Bob423 Guides Publications

There are four Bob423 Guides publications: 

• 2024 ICW Cruising Guide covers the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (AICW) from Norfolk, VA, to Key West, Florida, but also includes routes from New York to Norfolk in 300 pages. 
• 2024 ICW Cruising Guide, Waterway Guide digital version 
• 2024 Atlantic ICW Chartbook includes 385 color charts in the NOAA paper chart format of the Atlantic ICW from Norfolk, VA, to Key West, FL, across Lake Okeechobee to Ft Myers, and down to Key West in 409 pages. 
• 2024 Long Island Sound Chartbook covers from the Hudson River near New York, across Long Island Sound to Block Island in 209 pages of charts in the NOAA paper chart format. 
• Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway Chartbook covers the ICW from Norfolk, Va to Miami, FL. If you want all the way to Key West or across Lake Okeechobee, you want the 2024 Atlantic ICW Chartbook instead. 

The first six chapters of the Guide cover the basic knowledge needed for those transiting the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (ICW). Chapters 7 through 10 cover the detailed knowledge needed for a problem-free cruise on the ICW with highlights as below:
• ICW Navigation Requires New Skills. You may have been around the world or cruised for 40 years, but if it’s your first time on the Atlantic ICW, you need to read the article in Chapter 10. All your experience still applies, of course, but there are nuances to navigating the ICW that apply more so here than anywhere else.
•The ICW Cruising Guide has expanded to over 300 pages to provide essential ICW information with over 500 links to additional online sources. The links are active in the eBook and Waterway Guide versions. An active link list is available via a QR Code link in the paperback book version
All 150 hazard charts have been updated with depths from Bob423 and his Surveyors in the spring of 2024 to include the latest USACE survey charts, as displayed in Aqua Map Master, with the Bob423 track as a blue dotted line.
• MLLW at top of hazard page. The least MLLW seen for each hazard area is prominently displayed at the top of the page with the hazard chart and updated to the latest soundings. The same format is carried over to the Table of Contents, so at a glance, you can see the MLLW numbers for the areas you plan to traverse that day, provided you stay on the Bob423 track.
• Technology never sleeps. All recommendations have been updated to reflect the current state of the art.
• What are Bob423 Tracks? A section explaining what Bob423 tracks are, their sources, and how to use them is covered. I describe a new feature of Aqua Map that will automatically update Bob423 tracks stored on your iPad or Android device so your Bob423 tracks are never outdated.
• I take a deep dive into Aqua Map features with a focus on the new weather capabilities and explain the meaning of each icon on the Aqua Map first screen, updated to the June 2024 version of Aqua Map.
• Color coding Navionics SonarCharts. I cover how to tailor your Navionics SonarChart display for shallow water navigation with color-coded depths. Examples and a step-by-step procedure are outlined.
• Split Screen basics cover how to see both Aqua Map and Navionics on Apple and Android devices at the same time.
• Crowd Sourcing Bathymetry comes to Aqua Map. Share your soundings with NOAA
• Want to anchor in Key West instead of opting for an expensive marina? I interviewed Stan Loveday, a Key West Bight City Marina Dockmaster, for advice on where nearby to anchor that won’t result in your boat up on land after some wind.
• ICW-Proof Your Engine. Max Parker of Zimmerman Marine continues his article on How to ICW-Proof Your Engine. Cruising the ICW involves long hours of engine running, often at relatively low RPMs which is not the best strategy for long-term engine durability. Max Parker, head of yard operations at Zimmerman Marine gives his insight from 25 years servicing ICW cruisers on how to best maintain our engines for trouble-free operation.
• Introduction to Weather Apps. I cover the weather models most valuable to boaters and the apps that best display them. Two examples are given to show the differences in predictions from weather fronts and during summer thunderstorms
25% off coupon. Aqua Map Master should be your first navigation app investment. It’s a bargain that can’t be beaten. You will find a coupon in the guide for 25% off the initial purchase price of Aqua Map charts, so be sure to take advantage of the offer if you don’t already have Aqua Map.
There are many other features not covered in this brief outline.

