Different Cultures of Sailing

[mglonnro]

Originally Posted by SV Bacchus

Oh WOW, you are going to sail that brand new boat in those waters???

Seriously, though It's much easier than it looks like because we have channels and channel marks just about everywhere, so it's just a matter of keeping the reds on the right and the greens on the left or.. wait, maybe the other way around.. (a photo of a traditional paper chart attached with channels everywhere)

As to WiFi, Off Florida east coast and throughout the Bahamas our 13 year old found enough WiFi at times to keep him happy and at other times he was happy to drive. He also read some real books!

[mglonnro]

Originally Posted by Adrian NAMT

Maybe the sailing culture exists because we share a deep, personal, appreciation of using the two uncontrollable natural forces of wind and water while relying on our own natural skills and abilities (now being replaced by technology). The best sailing authors seem to start telling their stories when they are aware of their own inner values and beliefs and can relate to their mental and physical experience while sailing. They feel a commitment to support communities of sailors and a strong sailing culture. Starting, contributing to and reading a thread like this one supports our sailing culture at a time when our culture faces many threats and choices.

It feels a bit silly to just quote what you wrote and say that I really enjoyed reading it, but I'm doing it anyway. What you wrote is strangely touching.

[mglonnro]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

Depth sounder will not help too much, in that place! Depth may go from 60 meters to 0 in a boatlength or less, and the charts are not accurate (intentionally so, to fool Russian invaders, I have been told).

Ssh! There might be Russian invaders reading this forum!

[mglonnro]

Originally Posted by James S

I may or may not have had two glasses of wine.. and as such wont get to philosophical and maintain my standing as a reasonable and level headed member.. but I will say that I dont think of 2 meters as shallow draft.... and I will say that the Cuve'e 2010 is very nice wine.....

Wiston Estate, Cuvée Brut 2010? English sparkling wine? Cool.

About the two meters, I agree. A lot of the smaller channels are guaranteed at 1,8m and a lot of the smaller harbours don't go deeper than 2m so boats in the 20-35ft range with 1,2-1,6m draft are very common.

The trend towards bigger boats is there, though, but to not exclude too much of the archipelago, the bigger boats tend to be around 40 ft and close to 2m draft. I also think that most sailors over here choose performance over the shallow keel versions, so you don't see many of them here either. (Might be wrong though, haven't done any extensive keel research )

[atoll]

Originally Posted by nwdiver

We only have 3-5m tides........we anchor away from drying areas and dingy over at low tide to dig clams in the muddy bits........

it has been a while since we have had bears that patrol the foreshore digging for yotties at low tide

probably a prudent move to anchor out in areas where the wildlife might see you as a tasty snack

[Juho]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

Depth sounder will not help too much, in that place! Depth may go from 60 meters to 0 in a boatlength or less, and the charts are not accurate (intentionally so, to fool Russian invaders, I have been told).


I hit a rock not far from the place shown on the map posted by the OP, exactly on the spot where the chart showed 50 meters of water. Right between the numerals "5" and "0" on the chart


But the Archipelago Sea, despite the extreme challenges of pilotage, is one of the most beautiful places in the world.

Some areas may be uncharted (no depths), and even have marked harbours in them. I visited one two days ago. Quite doable, but you need to go real slow and watch out.

[James S]

Originally Posted by mglonnro

Wiston Estate, Cuvée Brut 2010? English sparkling wine? Cool.

About the two meters, I agree. A lot of the smaller channels are guaranteed at 1,8m and a lot of the smaller harbours don't go deeper than 2m so boats in the 20-35ft range with 1,2-1,6m draft are very common.

The trend towards bigger boats is there, though, but to not exclude too much of the archipelago, the bigger boats tend to be around 40 ft and close to 2m draft. I also think that most sailors over here choose performance over the shallow keel versions, so you don't see many of them here either. (Might be wrong though, haven't done any extensive keel research [emoji2])

Red wine from the Bekaa valley Lebanon.....

[1Sailorlady]

Hello,

I think sailing is a different concept for each individual.

EX:
Racing
Day cruising
Costal Cruising
Blue Water

My Favorite is Blue water mixed with coastal cruising!!

[Hasbeen]

How different this thing we call cruising. Apart from a few 120mile or so local cruises, my first cruise was from Sydney to the Whitsundays, about 1000 miles & back.


Apart from 5 days on the visitors pile berth in Gladstone, the boat was either moving or swinging around an anchor. I really can't imaging motoring from marina to marina.


My next trip was 48,000 nautical miles, over 6 years. However much of this was based in Rabaul, or Honiara sailing off for 3 months which was the limit of my gas supply for my refrigeration. On these little jaunts I could go for the 3 months without seeing another boat, & some plantations & villages I visited, I would be the first visitor in half a year. I may have to sail 400 miles or more to get to a township where gas was available.


