BRR! I wrote this note on a Sunday morning at last year’s Annapolis Sailboat Show, after a cold front just came through.
I met so many readers at the show – it was wonderful! Quite a few planned to head south after the show, and so were were talking about staying warm and “tricks” for successfully running the ICW.
For staying warm while boating, the two best things I know of are merino wool long underwear and click-heat hand warmers. Merino wool is soft, not scratchy, and doesn’t have that “wool” smell to it. It costs a little more, but it’s worth every penny.
The click hand warmers are wonderful to stick in your pockets or even in the palms of gloves. The great part is that they use no electricity or batteries and are reusable. You can learn more about both the merino wool long undies and the click-heat hand warmers, plus 8 other things that make cruising in chilly weather so much better, in this article that I wrote a couple of years ago.
On-the-water tips for the ICW? Well, I absolutely love the Aqua Map nav program on my iPad. The inclusion of the US Army Corps of Engineers depth info and the Local Notices to Mariners with daily updates makes it stand head and shoulders above other nav solutions. The app is free on both Android and iOS. You can get 20% off their chart packages here.
And check our ICW Cockpit Reference available on Amazon.
Stay warm and stay safe!
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Dave Skolnick (S/V Auspicious) says
I’m a huge fan of diesel fired heaters like those from Espar, Webasto, and Hurricane. Having a truly warm boat makes watches in the cockpit a lot easier leading to longer days, more miles, and getting afraid of Jack Frost.
I have no experience with the click heaters to compare. The Zippo heaters https://www.zippo.com/collections/hand-warmers/products/6-hour-refillable-hand-warmer are fantastic. I carry two on cold weather deliveries, one in each pocket, sometimes stuffed in my socks.