Ventura, CA to Victoria, BC

[Reo Baird]

I recently purchased a 49' Defever pilothouse (power boat), and plan on bringing her up the coast to Victoria, BC in the next couple weeks (would leave around the 24th).

Would love to hear any input/suggestions/firsthand experience as a passage of this scope is new to me. Most of my experience is in Desolation Sound and the Georgia Straight.

My plan is to do the trip in several legs, anchoring the first night in the Channel Islands, then continuing up to Monteray, then San Francisco, then Astoria, and finally Victoria.

The longest leg would be around 560nm and is SF to Astoria. I may skip some stops (the boat carries enough or nearly enough fuel to complete the whole trip in one go but i think that will be too tiring on the crew)

I am hoping to complete the trip in two weeks (10 days planned travel time, with 4 days for weather/setbacks).

The boat cruises at around 7-8kt, depending on seas.

My plan is to do most of my cruising around 30-50nm off shore.

I know there are several other posts regarding this trip on here, but they mostly focus on sailing vessels, so it would be great to get some perspective from power boaters who have done the trip, or are familiar with the areas along the route.

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Reo Baird.

Congratulations on your new boat, and good luck with the trip North.

[Paul L]

There are some good stops between SF and Astoria. The weather in that area can be pretty tough. Consider Eureka, Crescent City, Newport, Coos Bay as places to break up the trip and wait or weather. Also, consider paying a weather router a few hundred to give you e-mail or phone updates along the SF to Puget Sound portion.

[Reo Baird]

Originally Posted by Paul L

There are some good stops between SF and Astoria. The weather in that area can be pretty tough. Consider Eureka, Crescent City, Newport, Coos Bay as places to break up the trip and wait or weather. Also, consider paying a weather router a few hundred to give you e-mail or phone updates along the SF to Puget Sound portion.

How far out can you get cell reception out there on the oregon coast? It seems to me i would be out of phone/internet range for the longer legs, so the weather routing service might be useless.

[Paul Elliott]

Cellphone cuts out beyond 15 miles (or so) offshore, at least north of San Francisco. Do you have any way of getting weather info while at sea? I can usually receive USCG VHF WX broadcasts out to 50 miles, which can be useful. SSB or satphone are often used for WX data, and I do recommend keeping an eye out for the frequent gales we see between San Francisco and the Oregon border. There is a particularly difficult "squeeze zone" off of Cape Mendocino that often sees high wind and wave conditions. It's best to check the forecasts and plan accordingly.

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by Reo Baird

How far out can you get cell reception out there on the oregon coast? It seems to me i would be out of phone/internet range for the longer legs, so the weather routing service might be useless.

You don't need connectivity continuously. The coast is almost completely covered by VHF weather broadcasts. A router will help you make the call when to leave for the next 1 or 3 day hop. That's their value and they know the weather patterns in the area well, something you only learn after a many trips.