West Coast Transit: Lessons Learned

Touchrain · Aug 21, 2010

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1. Weather forecasts are not always conservative. Living in an area where small craft advisories in the Strait of Juan de Fuca are as common as the fog in summer, I had wondered. But after six straight days of 5-15 knot forecasts that turned out to be 25-38 knots or nothing at all, I have been properly chastened.

2. Head sails are a very good invention. The entire trip was downwind. When I asked the crew what sail combinations made the most sense, they universally said, drop the main before you furl up the head sail. After two days of wing-on-wing, preventer tight and pole out, we hit what I'd say was a "light gale." Seas were 11 feet, spaced 9 seconds, the biggest ones coming from the northwest on the starboard quarter just to keep us honest. It was both pitch black at night and foggy 24-7. During the peak winds, we had maybe 80-100 sf of the 140% genoa up. It was a small triangle held tightly in place by our sturdy whisker pole. We ran at about 8 knots for several hours, surfing at times to about 10.7. (Yes, I should have switched to the 70% furling headsail.)

3. Take a break at the right time. Given the bars at all major harbor entrances from mid-California up, there is not much you can do when it's blowing stink. However, when it cooled down we relaxed briefly in Crescent City and and Catalina Island. We also stopped in Half Moon Bay because we were simply sick of the sound of the diesel. Amazing what a warm beach and a cool beer can do to rejuvenate a crew.

4. Bring along young muscle. I had three guys in their twenties, two former collegiate dinghy sailors and one serious cruiser. Don't get me wrong, I'm not so old that I don't still have an ego and I did my part, but boy could those young punks drive that boat. As one screamed through the howling off Cape Blanco, "Now this is ocean sailing." Meanwhile, I had to turn myself to look forward after two hours of watching the seas towering over the helmsman as they rolled under us to add a bit of surfing.

5. Finally, In answer to the same question asked many times on this site, yes, the E38 can stand up under some fairly testy blue water conditions.

This trip was really a symphony of three movements. It started with a steady but growing energy, easing us wing-and-wing down Washington. As we travelled from S. Oregon to Pt Conception, it was a manic cycling between strong winds and no winds. We eased slowly back to reality with some nice, easy reaches (wind had backed the west) as we finished in San Diego to begin preparations for Mexico.

Any advice out there?

ref_123 · Aug 22, 2010

Way cool!

Not much more to add... May be this:

1) Eat well, sleep well and take care of your crew. Me and my wife did down the coast trips separately and with different captains. Boy, what a difference! While she was mostly cold, tired, hungry (resting watch did not cook food) and generally miserable, we were well-fed, rested and generally very happy despite pretty crazy conditions.

2) Avoid hitting whales and other large aquatic animals (the boat I was with sank in Mexico after hitting a whale).

3) Working radar VISIBLE from the helm is a blessing in the night and fog. Had a ton of "fun" listening to freighters off the Morro Bay. Chartplotter does not hurt too.

Regards,
Stan

Touchrain · Aug 22, 2010

Amen to that. We prepared seven meals in advance so that we could put them in the oven, which was clearly the safest way to cook. We had radar and a chartplotter, as well as AIS. And as for whales, one came across our bow not more than 20 feet away (the guy at the helm said 3 feet, but you know how it can appear). Candy and granola bars were also great comfort in the cockpit. Three musketeers seemed particularly popular. We kept a carafe of hot water for quick drinks. It was in the 50's out there. Most of the other crew also wore patches since it was the first blue water for three of them. No one got sea sick, despite my predictions.

Peregrine · Aug 24, 2010

Mexico

Touchrain,

Welcome to Sandy Eggo! When are you heading to Mexico? I am taking my 380 on the Ha Ha. Are you doing the Ha Ha?

If you need anything while in SD feel free to give me a yell.

Tony
s/v Peregrine Spirit

West Coast Transit: Lessons Learned

Touchrain

Member III

ref_123

Member III

Touchrain

Member III

Peregrine

Member II