Great Loop Radio Podcast

Great Loop Radio Podcast

America's Great Loop Cruisers' Association brings you this weekly podcast providing information and inspiration to help you plan your own Great Loop adventure.

Episodes

August 1, 2025 41 mins

Episode resources:

USCG Navigation Rules – this is the official source: https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/navigation-rules-amalgamated

Quick Reference guide to the NavRules: https://www.whoi.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Abbreviated-Guide-To-Navigation-Rules-of-the-Road.pdf

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Join us as Eric Martin, our current Harbor Host of the Year and Manager at Donovan's Shady Harbor, provides tips on what to expect when needing work done at a boatyard while on the Great Loop. Eric will include suggestions on what parts to carry with you, how to go about planning for scheduled maintenance, and what to do when you need unexpected or emergency repairs.
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We continue our Story of Our Loop series this week with our guests, Mike & Darlene. They did the Loop in a non-traditional way by traveling home every other weekend. They'll share how they made the frequent trips home work, how they arranged travel, and how their way of Looping may have changed their overall experience. Mike & Darlene provide inspiration for those who may need to travel home frequently while Looping to handle famil...
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June 27, 2025 21 mins

Details about our sponsor program: https://www.greatloop.org/sponsors

Refer a sponsor: sponsors@greatloop.org or submit a form here

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Our popular "Story of our Loop" series returns this week as we feature Malcom & Rachel from "Stay Cool", a Mainship 390 that completed the Great Loop in 2023. Malcolm and Rachel share why their chose their boat, the details of their adventure, how they stayed in compliance with regualtions as Canadians traveling for an extended period time in the U.S. and advice for future Loopers. You can learn more about Malcolm & Rachel on their...
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June 13, 2025 28 mins
Local Notice to Mariners are something that should be in every Looper's toolbox. Checking these reports can give insight into the local issues you may encounter on each movement of your boat on the Great Loop. Robert Rice joins us once again this week to discuss where to find Local Notice to Mariners and how you can use them to be more prepared for the Great Loop. RESOURCES MENTION IN THE EPISODE: Subscribe to LNM by email https:/...
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Resources

Here are a couple of articles from BoatUS on this problem 

Testing Crew Overboard Maneuvers - https://www.boatus.org/findings/41

Getting that person back aboard is harder than you think. - https://www.boatus.com/expert-advice/expert-advice-archive/2012/october/man-overboard-rescue-for-powerboats

MOB tips - https://www.boatus.org/crew-overboard/tips

LifeSling

https://www.ussailing.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/2023.SAS-advisory...

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May 30, 2025 46 mins
With the Erie Canal undergoing repairs between Locks E16 and E17, that route is not yet open to Loopers needing to transit the area to continue the Great Loop route. The Lake Champlain route option is a popular choice in most years, but even more Loopers are considering it this year instead of waiting for the Erie Canal to fully open. This week, AGLCA member Bill Ogilvie joins us to discuss this route, the specifications of boats t...
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May 23, 2025 41 mins

AGLCA members can download the handout discussed. It is available in our Resource Library on the www.GreatLoop.org website.

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May 16, 2025 40 mins
Update on the New York Canals! Join us as Shane Mahar, Director of Public Engagement – Canals at the New York Power Authority & New York State Canal Corporation, discusses the status of the Canals, and the delayed opening of most sections, on what was expected to be opening day system-wide. We'll also discuss the Erie Canal's Bicentennial celebration happening this season. The Great Loop is a 6,000-mile circumnavigation of the eas...
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Learn more at about HB 481, why it's bad for boating, and how to get involved in our veto campaign:
Website: https://boatersrightscoalition.org/veto

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BoatersRightsCoalition

The actual bill: https://flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2025/481/BillText/er/PDF

Steps you can take now:

Help us fund the effort: https://www.greatloop.com/product-page/advocacy-fund-contribution

Call Governonr DeSantis's office and urge h...

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April 25, 2025 41 mins
If you enjoyed our episode a few weeks back on "Looper Lore", then you'll appreciate this episode as we bust some Great Loop myths. Kim & Ted from Pony are our guests as we explore some of those Looper sayings, or pieces of advice, that you might want to reconsider when planning and cruising your own Great Loop adventure. The Great Loop is the boating adventure of a lifetime. Loopers follow the 6,000-mile route in their own boats,...
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April 18, 2025 30 mins
How do you know how much boat you can afford? How can you be sure you'll have enough money left after the Loop for the rest of your retirement? And how can you make sure the money you've saved for the Loop goes as far as possible? Join us for this episode of the Great Loop Radio podcast as Cathy Aull, Certified Financial Planner with Edward Jones, discusses how to plan for the financial aspects of Looping.
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April 11, 2025 26 mins

The Boaters' Rights Advocacy Coalition is a group of dedicated boaters associations representing more than 20,000 members committed to advocating for the rights of all active cruisers and boaters. Our mission is to ensure safe, equitable, and sustainable access to our public waterways. 

Here's how you can help protect anchoring on Florida's waterways:

Contribute to our Advocacy Fund. This fund helps pay our lobbyist in Florida. Witho...

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April 4, 2025 32 mins
When Foster & Susan did the Great Loop, they decided not to follow the pack to the "usual" Looper stops. Instead, they asked 7 questions to locals around the Loop that helped them find the hidden gems, the waterways less traveled, and ultimately, make the Loop their own. Join us this week as Foster & Susan share their 7 questions that led them to the best food, drinks, places, and sights along the Great Loop route. The Great Loop...
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March 28, 2025 43 mins
Most Loopers have their favorite sayings that apply to the Great Loop. This week, we share some of the best "Looper Lore" that you'll hear during docktails and other discussions on the Great Loop. Tsali and Jacque Bentley, platinum Loopers and AGLCA award winners, are my guests this week as we reveal and explain some of the favorite Looper Lore submitted by our members. The Great Loop is the boating adventure of a lifetime! Looper...
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March 14, 2025 33 mins

America's Great Loop is the boating adventure of a lifetime! Loopers cruise the 6,000-mile Great Loop route aboard their own boats completing a circumnavigation of the eastern U.S. and part of Canada via mostly protected inland waterways. The Great Loop route follows the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, the Chesapeake Bay, and the New York Canals northwards, goes across the Great Lakes, south on the Inland Rivers, and then east Gulf...

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March 7, 2025 40 mins
Some states along the Great Loop Route require even transiting boaters to have taken a safe boating course. This means that every Looper should have taken a NASBLA approved course. This epsiode of our podcast talks about which states require a course for transiting boaters, what's covered in the courses, and where you can take one. The Great Loop is a 6,000-mile Great Loop route that Loopers cruise aboard their own boats, completi...
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February 28, 2025 29 mins
As this year's fleet of Loopers gets ready to head up the east coast of Florida, a side trip on the St. Johns River will be on the cruising plan of many. This week, Tim & Diane Vandersall join us to share details on this pristine river that's teeming with wildlife. They'll talk about navigating the river, the places they stopped along the way, the facilities available, and the options for places to explore, eat, and simply enjoy na...
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February 21, 2025 30 mins
Two bills filed in Florida would further limit anchoring, and one bill would create free permits to anchor for more than 14 days. This week's podcast explains the history of the issue, gives the details of the bills, and shares why AGLCA supports one and opposes two. Most importantly, please help us fund our efforts on your behalf to protect anchoring in Florida by contributing at www.greatloop.org/advocacy. The Great Loop Route i...
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