Solo Sailing without Auto Pilot?

[DDabs]

Originally Posted by Tidjian

I'm wondering if anyone has any video or book advice for solo sailing Atlantic or Pacific without Auto Pilot?

I've been browsing around the internet for a couple weeks now and have found plenty of great solo sailing videos and books. But mostly all of them are larger boats with AP. I want to get an idea of how I will need to setup sleep patterns as well as try to maintain some course heading when not at the helm.

You haven't told us why you don't want an autopilot on board?

[sailjumanji]

I think of the autopilot as one of the most important pieces of gear on the boat. So much so, that I carried a spare motor/wheel assembly on our cruise (seems that those are the AP pieces that break or go out the most). Can I sail the boat solo without it - of course! But I would never chose to do that. Being able to step away from the wheel and tend to other things, stretch your legs, whatever, is worth a lot more than the AP costs. IMHO

[Robert Tilbury]

Get an Auto Pilot ,, like most people ours is named George ,
best crew member out there ,, he don't sleep or drink or get sea sick ,,
best money spent my friend ,,,,,
Oh and i truly believe when you have one you will wonder why you didn't get an AP years ago ,
for safety i believe its a necessity not an option ,

[boatman61]

I did UK S coast to Portugal in a Hurley 22 and again in a Corribee 21 non stop to N Spain with no problems.
Get yourself a ST1000, a good spare battery and a 20W solar panel to keep it charged and dedicate it solely to the AP..
Another 20W will keep your house battery for nav lights and radio up to par.. for navigation a 10" laptop and a nav program like Nimble with the GPS in the USB stick will be more than adequate for you.. KISS..

[Stu Jackson]

Originally Posted by svHyLyte

Google "sheet to tiller steering". The method can be applied to a tiller or a wheel. We used the method for years before we purchased our first auto-pilot in '89. The key to success is balancing the boat's sails on the desired course.

FWIW...

Good point. I have Letcher's book, bought it eons ago. Also found it to download on the web. I used it on our Catalina 25 for almost a decade before we got our first autopilot.

Whether sheet-to-tiller, windvane or electric autopilot, it is (almost) a necessity.

About halfway through our trip from SF to Vancouver Island in 2016, our autopilot packed it in. I mailed it to Dan Gerhardt in Colorado, who repaired it promptly, although we were without it from Newport, OR to our new home. Inasmuch as we were essentially daysailing from harbor to harbor up the coast, it was not a deal breaker. One of us was required to be behind the wheel all day long. We used light wheel brake pressure, but it sure was a LOT less fun than having the flexibility of not having to be a slave behind the wheel.

During my Indian Summer Cruise the last week in October 2017, the power to the ap went out. Again, just cruising locally in short hop daysails, it was not an issue. Because the weather has turned to rain and now cold I have not been able to trace it down yet.

I can imagine even thinking about going offshore without one of some sort.

[Stu Jackson]

Originally Posted by boatman61

I did UK S coast to Portugal in a Hurley 22 and again in a Corribee 21 non stop to N Spain with no problems.
Get yourself a ST1000, a good spare battery and a 20W solar panel to keep it charged and dedicate it solely to the AP..
Another 20W will keep your house battery for nav lights and radio up to par.. for navigation a 10" laptop and a nav program like Nimble with the GPS in the USB stick will be more than adequate for you.. KISS..

Good advice. I'd recommend the ST2000, though. It is more powerful.

[Stu Jackson]

Originally Posted by thomm225

You just have to get used to the noise.....

You can adjust the "gain" to reduce the noise.

[CarinaPDX]

Originally Posted by boatman61

for navigation a 10" laptop and a nav program like Nimble with the GPS in the USB stick will be more than adequate for you

Actually, that is likely too much power consumption. Better to acquire an Android tablet, 7"-8"-10"; it will use far less power, will have an internal GPS and in many cases internal compass/gyro/accelerometer. OCPN is available, as well as excellent commercial programs.

Power will have to come by way of solar panels, or possibly a wind vane. If as seems to be the case there is only an outboard for propulsion/power generation, it will not be available for use most of the time at sea so can't be counted on.

For the crossing a simple wind vane is preferable to an autopilot, which is less reliable and requires electricity. That crossing can be cloudy - I spent a week between the Azores and Ireland in fog without a break - so no AP if solar panels are the only source.