The 385 color charts in the chartbook cover the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) from Norfolk, Virginia to Key West, Florida, and also across Lake Okeechobee to Ft Myers, and major ICW inlets. Chart notes have been retained and, in most cases, inserted in appropriate locations on the chart or in some cases, compiled at the end of the chartbook for reference. In addition to a detailed Table of Contents ordered by mile marker, an index is provided at the end of the chartbook to allow finding charts by familiar location names.

The 29 NOAA charts used in this chartbook were current anywhere from 10/2022 to 11/2023, depending upon NOAA's schedule for sunsetting their paper chart format. Most of the charts used have been cancelled with the remaining due for cancellation in early 2024. A detailed list of NOAA chart numbers used and update level is included in the chartbook.

The charts are printed in color on 22 lb paper in 8.5 x 11 inch format with each page covering a 5 mile segment of the ICW. The coverage is continuous, there are no gaps except where noted in Contents below. The chartbook comes bound along the long edge but the inside margin has been extended to 1 inch to allow room for a spiral binding if desired from a store like Staples for less than $10. The chartbook totals 409 pages.

Contents:

• Northern Approach to Norfolk VA
• Norfolk VA to Albemarle Sound
• Dismal Swamp to Albemarle Sound
• Albemarle Sound to Key West, FL
• St Lucie, FL to Ft Myers, FL (both the shore route and across Lake Okeechobee are included)
• Ft Myers, FL to Matanzas Pass, FL
• Matanzas Pass, FL to Key West, FL (not in 5 mile increments)
• Inlets along the ICW (17 major inlets covered)
• Compilation of chart messages appearing on charts)

The 2024 Long Island Sound Chartbook contains paper format charts (Raster Navigational Chart or RNC for short) for the Hudson River by New York City, through the East River, Long Island Sound, and on to Block Island. The northern and southern shores of the Sound are covered, including Fishers Island Sound, as are the bays around Shelter Island, Threemile Harbor, and Montauk. 28 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) source charts were used, each with many detail insets, resulting in 204 pages of charts. These are the last charts that NOAA will publish in the area since NOAA decided to retire all RNC format charts by 2024.

Detailed insets are shown for select areas:
• Oyster Bay
• Cold Spring Bay
• Lloyd Bay
• Huntington Bay
• Northport Bay in 5 detail charts
• Port Jefferson in 4 detail charts
• Around Shelter Island in 6 detail charts
• Gardiners Bay in 6 detail charts
• New Haven in 4 charts
• Harlem River in 5 charts
• New London up the Thames River in 8 charts to Norwich
• Connecticut River in 6 charts to Hamburg Cover
• Housatonic River in 5 charts to Shelton

All NOAA Chart Notes have been converted to clear text and displayed

• General area notes
• Specific area notes
• Tide and current tables
  • Dates of soundings (some are pre 1900s)
  • A chart finder graphic
  • Table of Contents
  • Index
  
  

• The Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway Chartbook is a compilation of nine NOAA paper charts (RNC format) covering the ICW from Norfolk, Virginia to Miami, Florida.
• Each page of the Chartbook shows a 5-mile segment of the ICW resulting in 239 pages of charts. All NOAA comments in insets are also included.
• All charts have been updated by NOAA to 10/25/2022.
• There are no gaps, every mile of the ICW is covered and the NOAA inset charts are also included for added detail in busy areas.
• The book is published through Amazon which does not support spiral binding.
• Staples will spiral bind your book on either the side as a book or at the top for a flip chart format for $8.00 (the margins allow for spiral binding)
• I have a pending agreement with Landfall Navigation who will also sell the book and provide a spiral-bound version.
• The book is printed by Amazon using 90 GSM white paper which is the same weight you can buy at Staples for your copier in the 20 to 24 lb range.

I would recommend you consider the ICW Cruising Guide by Bob423 as a companion publication. It focuses on the specific problem areas of the ICW along with lessons learned from 13 years of traveling the ICW (and 38 years of boating). My motto is “I make all the mistakes first so you don’t have to!” The book is available at Amazon.com by searching “ICW Cruising Guide” by Bob423. The Waterway Guide series of guidebooks are excellent in covering marinas and things to do along the ICW, both books are recommended.