Best anchorages and harbours in United States

Statue of Liberty

Anchorage in Upper New York Bay off Liberty State Park, west of Liberty Island, on a mud bottom in the shadow of the Statue of Liberty.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E, SW

Vaca Key Bight

Anchorage in Vaca Key Bight on the bayside of Marathon in the Florida Keys, just north of Boot Key Harbor.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W

3rd beach

Anchorage off Third Beach at Middletown, Rhode Island, on the west side of the entrance to the Sakonnet River, on sand and mud.

• Sheltered NW, W, SW, S, SE

Captains Wharf Marina

Marina on Bayou Bernard between Gulfport Lake and Biloxi's Back Bay, on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

Palm Beach anchorage

Anchorage in Lake Worth Lagoon off the town of Palm Beach, on Florida's east coast. Sand and mud bottom, sheltered from every direction, fresh water available ashore.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E, SW, S, SE

Murphy's Landing Marina

Small condominium marina on the south shore of Gig Harbor, built in 1985, with privately owned berths.

Norwalk Cove Marina

Full-service marina with over 400 berths on the Norwalk River at East Norwalk, Connecticut.

Pelican Beach

Anchorage off Cypress Island in the San Juan Islands of Washington, on a rocky bottom, with shelter from the west but open to the east along Bellingham Channel.

• Sheltered N, S, SW, W, NW

Port Jefferson Yacht Club

Sailing club on Port Jefferson Harbour, a deep-water harbour on the North Shore of Long Island in Suffolk County, New York.

Reedy Island

Anchorage in the Delaware River off Reedy Island, near Port Penn, Delaware, about 4.3 miles south of the C&D Canal entrance, on a mud bottom.

• Sheltered NW, NE, W, E, SW, SE

Seal Ledge

Anchorage near Seal Ledge on the south-western side of Rockland Harbour, Maine. Mud bottom, sheltered.

• Sheltered NW, N, W, SW, S, SE

Sterling Creek

Quiet creek off the Severn River, one of the four rivers feeding Mobjack Bay on the western shore of Chesapeake Bay, Virginia.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E

Fifth Avenue Landing

Boutique superyacht marina on San Diego Bay, against the Convention Center on the downtown Embarcadero in California.

Blackbeard Creek

Anchorage on Blackbeard Creek between Sapelo and Blackbeard islands on the Georgia coast, mud bottom.

• Sheltered E, SE, S, SW

Bluewater Bay Marina Complex

Full-service marina at the mouth of Rocky Bayou inside Ward's Cove, at Niceville, Florida, off Choctawhatchee Bay.

Edward C. Grace Memorial Harbor

Municipal 265-berth marina at Elk Rapids, Michigan, on East Grand Traverse Bay, between two sandy beaches.

Ocean Yacht Marina

Marina in Olde Towne Portsmouth, Virginia, on the Elizabeth River about half a mile south of Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway Mile Marker 0.

Sag Harbor Bay

Anchorage off the village of Sag Harbor, on Shelter Island Sound at the eastern end of Long Island, New York.

• Sheltered E, SE, S, SW, W, NW

Truman Beach

Anchorage off Key West, Florida, near Wisteria Island, with a sand bottom and shelter from N through NE winds.

• Sheltered N, NE

Lake Sylvia

Circular basin off the Intracoastal Waterway in Fort Lauderdale, the most used overnight anchorage in the area.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E, SW, S, SE

Malletts Bay Anchorage

Anchorage on Lake Champlain off Burlington, Vermont, about 4 nautical miles north of Burlington Harbor Marina.

• Sheltered SE, S, SW

Beach Marine

Full-service marina on the Intracoastal Waterway at Jacksonville Beach, Florida, with 318 wet slips and 380 dry storage spaces.

Boot Key

Harbour on the south side of Marathon in the Florida Keys, the most protected anchorage in the city, set between Sister Creek and the Boot Key Bridge.

• Sheltered N, NE, E, NW

Jones Island State Park

Jones Island is a small marine state park west of Orcas Island in the San Juan Islands of Washington, with anchorages at its North and South coves.

• Sheltered W, E, SW, S, SE

Orleans Marina

Marina in the West End district of New Orleans, on the south shore of Lake Pontchartrain, with over 400 berths.

Palm Harbor Marina

Marina on the Intracoastal Waterway at West Palm Beach, Florida, set on Lake Worth near the Flagler Memorial Bridge.

Roche Harbor

Resort marina at the north end of San Juan Island in Washington State, with 425 berths in a sheltered harbour.

Brunswick Marina

Full-service marina on the East River in downtown Brunswick, Georgia, with roughly 380 wet berths along the Intracoastal Waterway.

Bull Creek

All-round sheltered anchorage on Bull Creek, a branch of the Waccamaw River between Georgetown and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

• Sheltered N, NE, E, SE, S, SW, W, NW

Dyes Inlet Anchorage

Anchorage in Dyes Inlet on the Kitsap Peninsula, reached from Port Orchard through the Port Washington Narrows behind Bremerton.

• Sheltered NW, N, W, SW, S