Apart from a monthly maintenance run, the main engine was not often used, & 3 gallons a month through the Honda generator kept the lights on.


There was one occasion, only one, where 3 yachts arrived at an isolated plantation over a couple of days. The planter kept coming up with things we should see for a week to keep us there.


The Rabaul yacht club expected me to be in town for their 2 big events each year, the Rabaul Kavieng race & the Rabaul Kieta race. They did not care how fast or slow you were, so long as you started. On one occasion an X US coast guard buoy tender, converted to a brigantine joined the fleet. He was never going to make the finish in the doldrums under sail, but when he motored in to make the party, he was towing 2 others that weren't going to make it either. He towed 3 others who needed to be back in town for work back to Rabaul. It was that sort of environment.


I guess we cruise where we can get to. I had met far too many round world cruisers, half way round & just wanting to get home, for me to go too far from home, but what a fantastic 6 years it was.

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by AndyEss

"My impression: half of over-thirty-foot sailboats don't leave their anchorages/marinas more than twice a year. Ninety-nine-percent-plus of the remainder don't attempt to circumnavigate the globe."


Who cares about all the boats that don't move?
Most CF posters are out there sailing someplace.
More positive vibes Moriarty - none of those negative ones.

Actually I am rather please most yachts in Europe don't move, busy enough just with those that do.

Pete

[White Cloud1]

I have a Westerly Ocean 43 for sale in Canada along the Pacific North West. Some of the most beautiful scenes on the planet. Adventure sure fits here!

[thinwater]

This reminds me a short story written about mountaineering titled "Games Climber's Play." In it, the various parts of the sports were described, and what made each worthwhile. I have left most of variations out.



The bouldering game. It's just you, climbing shoes, and the rock. It's only worth doing if the most difficult route is chosen and no aids are used.

The cragging game. Now the cliffs are high enough to need a rope, but ladders are out. Variations may or may not allow rehearsing moves and other variations on cheating. The weather is nice and you probably slept a home.


The expedition game. Think Mount Everest or Antartica. Anything goes, short of a helicopter, because the mountain won't play fair either.


----


They're all good and all challenging in different ways. I would not call any of them "better," for I have know people that excel in each, and very few (none?) that have mastered all. I've enjoyed them all at different points in my life.

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by 1Sailorlady

Hello,

I think sailing is a different concept for each individual.

EX:
Racing
Day cruising
Costal Cruising
Blue Water

My Favorite is Blue water mixed with coastal cruising!!

There are different cultures in sailing besides the different locales in which we sail, and each sailor lives their own dream, each just as valid as the next, yet all worlds apart.

Look at David Crosby's yacht Mayan, (pictured on the left, below). It's all about warm and cozy, tradition, and wood. I love this boat and how comfortable life can be aboard her. Then there is "Once Around" (right side, below). They have built up their coastal cruiser to carry everything. Wood fires and rich wood interiors are not their thing, nor is sailing much, but their life in the anchorages of the Caribbean, socializing with other cruisers, fits them. Then there is our approach, light, simple, fast, and meant for sailing. Oh, we like our comfort, and our wine in long stem glasses, but the joy of the open ocean on a boisterous day is why we have a boat. I won't even try to capture the Catamaran style, I know little of such things, but they are out there, and they love the path they have chosen to the world's seas too.

Yet we're all sailors and we share the connection with the water and the wind. We face the same navigation challenges and we explore, in our own ways, a different life from those ashore. So there is that common culture for all of us.

[Bunnellr]

Originally Posted by wingssail

There are different cultures in sailing besides the different locales in which we sail, and each sailor lives their own dream, each just as valid as the next, yet all worlds apart.

Look at David Crosby's yacht Mayan, (pictured on the left, below). It's all about warm and cozy, tradition, and wood. I love this boat and how comfortable life can be aboard her. Then there is "Once Around" (right side, below). They have built up their coastal cruiser to carry everything. Wood fires and rich wood interiors are not their thing, nor is sailing much, but their life in the anchorages of the Caribbean, socializing with other cruisers, fits them. Then there is our approach, light, simple, fast, and meant for sailing. Oh, we like our comfort, and our wine in long stem glasses, but the joy of the open ocean on a boisterous day is why we have a boat. I won't even try to capture the Catamaran style, I know little of such things, but they are out there, and they love the path they have chosen to the world's seas too.

Yet we're all sailors and we share the connection with the water and the wind. We face the same navigation challenges and we explore, in our own ways, a different life from those ashore. So there is that common culture for all of us.

I'm glad i read all the way to this post. Med sailor.

[Macblaze]

Originally Posted by White Cloud1

I have a Westerly Ocean 43 for sale in Canada along the Pacific North West. Some of the most beautiful scenes on the planet. Adventure sure fits here!

Cambria's still for sale huh. Man I wish I had the money :-)