Hurricane Force Winds - Oregon Coast

[clausont]

I think we will stay home today.

National Weather Service Watch Warning Advisory Summary

Hurricane Force Wind Warning

COASTAL WATERS FORECAST...CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEDFORD, OR
450 PM PST SAT DEC 1 2007

COASTAL WATERS FROM FLORENCE OREGON TO POINT ST. GEORGE CALIFORNIA
AND WESTWARD 60 NM.

PZZ350-356-370-376-020530-
/O.EXT.KMFR.GL.W.0039.071202T0000Z-071202T1200Z/
/O.EXT.KMFR.SE.W.0039.071202T0300Z-071206T0000Z/
/O.EXT.KMFR.SR.W.0003.071202T1200Z-071203T0600Z/
/O.NEW.KMFR.HF.W.0001.071203T0600Z-071203T1800Z/
COASTAL WATERS FROM FLORENCE TO CAPE BLANCO OR OUT 20 NM-
COASTAL WATERS FROM CAPE BLANCO OR TO PT. ST. GEORGE CA OUT 20 NM-
WATERS FROM FLORENCE TO CAPE BLANCO OR FROM 20 TO 60 NM-
WATERS FROM CAPE BLANCO OR TO PT. ST. GEORGE CA FROM 20 TO 60 NM-
450 PM PST SAT DEC 1 2007

...GALE WARNING NOW IN EFFECT THROUGH LATE TONIGHT...
...HAZARDOUS SEAS WARNING NOW IN EFFECT FROM 7 PM PST THIS
EVENING THROUGH WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON...
...STORM WARNING NOW IN EFFECT FROM LATE TONIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY
EVENING...
...HURRICANE FORCE WIND WARNING IN EFFECT FROM SUNDAY EVENING
THROUGH MONDAY MORNING...

.TONIGHT...S WIND 30 KT WITH OCCASIONAL GUSTS TO 45 KT...RISING
TO STORM FORCE WINDS 50 KT WITH OCCASIONAL GUSTS TO 65 KT. WIND
WAVES 4 TO 5 FT...BUILDING TO 14 TO 17 FT. NW SWELL 6 TO 8 FT AT
12 SECONDS. RAIN.
.SUN...S STORM FORCE WINDS 50 KT...RISING TO 55 KT. OCCASIONAL
GUSTS UP TO 70 KT. WIND WAVES 25 TO 28 FT... SUBSIDING TO 14 TO
17 FT IN THE AFTERNOON. S SWELL 8 TO 11 FT AT 10 SECONDS...
BUILDING TO 15 TO 18 FT AT 10 SECONDS IN THE AFTERNOON. RAIN.
.SUN NIGHT...S STORM FORCE WINDS 55 KT WITH OCCASIONAL GUSTS TO
70 KT...RISING TO HURRICANE FORCE WINDS 65 KT WITH OCCASIONAL
GUSTS TO 85 KT. WIND WAVES 30 TO 40 FT. RAIN.
.MON...S HURRICANE FORCE WINDS 65 KT...DECREASING TO STORM FORCE
WINDS 50 TO 55 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 36 TO 39
FT...BUILDING TO 39 TO 42 FT IN THE AFTERNOON. RAIN.
.MON NIGHT...S GALES 40 KT...EASING TO 35 KT AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND
WAVES 23 TO 26 FT...SUBSIDING TO 17 TO 20 FT AFTER MIDNIGHT. S
SWELL 28 TO 30 FT...BECOMING SW AND...SUBSIDING TO 26 FT AFTER
MIDNIGHT. RAIN.
.TUE...S WIND 20 TO 25 KT. WIND WAVES 6 TO 7 FT. W SWELL 24 TO
25 FT. CHANCE OF SHOWERS.
.TUE NIGHT...S WIND 15 TO 20 KT...BECOMING SE 10 KT AFTER
MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 3 TO 4 FT. W SWELL 21 TO 22 FT. CHANCE OF
SHOWERS.
.WED...S WIND 10 KT...VEERING TO W. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W
SWELL 17 FT...BECOMING SW 13 FT AND NW 6 FT.
.THU...N WIND 15 KT...RISING TO 25 KT. WIND WAVES 4 FT. W SWELL
8 TO 9 FT.

$$
SVEN

[rebel heart]

Originally Posted by clausont

I think we will stay home today.

.SUN NIGHT...S STORM FORCE WINDS 55 KT WITH OCCASIONAL GUSTS TO
70 KT...RISING TO HURRICANE FORCE WINDS 65 KT WITH OCCASIONAL
GUSTS TO 85 KT. WIND WAVES 30 TO 40 FT. RAIN.

