A Theoretical Voyage for the Future (that may have never been done before?)

[NickWallace]

My wife, son, and I would eventually like to sail around the world, but from what I can tell our proposed route is unconventional if not unheard of. Basically we would like to sail around the world while staying close land in order to explore as much of the world as possible in one kind of loop. The route, in theory, would start at the southern tip of Florida, from there we would island hop the Bahamas to Cuba then on to Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Then we jump to Puerto Rico, and island hop from the Virgin Islands all the way to Venezuela. Once in Venezuela we would stick to close proximity to the South American coast line, in order to go a shore every few days to explore, all the way down to the mouth of the Amazon River in Brazil. From there it would be awesome to sail up the Amazon River (an undetermined distance) before heading back out to coast of Brazil, and from there it would be keeping close to coast down and around the tip of South America. After that it is up the western South American coast line all the way to Panama staying in somewhat close proximity to shore as usual. Once in Panama we would sail up the Central America coast line to California, and from there it is up the western coast of the United States to Canada before making it to southeastern Alaska. We would then sail up and around the Alaskan coast line until we reach the Aleutian Islands, and from there we would island hop our way down to southeastern coast of Kamchatka Oblast, Russia. Then down from its coast lines to a chain of islands that we would hop across to Japan. From there its island hopping down the eastern coasts of the Japanese islands to Taiwan. Then down the eastern coast of Taiwan, and island hopping our way to the Philippines. After island hopping the Philippines we would do the same throughout Indonesia before (possibly circling Australia and part of Papua New Guinea) then heading to Singapore, and then up the western coastline of Malaysia up to Thailand before continuing up and along the western coasts of Burma and Bangladesh before arriving on the eastern shores of India. We would then sail down the eastern coast of India before circling Sri Lanka the heading up India's western coast. We would then take the shortest crossing of the Arabian Sea from India to Oman before sailing around the Socotra Islands back up to the Gulf of Aden. After holding our breath a while we would be in the Red Sea on the western coast of Saudi Arabia sailing up the coastline to the Suez Canal. After traversing the canal we would take a quick detour west to the mouth of the Nile river, and again sailing up it an undetermined distance before heading back to the Mediterranean Sea. From there its east to the western coast of Israel before hopping across the Mediterranean to Cyprus. Then we would head to the southern coast line of Turkey taking it to Greece. From there we would hug the entire European coast line exploring as much of it as possible before departing from Norway, and island hopping to the Faroe Islands. We would then head for Iceland, and circle it before heading to the eastern coast of Greenland. Then it would be down and around the southern tip of Greenland before crossing over to Canada. We would then head down the eastern coast of Canada to the eastern coast of the United States before heading down it to our starting point in Florida. That is the route, thank you for taking the time to read it all. My question for you is has this ever been done before? What would be your guess as to how long a trip of this magnitude would take especially if taking the time to explore frequently? Is this even possible? Do I even want to know the vast amount of red tape and potential problems that await me in order to traverse all of these coast lines?

Again thank you for your time,
Nick

[pwillems]

That's a lot of advance planning.

I recommend a copy of Jimmy Cornell's World Cruising Routes.

[JPA Cate]

Check the prevailing winds for the seasons.

Check the prevailing political situations for safety.

Tell us what boat is involved, please.

Your itinerary sounds like driving a car somewhere, and that is not what life at sea is like.

Good luck with it.

Ann

[ahun]

It would/could take 5 to 30 years, depending on you. Everything is possible.

[valhalla360]

A lot of those areas are very challenging cruising...both from a difficulty in navigating/sailing and from a geopolitical point of view.

There is a reason most cruisers follow a similar route...and most spend the vast majority of the time coastal cruising with only an occasional offshore passage where it makes sense.

[Paul L]

As long as you keep the cruise theoretical, because it just ain't ever going to be practical. As mentioned above, 3 things are very much against this plan.
You are assuming all these places will let you in and are safe enough for a family. Point in case Venezuela - not a place for cruising boats now.

To have any long term comfort you need to take advantage of the prevailing winds - your course ignores them.
To be safe you need to heed the seasons - primarily the cyclone seasons but also in your case the depths of winter. This forces you to make much larger movements than coastal hopping.

Not sure your time frame, but a fair number of cruising circumnavigators do the circle in 7 to 10 years - and thats with crossing oceans in large passages.

[NickWallace]

Thank you all for your responsiveness and advice. This voyage is purely theoretical (no where near a planning stage yet), and is still years off so we still have time to adjust accordingly. I am just wondering if it is possible without a high probability of death to do?

[Benz]

The short answer is "NO"

Much of what you propose is dead upwind and up-current.
Many of the "coastal hops" you envision will be more difficult and dangerous than just going offshore for a week.
The political situation precludes just going wherever you please, as has been mentioned before.
I'm all for big dreams and off-the-beaten-path cruises, but you must dream realistically. You'll have a far more pleasant time by being choosy about your destinations and doing some passages to get there.

[belizesailor]

Never been done to my knowledge, but no harm in exploring the possibility of something different. Definitely would be the long way round.

There are a number of practical considerations as pointed out already. Mostly in the categories of wind direction, current direction, and political stability. You should modify your route accordingly.

As ponted out by Paul, there are seasonal considerations on this route too (as there are with any circumnav route). Case in point: It would force you into very high lattitudes for some of your ocean crossings...oceans that get dangerously ugly in winter...definitely would want to make those hops in summer.

