Panama to Hawaii - What's the Best Route ?

[thiago]

I want to sail to hawaii after crossing panama channel, and i'm not sure about what is the best route to take.
1) Panama - marquesas - hawaii or
2) panama - mexico - hawaii

Please, let me hear from you.
Thanks in advance.

[daddle]

Marquesas, no. Acapulco or Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, yes. They are on the great circle route and great places to provision, visit, hang around. The winds greatly favor this route. Spring or summer is best.

[svnakia]

Uh, he said he wants to 'sail' to Hawaii. Panama to Mexico is against the prevailing wind so more then likely a passage from Panama to Mexico would require a lot of motoring (not to mention that now is the start of hurricane season in the NE Pacific).

If you have time, I can recommend going to the Galapagos, then Marquesas, then Hawaii. We did that in 2009 and had a great sail every step of the way.

You can go direct, from Panama to Hawaii, but I would suggest making your westing South of the Equator, and then crossing the ITCZ around 125-130W We had friends that went from Panama direct to HI in 2009. They stayed around 8N out to about 120W and it took them FOR EVER! Day after day of light winds, while those boats that went to the Galapagos were reaching along in a very nice breeze with a fair current.

Check the blog below for details...

Good Luck!

John

[imagine2frolic]

We were in the ITCZ last year twice in June & July. It was brutal, and we had to turn back due to health problem. This year we are going up the coast a bit, and then turning west. We will tack out of Panama until we hit some wind that's more favorable. We have less than 2 weeks, and we are off.......i2f

[Mirar]

hello, I did that trip in the early 80's in my 48 foot Herreshoff ketch, from Panama we day hopped up to Puntarenas Costa Rica to do the bottom then ran the great circle route to Hilo. As a previous poster mentioned, it takes you quite close to Acapulco. It took us several days to get out of the wind shadow and into the trades but then we had a romping good sail. I recall doing the 4200 miles in 35 days. I think we left June.
cheers, greg

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, thiago.

[thiago]

Thank's everybody! it's good to hear from people who did this trip already!

once in hawaii, how to sail back to tahiti, what's the best route and season?
Is it possible?

Tks in advance.

[roverhi]

Why do you want to sail to Hawaii?? I live here and it isn't the greatest cruising area as there are no natural protected anchorages. You are pretty much limited to marinas at any time of the year other than the summer. The sailing is great as long as you are going in the right direction. There are great places to explore when the wind and waves cooperate, they just don't seem to do it for 3 seasons of the year. It is a good place to provision or take care of any issues with the boat, however.

The sail to the Marquesas via the Galapagos makes a lot more sense. The sail to the Galapagos is often a drifter so best to have good fuel capacity or be prepared to take a bit of time. When we did SoPac, the Galapagos were off limits and really regret not seeing them. You pick up the trades from the Galapagos west so it's a long, but fast sail from there to the Marquesas and on west.

If you want to do the Iles Sous Le Vent, would be better to go from the Marquesas west through the Tuamotus to the Societies. Then head up to Hawaii when the Southern Pacific Cyclone season begins. The sail north to Hawaii is normally a reach from anywhere in French Polynesia. You are also crossing the ITCZ at right angles so shorter distance involved in getting through this 'fun' sailing region without going out of your way.

From Hawaii, sailing back down to Tahiti is a close reach to a beat depending on the winds. Laying the Marquesas from Hawaii may require tacking. It is not unheard of for boats to end up in the Cooks when they tried to lay Tahiti. Best to plan on heading further west to the Cooks, Tonga, or Fiji from Hawaii.

[thiago]

hi roverhi, tks for your reply! i intend to go to hawaii for surf. I've been there once and would like to be there again, but now, get there sailing is my dream.

the route is clear for me now.
Panama->Galapagos->Marquesas->Hawaii->cook island and then get my way west.

roverhi, do you know haleiwa's marina in the north shore of oahu island? Or any other on the south shore(waikiki...). How the things($$$) work for foreigners boats on those marinas?

On the way to hawaii from marquesas, are there any good place for provisioning?
Tks in advance.

[roverhi]

I live on the Kona side of the Big Island so not overly familiar with Oahu, especially the north shore. Haleiwa is a State Marina. You can stay three months in a calendar year, space available. AFAIK, they don't care your nationality, everyone is a malahini if you aren't from here. Slip fees are fairly low though more expensive than long term slip rents which are dirt cheap. I'm paying $140 for my slip in Honokohau though it has no amenities. Seem to remember I paid about $400 a month before I got the permanent slip. If they have the space, you could put the boat in the first of October and stay till the end of March the following year. That should get you all the big waves you care to ride. Other than that, Kaneohe/Kailua might have space though may be expensive as they are all private marinas. Not too far to get to the North Shore but too far to walk. Possibly do it on a bicycle if you like to take long rides. Don't know whether you can anchor for a long period there.

Supplies are available in the Marquesas but they are expensive, even more so than Papeete. Stock up in the Canal Zone, if you can.

[savoir]

Originally Posted by thiago

hi roverhi, tks for your reply! i intend to go to hawaii for surf. I've been there once and would like to be there again, but now, get there sailing is my dream.

the route is clear for me now.
Panama->Galapagos->Marquesas->Hawaii->cook island and then get my way west.

roverhi, do you know haleiwa's marina in the north shore of oahu island? Or any other on the south shore(waikiki...). How the things($$$) work for foreigners boats on those marinas?

On the way to hawaii from marquesas, are there any good place for provisioning?
Tks in advance.

[DiverChick71]

Originally Posted by savoir

Wasn't gonna say it...

[savoir]

Betcha can't eat popcorn and whistle at the same time.

[DiverChick71]

Originally Posted by savoir

Betcha can't eat popcorn and whistle at the same time.

One could attempt it...people will try just about anything; a claim substantiated by this forum. However...it might be a little messy. :-) (and now I'm on my mobile, so no more snarky emoticons.

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by thiago

On the way to hawaii from marquesas, are there any good place for provisioning?

Talking about snarky...
This is what I hate about some questions from the "I'm gunna do this, I need your advice": They haven't done one moment of research themselves and just want to steal our knowledge.