Please remember that flood waters from Florence and now from Michael will have lifted tons of debris into the Waterway channels and submerged hazards can do serious damage to your vessel. See Waterway Guide for the latest updates – https://www.waterwayguide.com.

Regarding Cruising Licences/Permits, specifically with regard to the canceling/surrendering of one permit to enable a new one to be obtained when returning to the USA within the same twelve months, we had an enlightening conversation with the CPB Officer in St Augustine earlier this week; the key point is that whilst a Cruising Permit cannot exceed twelve months, it does not have to write for a full twelve months; you can ask for a shorter period.

We got one issued which is dated to expire in a little over eight months (when we know that we’ll be outside of the USA) and if we do then return here for the next hurricane season too, we will be eligible for a new one when we return. Apparently, the issues many of these sub-twelve month licenses to the Canadian yachts which spend each winter in the Bahamas and wish to return to the USA, on or around the same date each year, rather than have their ‘earliest return’ date pushed out by fifteen days each time.

Posted on behalf of Andrew Smyth

I saw that some people had problems arriving in Key West from Havana. The best advice, which we followed, was to head on up to West Palm Beach and enter the US there. The customs and immigration have a big office which services the cruise liners close to the marinas. They weren’t the friendliest, but they didn’t question our arrival from Cuba.

Info for any non-US sailors wishing to maximise their 12-month US cruising licence, we ‘surrendered’ the licence provided whilst cruising USVI’s, Spanish VI’s and Puerto Rico mainland (we surrendered at Mayaguez, west coast PR), sailed onto the Bahamas for a few weeks, they were able to obtain a fresh 12-month cruising license on making landfall in Charleston, South Carolina.

We were aware that award of the full 12-months license is at the CBP Officers discretion, but we were never made to feel that the full 12-months were not likely. Interesting to note that in Charleston they were very aware that we’d surrendered our earlier license in PR, so the computer tracking system certainly works.

And with regard to calling in to report change of location, we were initially told to do this whenever we change the location of towns (one bay to the next was unnecessary), but after reporting assiduously through South Caroline, once in North Carolina we were told not to report until we reach the next State, and now on arrival in Virginia, were told the same – maybe once you’ve built up a track record of reporting, you’re no longer considered such a risk… Anyhow, we’ve never felt any less than fully welcomed wherever we’ve been so far!

A little correction on the above. After sailed from Havana to Key West and called the toll free number in the US, we were kindly told that we were in violation of the US law. The Cruising License was canceled by the Key West CBP officer in charge.

All very friendly but not helpful. Obviously, we should have known that we might end up in trouble. We will need to leave the country and, upon entry of the US, reapply for the Cruising License. The main issue is that, for now, it is illegal to sail directly to and from Cuba to the USA. Key West station is strictly enforcing this particular law with NO leeway.