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catman · 21-09-2012, 12:39

Planing on leaving Victoria, Vancouver Island Oct 15, heading offshore 200miles the heading south to Panama, hope to miss storms off the Baja.
Has anyone made thtis trip at that time of the year.
CATMAN

zeehag · 21-09-2012, 13:23

you are heading out during the good time. have fun.
do you have planned stops on your way?
smooth sailing.

cwyckham · 21-09-2012, 14:25

Quote:

Originally Posted by catman

Planing on leaving Victoria, Vancouver Island Oct 15, heading offshore 200miles the heading south to Panama, hope to miss storms off the Baja.
Has anyone made thtis trip at that time of the year.
CATMAN

In my opinion, that's too late in the season. I'm far from an expert. I've only done the run once, as far as SF. We went 100 nm offshore and did it in early June. Hit one gale.

The problem with the run you're looking at is that the northern part is optimum in August or September, and the Southern one doesn't open until early November. Most go down to SF in September, then dawdle down to San Diego to be ready to head south after huricane season ends.

The North Pacific high sits off our coast, protecting us from the constant string of lows all summer. It moves South each year sometime in late september to mid october. After that, we get hit by constant systems until mid to late June of the next year (if you're in Sidney, you know the pattern well).

By mid October, I think there's a fair to good chance that the high won't be protecting us and you'll see some heavy weather. If you're experienced offshore and looking for the right window, then all good, you'll just get beat up a bit. However, if you're doing your first offshore trip in an unproven boat with inexperienced crew or a wife who isn't sure she even wants to go offshore at all, then this could be a recipe for disaster.

Maybe this is all moot anyways if you can't leave earlier and won't wait for spring, but if you aren't quite ready to go now, can you throw some food on board, get your boat to SF in the next couple weeks (High is very strong now), then finish your refit down there and head to Panama from there?

**atoll** · 05-10-2012, 03:52

Quote:

Originally Posted by boatman61

Hey there Guy's n Gal's... well here I am in sunny Darwin... not a planned stop but we ran outa gas... full bottle with frozen valve and 2 empties... anyway the owners said we could not enter Darwin and to use the electric griddle and kettle via the genset... ever tried cooking spag-bol on a griddle in a rolling boat... flies everywhere and burns when it lands.. the clean up was no fun either so it was down the Dundas Strait and through Clarence when the next episode happened... rusted out jubilee clip on a water pipe gave and the tanks emptied into the bilge... good job we headed in.
So... got the gas refills this morning, connected up and switched on when one of the crew said smoke was coming out of the gas locker... turns out the gas locker is far from water tight and the solonoid I'd fitted in St Martin had corroded out and wires were mating... hot stuff.
Chandlers are currently getting us a new one... just gotta figure out how to waterproof it... would not be so bad if it was fitted inboard of the locker but where it is at present every time a wave washes along the deck it dumps water straight onto the regulator and solonoid... still thats a problem for the owner to resolve...
I just deliver... design costs extra...

So... the plan is sail Sat 8th for Freo... the final 2K miles.... cannot wait till I get off this bloody boat... been a nightmare... even at my normal rates I'd be underpaid for this one... even my almost sinking Catalac to Turkey was less stress.
Oh... another thing... Customs had a field day... especially when they discovered the floor in the bilges was plywood.... boy did they get excited...

5 hours they spent on her... then Quarantine came on board and took away all our food... Chicken breasts, meat the lot... and our egg n rice noodles... thats what happens when you get an Oriental inspecting...

Had 3 Customs fly overs between Booby Island and the Wessils... read me the do's and dont's each time... lol
Have asked the owners to meet me at the Marina in Freo with my air ticket and payment in cash and I'll be off this bloody boat 5 minutes after I've tied the dock lines...
Simon, Paul... have answered you guys... just let me know the delivery dates and we can work out a schedule... hope to be back in Europe mid October... but then I said that about June... and July... and August.....

Simon... your delivery was a dream job... all last years 6 jobs still did not add up to the hassle of this one trip...
So... all you folk who were asking what a delivery was like and a skippers life... this is it...
But thats why I started this thread... anticipated a run down the old Clipper route on a beaut up together boat... ended up doing the 'Milk Run' instead... and struggled to make it....
It aint the 'Easy Life' most imagine.... and thats a fact... else we would be outa work and the owners would be having all the 'FUN???'.....

25 days since we last heard from you!
my guess is you must be getting pretty close now!

looks a bit lumpy out there lol

sailing oceania australia west wind (gfs) + 0 utc loop

David_Old_Jersey · 05-10-2012, 03:56

I was wondering about that too.

Maybe he got lost?

Ashore..........involving beer and some of the Natives

.

zeehag · 05-10-2012, 05:22

my bet is he has his thumb in a thru hull that is leaking ... wouldnt doubt that, any way--sounds like a delivery from hell......geaux, phil!!! come back to us--we miss your biting wit and sharp dressing...

Blue Crab · 05-10-2012, 05:42

Some of us want to know how many high modulus lines you used on the voyage?

100%?
About half?
Just a couple?
WTF kind of a yuppie question is that?

zeehag · 05-10-2012, 05:43

heck--we just wanna know if he lived thru this misadventure...LOL

**Wotname** · 05-10-2012, 06:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by atoll

25 days since we last heard from you!
my guess is you must be getting pretty close now!

looks a bit lumpy out there lol

sailing oceania australia west wind (gfs) + 0 utc loop

Yep, 4 weeks tomorrow (Saturday) local time so should be turning up pretty soon.

Maybe he just landed and bolted for the airport without turning on his 'puter!

**atoll** · 05-10-2012, 06:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wotname

Yep, 4 weeks tomorrow (Saturday) local time so should be turning up pretty soon.

Maybe he just landed and bolted for the airport without turning on his 'puter!

my guess is he will log on fairly soon once he arrives.......probably in the jobs section of lonely planet.......looking for "guides wanted in the desert or mountains"

**Wotname** · 05-10-2012, 06:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by atoll

my guess is he will log on fairly soon once he arrives.......probably in the jobs section of lonely planet.......looking for "guides wanted in the desert or mountains"

OK, its time to let the cat out of the bag.

Mr Boatman has commissioned me to find him a nice little farm far far away from the sea. I have found him just the place, very quite, very remote and absolutely has no water on it at all. Just the ticket to help him recover.

Well, it does have some water but it is already bottled with hops and malt and such - I am sure he won't mind that.

I even have the horse saddled up awaiting the docklines to be cleated off.

**Wotname** · 07-10-2012, 01:08

Phil has arrived at Fremantle today (Sunday) and has a wee problem. Full payment is not forthcoming. At this stage, the reasons for non-payment may be genuine or perhaps not. Certainly they are not of Phil's doing.

He has asked me to post on his behalf as he is busy on the keyboard shoring up resources to ensure he will get paid and wants to get the message for a request of some (Aussie) internet advice out there ASAP.

I have started another thread in this regard.

http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...ml#post1053103