San Francisco to Vancouver

[mgfraser]

Hi Everyone,

We may be purchasing a boat in San Francisco and wish to get the boat up to Vancouver. Is it reasonable to sail that route in the Summer? I have sailed a bit around Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands but am not familiar with coming up the coast.

Thanks,

Malcolm Fraser

The answer is "it depends".

For a well found offshore boat and crew, yes it can be done. It is a beat to windward most all ofthe way in the summer, but the weather is usually pretty settled (that does NOT mean calm, just it's the same from one day to the next).

The fall might be a marginally better time. I, myself, would not want to do it in the winter. For a few days at a time wind and weather can be more favorable in the winter, but it can turn very dangerous very fast and there are not a lot of harbors to hide in with all-weather entrances.

You have two basic choices: A LONG sail offshore to find favorable winds and do it all in one go, or harbor hop up the coast waiting for a good window to jump from one to the next. If you take the coastal route, expect to do a lot of motoring straight into the teeth of the wind.

In either case you must be sure you leave enough time for the passage. Trying to squeeze through a narrow weather window will get you hammered on this coast. Equipment and crew should be prepared for winds of 40 to 50 knots even during the summer on this route. Not that you are sure to get hit that hard, but but a place like Cape Mendicino it is possible.

My preference, which is different than most, would be to take the offshore route. Weather is more gentle, although if you are not careful you risk "falling" into the Pacific High and bobbing about wind-less for a while.

[mgfraser]

Thanks GreatKetch!

I think I will also look into putting it on a truck. Does anyone know what the approximate costs will be for a 40 foot boat?

Thanks.

Malcolm Fraser

[Paul L]

You could truck the boat to Olympia or Seattle, WA. Then sail it up the Sound. For a boat that you don't really know, this may be the better option. If you want to take a look at the winds you are up against, take a look at this site. Hit the forward button to see the wind estimates. http://www.sailflow.com/windandwhere...0&timeoffset=1 I'd expect the trucking costs to be in the $2k range (not sure what fuel has done to the pricing), plus you'll need yard fees at each end to load the boat and remove the stick.

[Stevek]

About 6 - 8 months ago, I priced a 39 ft boat trucked from San Francisco to Tacoma Wa. I received 3 quote s $2800, $3200 and $3500. When getting quotes, be sure to find out what is included and any extras, Ins.,extra fees. Loading and unloading and misc. cost should also be considered. Hope this helps.

Steve K.

Last year we trucked our Westsail 42 from the South Bay to North Puget Sound for about $3800.

[roverhi]

Mahalo for the wind site. The winds along the coast tend be lighter than a few miles out to sea. Reccomendations are to motor sail as close to the close as you can get or wait for favorable or no wind.

If you go forward in the forecast a few days, the winds go light from the southwest. When we brought our boat up from Santa Cruz to SF late in March, the winds were force 3 from the west or southwest and persisted for more than a week.

If you have the time to wait, you can make it a relatively painless trip though I wouldn't want to chance it from November till March. The storms are just too nasty and would be really painful to get caught out in.

Aloha
Peter O.

[mgfraser]

Thanks guys! I think trucking up to Pugit Sound is the best option.

That wind site is great!


Malcolm Fraser

[rsn48]

PaulL, good link, I've bookmarked it.

[Nepenthe]

I was just in the Sound (Labor Day) and was reminded that the Sound is not a great place to actually sail. It's a great place to visit and there is the occasional "good" wind but I have a Hans Christian and I know that sailing the Sound means a lot of motoring.

Just a thought.

[Craig Harlamoff]

West Marine has a quicky wall chart showing the route taken by most people up and down the coast. It's interesting to look at

[delmarrey]

I had a quote a few years ago and it was about the same as above. SteveK is right on with services.

It's a great place to visit and there is the occasional "good" wind but I have a Hans Christian and I know that sailing the Sound means a lot of motoring.

by Nepenthe

The Sound is no different then any other inland waters. The routine is; in the morning we get Southernly's, close to noon they die down and then we get NWer's, which sometimes are a bit stronger. They die down at around 4 PM Then at about 6 PM we get a Westerly for a couple hours. This is a typical summer/fall day. And depending where you're at in the Sound the winds vear off the islands. In the Sound we use the tides and winds together and plan our trips. Once out in the Straits you better be prepared for the seas and winds............................._/)