Great Bay/Little Bay boaters out there?

[Yankeehombre]

Great bay can "blow-up" in a matter of minutes, in a way every bit as treacherous as the open ocean. PFd's should be worn at all times in a canoe or kayak or jon-boat. Help from a larger boat can be some distance away , even in little bay. I have canoed, sailed and motorboated Great Bay for 25 years. I always followed the practice of never entering the open ocean without a marine radio. I'm happy to say, I have never needed it for a distress call, but would still not allow myself to be caught without one.I would suggest that for both bays as well. Please note that a radio without a chart of the bay to report your position is nearly worthless.
State Marine safety patrols are so sparse that far inland as to be non-existant.In short, if you get into trouble you're on your own.I've towed numerous powerboats to safety with engine problems, out of gas etc., but all of those people were extremely lucky I happened by and actually noticed them as being in distress. It is not uncommon to spend the entire day on the bay and never be within shouting distance of another boat. A radio + flares should be considered mandatory safety equipmeny out there. The water is Much-Much colder than any you'ved experienced in the Bahamas. The coast guard uses the guideline of 50 degree water 50 minutes in it, 50/50chance of survival. The bay is seldom as warm as 50 degrees.
Almost anywhere on either of the the bays is a 50 minute swim to safety, considering reduced muscle function in cold water.
Also the Route 4 bridge by Great Bay marina has a terrific rip during a tide-turn. I would not attempt that in any of the aforementioned hand-powered vessels.

A number of Years ago a UNH student drowned out there.

[Movingback]

Yankeehombre

Great info, appreciate the imput.

[fishnfool]

I duck hunt Great Bay often and can attest to everything said in the above post. Learn the channels, get a good GPS and depth finder and mark them out. The southern half turns into a mud flat during low tide. Especially keep and eye on the wind vs. tides. It can be calm while the tide is with the wind, but when it switches the water can turn VERY mean. I was out a few weeks back and 5 foot chop kicked up in a matter of minutes. It took us a long time to get in and I had a 1/2 inch shell of ice on me when we made it back to the launch. It was probably the worst boat ride of my life. I was going to bring my boat out here next year but I've realized it's not enough boat to handle what the bay can kick up.

[Movingback]

fishnfool

What size boat are you using that you consider to be too small for the bay? (if you don't mind me asking)
I have had 2-19 foot Sea Ray bow riders in the past and was considering a similar boat for Great bay adventuring. Would you think that a bit small. or be able to handle all but the worse conditions out there?

Oh, any luck on your hunt?

[buck naked]

I had a 20foot runabout and it was very difficult on some days to maneuver the extremely strong currents. Unfortunately, the weather can change in a flash and what may start out as a nice day can become difficult without warning.

I think anything smaller would be very scary.

[Yankeehombre]

I've spent the prdominant amount of time on the bay in a 17' I/O with lots of freeboard. I've taken that down the coast to Newburyport + Glocester. The more germaine thing you should be asking yourself is how well prepared are you for trouble. Are your flares expired? Did you check the weather? Do you have enough anchor rope for where you intend to go, or might end up in a 'blow'. Do you have at least 1 1/2 times the fuel you think you might need? On rare occasion storms will force you to fight the surf coming in. Boats do not go uphill very well. The Queen Mary isn't big enough for the foolish!

[fishnfool]

Sorry for the late reply....I hunted this year out of my buddies 18' lund alaskan. We've had plenty of days where the water was glass, or only minimal chop. The boat I have back home is a 14' deep v aluminum (duck boat...not pleasure boat).

Again, it just comes down to picking your days, and knowing the bay. It's not place for on the water training....I would try to hook up with some people who know it and get on the water with them a few times in different conditions and tides to get an idea what can come up. You would be amazed the difference between low and high tide.

[BostonNorth25]

Hey I'm getting a 19 foot Starcraft limited RE I/0 with a 220hp engine. Do you think I'm good to navigate anywhere in the great bay? I probably would be putting in once in a while on the salmon falls river and coming down the piscatiqua...sometimes maybe going out to portsmouth sometimes the great bay. I can't wait to pick up the boat.

[Annabelle]

Here's a good visual on just how shallow Great Bay is (even at high tide). You've got to stay in the channels or you'll get into trouble, especially accessing it from the Lamprey and Squamscot Rivers (bottom left of photo). If you pay attention to the weather conditions, have necessary equipment on board and use common sense, you should be fine.