivers. The seamanship required for the open Great Lakes segments is real. Take a powerboat handling course before you leave if you haven’t spent time on open water.
Is Fort Lauderdale a good starting point?
It’s arguably the best. You’re at the southern end of the Atlantic ICW with the best marine infrastructure in the world for pre-departure preparation. Yacht Access has been placing buyers into Great Loop vessels from this marina since 1980. We know the boats, the route, and the preparation required to complete it successfully.
Browse Loop-Qualified Inventory
Loading current inventory...
Inventory loading. Check back shortly or call us directly.
Talk to a BrokerReady to Find Your Great Loop Boat?
Three numbers. That’s the qualification. Under 19’6” air draft. Under 5ft draft. Over 208nm range.
If your boat doesn’t qualify, we’ll find one that does. If it does qualify, we’ll find the right one for how you want to do the route — in comfort over 18 months, or fast and light in 6.
Yacht Access • Fort Lauderdale, FL • IYBA Member • 45+ Years of Loop Experience
Related Guides & Searches
Disclaimer
The information provided in this guide is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute professional, legal, financial, or navigational advice. While we strive to keep the content accurate and up to date, YachtAccess makes no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, or suitability of the information contained herein.
Lock dimensions, bridge clearances, channel depths, and waterway conditions on the Great Loop change due to maintenance, construction, weather events, and regulatory updates. The constraint data in this guide is current as of publication. Always verify current conditions with the Army Corps of Engineers, Parks Canada, and the AGLCA before departing.
Navigation data — including but not limited to bridge clearances, water depths, channel conditions, and lock dimensions — can change without notice due to weather, construction, silting, or regulatory updates. Always verify all measurements, clearances, and conditions independently with current official sources before making purchasing decisions or undertaking any voyage.
Nothing in this guide should be construed as a guarantee of vessel performance, suitability for a particular route, or investment return. Every vessel and situation is unique. We strongly recommend consulting with a qualified marine surveyor, maritime attorney, and/or financial advisor before making any purchasing or navigational decisions.
YachtAccess, its brokers, and affiliates shall not be held liable for any loss, damage, or injury arising from the use of or reliance on information presented in this guide.