You know, we are expected to have a mild winter here in god's country of the upper Gulf Coast, and we have some excellent marina facilities from Pensacola to Carrabelle. Stuff farther west on the Mississippi Sound may not have fully recovered from the last hurricane, but it is worth a call to them, if you find yourself interested in quick access to points west like New Orleans. The bays and cuts comprising the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway stretch all the way from Mobile Bay to Carrabelle and are passable in just about any weather for winter cruising. New Orleans is four easy daylight runs away for us at eight knots or longer if you have a mind to stop at places like Fort Walton/Destin, Pensacola, Biloxi (for casinos), Ship Island for its historic Fort Massachusetts, etc, etc. We watch the weather a for Mississippi Sound crossings, but there are several refuges along the way. Having traversed the Galveston-to-Florida route of the GIWW a couple of times, I feel that most folks would find traveling west of New Orleans rather a drag unless you like watching hundreds of miles of swamp pass by. If you want the tropical heat and swaying palms (actually, we have palms here too), you may just have to go farther south, but for those who don't mind sweater weather in the mornings warming most days to comfy, this area could be a good option. I spent a couple of years living aboard here in PC in the late nineties and enjoyed it. We have "semi-loopers" who make a regular winter season of it hereabouts. We find the idea of heading south from here in March appealing and did so several years back because the snow birding boats have started north on the east coast by the time we get to the area of the Keys leaving open facilities. Maybe not the best timing for those intent on the schedule forced upon them by the Great Lakes shutdown in the fall, it works for lots of folks. Rich Gano Calypso (GB42 Hull # 295) Panama City area, FL