Great Loop Resources

Great Loop Cruising Resources

America’s Great Loop is a bucket-list adventure—6,000 miles of waterways through the U.S., with routes into Canada and the Bahamas. These guides, courses, and references will help you plan, stay organized, and cruise with confidence.

Be Ready for the Great Loop

A smooth Great Loop journey starts with the right knowledge, tools, and resources. We've got the guides, courses, and other resources to help you have a fantastic adventure!

Cruising Guides for the Great Loop: Fast, Reliable Info

Cruising the Great Loop means always moving—but finding fuel, anchorages, and services shouldn’t slow you down. Our guides put key info at your fingertips with clear, organized tables, so you spend less time searching and more time cruising.

A Perfect Anchorage

Go down the columns to find the features you want

Stores & Services

Know the best and nearest place to head for everything you need

Bridges

Location, name, height, tide, schedule, and how to call

Haulouts

Location, restrictions including max. beam, and how to contact

💲 Free Docks

Find convenient spots to tie up without the cost

👉 Inlets & Cuts

Navigate confidently, knowing what to expect at each one

⚠ Nav Alerts

Identify trouble spots and key areas to watch for safe cruising

✔ Quick Reminders

Dredging markers and horn signals

Florida Gulf Coast cruising guide: quick-reference tables for anchorages, marinas, haulouts, fuel, and boater services.

FL Gulf Coast

Dry Tortugas to Mobile, AL

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Cruising guide for Florida Keys and Okeechobee Waterway: quick-reference anchorages, services, and navigation.

S Florida

Okeechobee Waterway to the Florida Keys

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Bahamas

All island groups

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ICW cruising guide: quick-reference tables for bridges, anchorages, fuel, water, and other boater services.

ICW

Norfolk, VA to Miami, FL

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Chesapeake

Norfolk, VA to C&D Canal, including rivers

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Need it now? Or don't have a shipping address? No problem! All our guides are available as PDF downloads, in addition to the print copies. Order the PDF to get it instantly without the worry of where to have it sent.

Courses to Prepare You for the Great Loop

Cruising the Great Loop isn’t just about navigation—it’s about handling daily life aboard. Whether you're planning or already underway, get the skills you need to cruise with confidence. Choose one or get the All-Access Pass for to cover it all!

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Text on a light blue background reads: Affordable, on-demand courses from The Boat Galley to master living on a boat at your own pace. Above the text is a red circle with a white checkmark.

Check out The Boat Galleys All-Access Pass: Courses to Master Living on a Boat for nine key online courses. From Eating Well with a Tiny Fridge to Bahamas cruise planning, these practical resources prepare you for full-time life aboard.

Five star review on a blue background: As a total newbie to living aboard, The Boat Galleys courses are amazing. Tons of info and well-organized, the All-Access Pass has taught me so much about living on a boat full time!

Dive into The Boat Galley with the All-Access Pass: Courses to Master Living on a Boat, featuring mini courses like Discover Living on a Boat, Prepare to Cruise, and more. Embark on your full-time maritime journey today!

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All-Access Pass: Courses to Master Living on a Boat

$199.00

$421.00

Get lifetime access to all courses and master every challenge of living on a boat

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Learn the basics of living aboard a boat with practical advice for transitioning and thriving as a liveaboard.

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5-star review on a teal background: The Basics of Living on a Boat by The Boat Galley is a very easy course to follow, imparting enough knowledge and confidence to feel more relaxed as a new member of the liveaboard cruising community.

The Basics of Living on a Boat

$39.00

Flatten the learning curve and step into life aboard with confidence. Learn daily routines, essential skills, and what to expect for a smooth transition to full-time boat life.

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Storage Solutions for Life Aboard: Practical strategies to maximize space and organize your boat, no matter its size.

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Storage Solutions for Life Aboard course – practical tips to organize and store everything you need on a boat, no matter its size.

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Storage Solutions For Life Aboard

$49.00

Practical storage strategies to keep your boat organized, no matter its size.

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Provisioning, meal planning, and food storage course for boaters: learn how to efficiently plan, shop, and store food for your cruising adventures.

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Provisioning, Meal Planning, and Food Storage for Boaters

$69.00

Confidently create your provisioning list, shop smarter, and store food aboard with a step-by-step action plan

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Learn to use VHF marine radios effectively with this course—covers safety calls, etiquette, and advanced features.

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The Boat Galleys VHF Radios: Everything You Need To Know course offers a self-paced, lifetime access guide on VHF usage, featuring routine calls, DSC, AIS, and weather updates for confident communication.

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VHF Radios: Everything You Need To Know

$39.00

Unlock your VHF’s full potential—clear communication, advanced features, and safer cruising

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Boating with your dog course: training, safety, and tips for a happy life aboard.

Tile for Cruising With Your Dog course, with tips to train, care for, and safely live aboard with your dog while cruising.

Key points about Boating With Your Dog: it's an online course covering how to make cruising with your dog fun as well as safe.

The Boat Galleys Boating With Your Dog: Training, Safety, and Life Aboard features : All online, Go at your own pace, whenever convenient. Available immediately. No shipping.

5-star review for Boating With Your Dog: Training, Safety, and Life Aboard by The Boat Galley:

A checklist graphic with a red check mark on a light blue background detailing topics from Boating With Your Dog: Training, Safety, and Life Aboard by The Boat Galley: Getting Ready to Cruise, Shopping for & Equipping a Dog-Friendly Boat, Care and Feeding, Health and Safety, Exercise and Enrichment, Life Afloat with Your Dog, Toilet Training.

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Boating With Your Dog: Training, Safety, and Life Aboard

$49.00

Confidently enjoy life aboard with your dog with practical, step-by-step guidance.

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Bahamas cruising prep course: step-by-step guide for planning, provisioning, and crossing the Gulf Stream.

Quick description of Bahamas Planning and Prepartion online course. How-to's, info, and in-depth checklists.

The Boat Galleys Get Ready To Cruise The Bahamas course, topped with a red checkmark icon, covers six crucial categories for cruising from Florida to the Bahamas: Legalities, Crossing the Gulf Stream, Weather and Tides, Provisioning, Communications, and In Case of Emergency.

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Get Ready To Cruise The Bahamas

$49.00

Simplify your Bahamas trip planning with step-by-step guidance and accurate, up-to-date information.

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Essential References & Organizers for a Smooth Great Loop Journey

Stay organized on the Great Loop with tools designed by experienced cruisers. Practical resources for a smoother, stress-free adventure!

Ship's Log for Trips and Maintenance

$45.69

Five logs in one! Track daily trips, maintenance by system, and routine checks to spot problems early and stay organized effortlessly.

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Boat Documents Organizer

$32.92

Keep your boat paperwork secure, organized, and instantly accessible with space for up to 400 pages. Includes a checklist of essential documents to have aboard.

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Handy VHF Reference

$14.29

Essential guide for basic and emergency VHF calls, phonetic alphabet, channel usage, and best practices for clear communication. Durable, waterproof.

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The Boat Galley Cookbook

$46.38

$50.00

Over 800 boat-friendly recipes plus tips for cooking aboard, smart substitutions, and creative solutions for every galley challenge.

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Where You've Seen Us

Meet The Boat Galley Team

At The Boat Galley, we’re all cruisers. We know the joys—and the challenges—of boat life. The steep learning curve, costly mistakes, and hours spent searching for answers can be overwhelming. We’ve been there. That’s why we’ve created practical tools, trusted resources, and real-world guides to help you skip the frustrations and focus on enjoying your cruising life.