Is it Possible to Go Blue Water in a 13 Foot Guppy?

[vtcapo]

Originally Posted by Cruiser2B

I say that if you feel you and your boat are ready then go. No one here knows the condition of your boat better than you. Sound like she has been taken care of and has mods to make her motor well, how able sailing? Go if you feel she is ready. Posting a question like that will yield no real good usable info. You will have a bunch of naysayers and fear monger posts when they have never been on or seen your boat. It is small and would be one hell of a ride but if you can keep her afloat.....and have enough nads to go...then go.

Another post by Cruiser2B who feels, if it floats and it is well maintained go for it.

Does anyone take you seriously?

RT

[Bash]

Originally Posted by brantleychuck

It matters to me not if this whole thread is made up. It is a Teaching moment. A place to talk of dreams and a bit of harsh reality for sure.

There's a huge difference between your experience with the hurricane boat and the stunt the OP proposes. The OP writes: "I was thinking it would be possible to make it if I had others nearby to help me if I got into trouble."

You wanna be his wingman, have at it. Be advised, however, that the Melen Marine Guppy draws 19 inches and only has 150 lbs of ballast. Its waterline is 11' 7", which means passage speeds of less than 3 knots. A great day in that boat would be 60 nm. An Atlantic crossing in that boat would take a minimum of 60 days in perfect conditions. Probably more like 100 days in real-world conditions. Now ask yourself where he's going to store enough food and water for a hundred-day crossing in a boat that only displaces 480 lbs.

Now, at least, you know why so many forum members seem to think the OP is a troll.

[Cruiser2B]

Originally Posted by vtcapo

Another post by Cruiser2B who feels, if it floats and it is well maintained go for it.

Does anyone take you seriously?

RT

Good advice for the OP....

[foggysail]

Originally Posted by Jentine

Go for it!!!! We need to thin the herd.

I JUST LOVE THIS POST

[pete2169]

I want to thank everyone here for their great input on my idea and I believe that it would be a high risk voyage, but not impossible. I want to get my guppy to Tonga somehow, I guess maybe the best plan would be to ship it there in a 20 foot shipping container. And alot safer for sure.
thanks everyone

[foggysail]

Sure, odds are the boat will make it, so have old sneakers from Japan's tsunami!

[Blue Crab]

Originally Posted by Cruiser2B

Nads= balls= enough testicular fortitude to go to sea in a 13ft boat.

Heh. I think we have a generational gap here so: Nevermind!

[Aethelwulffe]

13'? Too big. I'd go for a 9' dinghy.
You don't endanger anyone else if you don't bring an epirb, and you make sure that no-one knows or cares who you are or what you are doing.

Better yet, take your dinghy (it is a dinghy) down the Texas coast in the Lagoona Madre a few hundred miles. You can always walk to land, and it will give you a taste of heavy wind sailing and chop without the swells and total isolation. If you can get from South Padre to Galveston without learning anything real scary, rig some running twins and head to Tonga.
P.S. you have 75 days at top speed 24/7 to get from the US to Tonga. More like 180. How much water have you used over the last six months?

[vtcapo]

Originally Posted by Cruiser2B

Nads= balls= enough testicular fortitude to go to sea in a 13ft boat.

No, I think, "dropped at birth on one's head" better describes this foolish enterprise.

At least the OP is considering shipping the boat in a container.

Smart move...

RT

[Tellie]

Crazy is relative depending on who you ask. Every time an experienced sailor on a fairly well founded boat gets rescued the far, far, more numerous general public questions not only the foolishness but their taxes going to the expense of rescue. I read here quite often posts of long time members with good capable boats that are bound all over the seven seas asking questions that make me scratch my head. How do you bleed an injector, how do you change the oil, what do you do for sea sickness, how do you crimp a #14 wire, how do I hook up 4 six volt batteries to get 12Volts, etc. I prefer the teaching moment comment by another poster. Many of us have started out with crazy dreams at first only to find ourselves a bit wiser a few years down the road and on a more sensible course. I would prefer to see this board more of a place to get some wise mentoring instead of SA type place to get thrashed. The OP may be a troll, I don't really know anymore than anyone else here does. If he is not, it's a fine welcome he so far has received.

[Aethelwulffe]

Well, Troll or no (probably no) posting a dream about taking your own little ship into the wild blue yonder is far far away from actually kicking off the dock. I have known *much* goofier folks.
...At least he hasn't come back from a long passage and then ask the peanut poll for basic "you better know on your life" basic technical knowledge best gained by opening a service manual.

[Lajos]

Originally Posted by brantleychuck

So what we have here is a Teaching moment. Not sure why the blog thing inspires folks to be so mean spirited. If this dreamer was standing in front of you would you say the things you write?. So instead of being just plain nasty, point out the good and bad. Help the Guy come up with a plan. He has a dream why just stomp on the guy? What do you meanies get from doing that?
I fixed up a Hurricane wrecked boat w/o ever having worked on a boat. I almost got stuck after crawling into a storage locker to fix something, I thought I was going to have to get extricated by the Fire dept. I guess I should have had to post a Bond before I began working on the wreck!
I began my cruising by heading east along the ICW in the Florida panhandle. I had not sailed before so I asked about the " big crossing" I would have to make from Carrabel over to Tarpon springs, 160 miles in the open Gulf. 20% of the Old Cogers I talked with replied with " You are going to die" I few took the time to show me weather sites so I could get a handle on the weather, wave heights, etc, and talk strategy's. Tell me of there experiences while out there .One sailor pointed out that my spreders looked a little funny, angled up. He helped me fix the problem and ended up being a treasured freind and sailing buddy.
I will never forget that sail, it was down right magical. I wrote of that experience here gulfcrossing

That trip was the beginning of heading to the Bahamas, Isla Mujera, Belize, Roatan. I had a dream and a old wrecked boat I bought on ebay w/o having laid eyes on it. I am sure if I had asked a sailing blog " Hey GUYS, I have zero sailing experience and never have worked on a boat. i saw this wreck of a boat on ebay I am thinking of buying and sailing to Honduras, what do you think?"
It matters to me not if this whole thread is made up. It is a Teaching moment. A place to talk of dreams and a bit of harsh reality for sure. I just do not think we have to be MEAN or BULLY'S about it. And I have little ideas about why you would want to.

Chuck S/V Perrovida IF36

I have to agree with you, I found tons of interesting information on here but I also can't get over why people (some) need to be so condesending in there comment or reply?...

[Captain Jeffry]

WoW! That is small. I would never sail a boat this small anywhere except in the marina.. I have a reputation of being prudent..

Vava'u is beautiful. Neiafu particularly! Mermaind Bar/Restauarant rocks. Hope you met Holly from GB!

[pete2169]

Hey Everyone, Just for the record, not a troll here. Just joined the site yesterday.
I am just a guy with a dream to get my guppy to Tonga somehow next year. I have a small lot of land in Vava'u. I added a photo of the guppy to my profile page. The photo was taken when I first bought the boat last year. The mask and sails are not in this photo. I have done a lot of work on the boat and I will add some more photos soon. Just looking for some tips and advice here.

Have a great turkey day !!!

[Travelnik]

Welcome aboard Pete!

No real advice here, but no bashing either!