Yeah it's raining tomorrow night; don't want to get wet!

[delmarrey]

It's snowing here in Seattle and up N. & to E.

[clausont]

Glad that I am not in Seattle Delmarrey - snow along with this front coming through does not sound like fun. Sounds like another front right behind this one for you up there north of us.

[Intentional Drifter]

The bar pilots sure are earning their fees on days like that.

ID

[svTOTEM]

Glad I got across the straights from Syndey BC to Port Townsend on Friday! It was 35 degrees and I was oh so happy to have the 10 to 15 kts of wind out of the North. Saturday had gusts well over 30 and with the snow made white out conditions.

[clausont]

Totem - Sounds like it would have been miserable had you not gone when you did. Gusts to 30 with snow.... Ugh!

[rebel heart]

I've never sailed in snow before. When I lived in New England, the boats were out of the water before the snow showed up, and launched well after the last snow of the year.

Anything particularly weird about it? I would imagine you wouldn't get a lot of build up since there's a bunch of wind. But the visibility must be rough. Any tips out there? Is it restricted to near land?

[delmarrey]

Originally Posted by rebel heart

But the visibility must be rough.

No such thing as visibility. You fly by instruments and just keep an eye out for debris. Only did it once. It was like being on drugs (vertigo). Kind of like diving in real silty water. All you see are these white specks coming at you.

[svTOTEM]

So happy the weather on Friday worked out... I've sailed in snow a few times in Connecticut. It is as delmarry says.

Having designed/built a bunch of sails for Whitbread and BOC boats; I talked with these sailors about their hairiest moments. More often than not, it involves the Southern Ocean, big wind, big waves, and big snow. I remember one guy from Rothman's (1989-1990 Whitbread) telling of a day with wind 30 to 55 kts and heavy snow. He said the waves were enormous, but they couldn’t see them let along the person next to them. With the spinnaker and a double reefed main, they would surf down a wave hitting speeds near 40 kts. At the bottom the entire boat would submarine and abruptly decelerate to 5 kts. The rig was under such huge loads that it was buzzing like a high voltage line. You know it's bad when the conditions make the likely possibility that you lose your rig 1000 miles from nowhere in a blizzard, a better option than trying to reduce sail. Laurie Smith, the captain was a little more dogmatic saying, “It’s a **___ing race mate.”

We are 182 days from beginning our cruise. I have thought of Mexico and South Pacific. The admiral has us heading north to Alaska for the summer, something about seeing a glacier before they melt. Beautiful no doubt, but it makes me damn cold thinking about it.

[senormechanico]

Originally Posted by rebel heart

I've never sailed in snow before. When I lived in New England, the boats were out of the water before the snow showed up, and launched well after the last snow of the year.

Anything particularly weird about it? I would imagine you wouldn't get a lot of build up since there's a bunch of wind. But the visibility must be rough. Any tips out there? Is it restricted to near land?

Years ago we were out for a weekend in Puget Sound when it was cold and snowing. (It was the weekend when the Hood Canal Bridge sank, or was it when the I-90 bridge sank?) Although it was totally overcast, I discovered when I put on my polarized sunglasses I didn't see any snow coming down.
When I told a California blonde friend about this (she was really from California and I swear this is true) she said,




"You mean it snows over WATER, TOO?"


As she was my wife's boss at the time, I managed to keep a straight face, but it was hard!

Steve B.

[Intentional Drifter]

HA! A living, breathing blond joke, right in front of you! (Better not let the admiral see this.)

As Steve said, we have terrible luck with bridges around here.

ID

[delmarrey]

For some weather samples, see the new thread I just posted. A youtube from Bellingham.

http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...sed-11331.html

[CharlieCobra]

I was out there that day but we had the staysail up doing 8 knots.

[TaoJones]

The following is from today's 'Lectronic Latitude:

~ ~ ~

"Photo of the Day: Pucker Factor

"December 3, 2007 – West Coast

(Click on the photo to enlarge it.)
"Talk about 'pucker factor' - this monster is bigger than the storm that killed the crew of the northbound catamaran Cat Shot last December.

"Photo Courtesy NWS/NCEP - Ocean Prediciton Center
© 2007 Latitude 38 Publishing Co., Inc.

"If you were thinking of going out for a daysail today anywhere along the Washington, Oregon or Northern California coast, you might want to rethink those plans. A 957 mb low is spinning up off the West Coast with hurricane force winds predicted to hit today."

~ ~ ~

For the rest of the piece, go to:

Latitude 38 - The West's Premier Sailing & Marine Magazine

TaoJones