Best anchorages and harbours in United States

Harbour Towne Marina

Large full-service marina and boatyard on the Dania Cut-off Canal at Dania Beach, about 3 miles inside the Port Everglades inlet.

Mystic Seaport Museum

Working maritime museum on the east bank of the Mystic River in Connecticut, with visitor dockage for boats calling at the museum.

Suntex Marina

Marina on the Intracoastal Waterway at Vero Beach, within the gated Grand Harbor community, now operating under the Loggerhead Marina name.

Encinal Basin

Anchorage in Encinal Basin on the Alameda side of the Oakland Estuary, California, on a mud bottom.

• Sheltered W, E, SW, S, SE

Great Harbor

Mooring field in Great Harbor at Woods Hole, the village at the south-western tip of Cape Cod, in Falmouth, Massachusetts.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, SW, S

MACU free dock

Free transient dock on the Pasquotank River at the Mid-Atlantic Christian University campus, less than a mile from downtown Elizabeth City, North Carolina.

Mallard Point Anchorage

Anchorage on the Maryland Eastern Shore of Chesapeake Bay, near the mouth of the Chester River, set on a sand bottom with all-round shelter.

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

Morehead City Yacht Basin

Marina of 75 berths on the Intracoastal Waterway at Morehead City, North Carolina, on the north side of the high-rise bridge.

Thunderbolt Marina

Yacht repair, refit and transient marina on the Wilmington River at Thunderbolt, Georgia, on the Atlantic ICW at mile 583.

Zimmerman Marine

Full-service boatyard on the East River off Mobjack Bay, at Mathews County, Virginia.

Inner Worton Creek

Anchorage in the inner basin of Worton Creek on Maryland's Eastern Shore, about 1.5 miles inside the Chesapeake Bay north of Rock Hall.

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

Monhegan

Mooring buoys in Monhegan Harbour, off Monhegan Island in the Gulf of Maine, about 12 nautical miles from the mainland. Mixed rock, weed and mud bottom.

• Sheltered NW, E, SW, S, SE

Carousel Marina

Full-service marina and the only fuel berth in Boothbay Harbor, Maine, on Atlantic Avenue at the east side of the harbour.

Donovans Pier

Anchorage off the Donovans Pier shore on the South River, at Edgewater in Maryland, within the wider Chesapeake Bay.

• Sheltered N, NE, E, W, NW

Sandy Neck Lighthouse

Anchorage off Beach Point at the tip of Sandy Neck, the barrier beach at the entrance to Barnstable Harbour, Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E

Tarpon Basin

Anchorage in Florida Bay on the bayside of Key Largo, Florida, west of John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. Sand bottom.

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

Waterson State Park

Boat-only state park on Wellesley Island in the Saint Lawrence River, in the Thousand Islands of New York.

• Sheltered NE, E, SW, S, SE

Bristol Harbour

Mooring and anchorage off the town of Bristol on the east side of Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island, with fresh water available ashore.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E

Homer Smith Docks and Marina

Marina on Town Creek at Beaufort, North Carolina, taking vessels up to about 45 metres.

Little Harbor

Cove on the Pacific side of Santa Catalina Island, California, with a campground and fresh water ashore.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, E, SE

Live Oak Bay

Anchorage on the lower Neuse River near New Bern, on the North Carolina coast.

• Sheltered E

Whitehall

Anchorage in Whitehall Bay, on the western shore of Chesapeake Bay about 7.5 miles east of Annapolis, Maryland.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E, SE

Worton Creek

Anchorage in Worton Creek, a sheltered tributary on the eastern shore of the upper Chesapeake Bay in Kent County, Maryland.

• Sheltered N, NE, E, S, SE

Lauderdale Marina

Full-service marina on the Intracoastal Waterway in Fort Lauderdale, just north of the Port Everglades inlet, home to the 15th Street Fisheries restaurant.

Golden Isles Lake

Sheltered urban anchorage off the Intracoastal Waterway at Hallandale Beach, Florida, ringed by condominiums.

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

Hope Island Mooring Buoys

Mooring buoys off Hope Island, a 200-acre marine state park at the north end of Skagit Bay, Washington, between La Conner and Whidbey Island.

• Sheltered W, E, SW, S, SE

Port Orchard Yacht Club

Member yacht club on the south shore of Sinclair Inlet at Port Orchard, in Puget Sound, Washington, across the inlet from the Bremerton Naval Shipyard.

Safe Harbor Bahia Bleu

Marina on the Wilmington River at Thunderbolt, on the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway just east of Savannah, Georgia.

Sandy Hook

Anchorage in Sandy Hook Bay behind the barrier spit of Sandy Hook, New Jersey, at the southern entrance to New York Harbour.

• Sheltered N, NE, E, SE

St Augustine

Anchorage in the Matanzas River at St Augustine, Florida, off the historic downtown. Sand bottom, protected from NW through SW winds.

• Sheltered NW, W, SW