Crossing the ocean in a Grampian 23' is less cruising and more a daredevil stunt. Can it be done? Yes, by a skilled sailor with significant adaptations to the boat. And with a high risk of failure - such a boat is easily overwhelmed by North Atlantic gales. The OP should seriously reconsider. After all it is quite possible to pick up an adequate 30' boat cheap these days, so what is the point?

Greg

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by CarinaPDX

Actually, that is likely too much power consumption. Better to acquire an Android tablet, 7"-8"-10"; it will use far less power, will have an internal GPS and in many cases internal compass/gyro/accelerometer. OCPN is available, as well as excellent commercial programs.

Power will have to come by way of solar panels, or possibly a wind vane. If as seems to be the case there is only an outboard for propulsion/power generation, it will not be available for use most of the time at sea so can't be counted on.
Greg

One does not need it operating 24/7.. I use mine sparely on passage.. switch on for 10-15mins max at a time.. a quick position, course and distance check is all one needs 3 0r 4 times a day..
The only time its on for longer is for entering ports or anchorages unless you really miss your TV and need the reassurance of a light show in the corner.

[inchcailloch]

Why when they are relatively cheap? Or they will seem so after 10 days. 12 years ago my wife and I sailed 800 miles without one. 3 hours on 3 hours off for 8 days. Since then I have soloed the Atlantic 3 to!es and the Pacific once.......always with a spare.

In MHO 3 things make a solo trip more comfortable. An AP, an AIS and GPS.

However, should you wish to try "pure" sailing make sure you have as long keel yacht for being without an AP. But why make it harder on yourself, mother nature will give you the tests. I tried Everest once without oxygen, I failed. Give yourself a better chance of success......at least initially. However never give up on dreams.

I write this on a tablet, not on papyrus or via a smoke signal and long ago given up in the abacus and slide rule.

[powsmias]

Originally Posted by Tidjian

I'm wondering if anyone has any video or book advice for solo sailing Atlantic or Pacific without Auto Pilot?

I've been browsing around the internet for a couple weeks now and have found plenty of great solo sailing videos and books. But mostly all of them are larger boats with AP. I want to get an idea of how I will need to setup sleep patterns as well as try to maintain some course heading when not at the helm.

Grab that cpt in the classifieds, just went up for sale

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by powsmias

Grab that cpt in the classifieds, just went up for sale

You cant be serious..

[billknny]

Originally Posted by robert sailor

The Grampian 23 is certainly as capable offshore as a Moore 24 but in these boats it's way more about the sailor than the boat.

That's damning with faint praise if I ever heard it!

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by powsmias

Grab that cpt in the classifieds, just went up for sale

Having looked back through his previous posts he says he has a Grampian 23.

How would you fit a wheel pilot to rudder steering?

It is also twice the price of a new RM ST2000 from Defender, which do you think will be more useful for coastal cruising?

https://www.defender.com/product3.js...8711&id=155738

Might be wrong but I think he needs something simple to use whilst he goes to the bog, makes a cup of tea, puts a mark on the chart etc.



Pete

[Jim Cate]

I think it is time to ask the inevitable question: have you ever been to sea in a small boat like the Grampian? I mean really to sea,not close inshore. Have you done so in less than perfect weather? Have you done it for several days at a time?

If you have, and still wish to proceed, feel free to ignore my doubts. If not, please just reconsider your plans and give up on major crossings. The boat is not suited for such activities in so many ways... but in terms of your questions in this thread, it's lack of inherent tracking (due to hull, keel and rudder design) make sheet to tiller or simple trim steering unlikely to succeed in any but very flat water. I base this on some distant years of using these methods to steer a similar boat, and of actually making a long passage (90% of a voyage from Kauai to SF) in a much more suitable and larger vessel, utilizing sheet to tiller steering.

Further, putting faith into a small tiller pilot's lasting for a complete long passage is not realistic. They are great for what they are designed for, but long term continuous duty is beyond their design brief (that fact is why we did the long passage to SF under jury rigged s2t steering).

So, if you insist on carrying on with your plan, a wind steering device is the best answer. There are several small ones commercially available, Navic and Atoms come to mind, or you can build your own as I did for my previous boat. There have been several lengthy threads here on CF that have addressed self design and build for vanes. Use of the Google search facility will find them for you, and some reading will be of benefit.

I don't like to discourage folks from going cruising, but your plan, coupled with your apparent naivety and your choice of vessel add up to a dangerous combination IMO, and I believe in the opinion of other experienced cruisers here.

If you chose to limit yourself to coastal cruises, most of the objections would either disappear or diminish considerably... and would give you an experience backlog to help you with future decisions.

Jim