I have a friend who is a ship pilot on the Amazon, he would be a great contact for that leg. While exploring great rivers, you might as well add the Mississippi to your list..a hazardous bit of water, but accessible by small boats.

To get a big picture of the wind and current issues explore Pilot Charts.

You can download pilot charts at the link below. Note the security certificate is screwed up on this site, has been for years, so you will likely get a security warning, but no actual risk to my knowledge (Ive never had any issuues).

https://msi.nga.mil/NGAPortal/MSI.po...2&pubCode=0003

Another cool big picture tool is an app named "Windy"...awesome global weather and current data visualization tool.

You can use both of those resources to visualize the wind & current considerations on this route. The pilot charts also show that data by month so you can see seasonal variations.

In addition to avoiding Venezuala you should also add the N coast of Honduras and the E coast of Nigaragua to your no go list in that region. Venezuela is easy to avoid, the typical route is not far offshore though, its an easy downwind sail from the SE Carib (like Grenada) to the ABC's.

Two other resources to explore are noonsite and CSSN.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sour...zunPcM6amhd1Yg

https://safetyandsecuritynet.org/

[TrentePieds]

"Driving" a cruising boat is NOT like having gone into a showroom, having laid down the bux for a RAM 350 and then blowing it down Route 66!

Seems to me that a lot of people very recently put a lot of effort into warning you off a boat that you said you were contemplating - some ally schooner, I believe. There was some gentle implication that you still have a lot to learn about boats.

I suggested, in that thread, that you join a yacht club and take some courses to get your feet wet. Now I am suggesting that you go to your local library and borrow the classic books about cruising. You can start by reading the books by Larry and Lyn Pardy. Your local library will get them in for you through inter-library loan if they don't have them. Someone else suggested 'World Cruising Routes" by Cornell. You need to come to understand why the windships of yore went THOUSANDS of miles off the direct routes twixt ports of call. You need to come to understand why the Board of Trade required ALL (British) ship's masters to REPORT their tracks and the weather conditions they found wherever they went, and why this information was compiled in books called "pilots" for the guidance of men who already knew more about ocean faring than you or I ever will.

When you've done the reading that can give you that understanding, we can be of far better service to you.

All the best

TrentePieds

[skipmac]

I think the most critical issues have been addressed already but I'll toss in my two cents.

1. Security. Some countries are just too dangerous to visit. Currently Venezuela is high on that list but there's plenty more around the world.

2. Route and sailing conditions. The route you propose includes several sections that will be dead against strong winds and currents. Of course one can sail or motor against it but it could be quite uncomfortable.

3. Coast hopping. In some areas there are no ports or harbors for long distances and, as mentioned above, countries you should bypass for security, so multi day passages will have to part of the plan. A couple of sections that are against the wind and current:

- Caribbean SE until you turn the corner at the eastern point of Brasil
- Central America north to all the way to WA and OR.

[jSchooley]

The route is almost an obvious one if you're just looking at geography. Hard to believe no one has attempted at least partial legs of the proposed voyage.

I'd be interested in hearing some savvy responses to some crossings like Aleutian's to Hokkaido.

[JPA Cate]

Hello, jSchooley,

Hard on the wind, stormy in winter. More often, people go from Japan to the Aleutians, aiming for July arrival.

Ann

[TrentePieds]

Well, for one thing, if you were to set out from Attu Island at the end of the Aleutians nearest to Hokkaido on this very day you would, as Ann sez, have the wind right on the nose. Not a little catspaw either. As I write, the winds are 40 - 50 knots. Even suggesting such a voyage is, IMO, a reliable indicator that the man who suggests it would not have the competence to deal with a sailboat in such winds.

Among the joys you would encounter is a snarly little cyclone gathering strength in that area just at the moment. The seas are icy cold, beyond anything denizens of the Caribbean or even the Atlantic Seaboard can imagine. Those who dwell on the left coast of NA will have some notion, because the Japanese Current brings the cold arctic water south along our shores. The "Pacific Gyre", as this system of currents is called, flows FROM Hokkaido TOWARDS the Aleutians, i.e. it, like the winds, is against you.

In these latitudes if you get soaked your life expectancy, barring means of dealing with severe hypothermia, is something in the order of 40 minutes! If you fall overboard your life expectancy is less than five minutes. Being soaked by water at these temperatures instantly knocks the breath out of you, and you lose muscular coordination.

So that's why experienced sailors don't undertake such voyages.

TrentePieds

[billgewater]

Seems that there are more than enough sunny places on the standard trade routes to satisfy most folk. Some places may be absolutely fascinating and amazing places to visit e.g. the antarctic, Iran, Egypt, Ark Angel, Crimea etc. But you would be ill advised to take a boat with family to these places.
We have met people who arrived in Australia from O/S and have spent ages just wandering around our coastline. e.g. can't get rid of them actually! Joking, Ann. You are exceptionally welcome.
Similarly acquaintances have spent ten or more years in Asia.
Cruising folk need to be independent and able to manage all circumstances and these same people are generally able to mix in and capitalise on the different circumstances they find themselves in while in a new country. Also, to do a country "justice" you often really need to spend considerable time there particularly if you are interested in the social fabric of the country. You will be amazed at the "kindness of strangers".
I live on my yacht but I don't hesitate to fly O/S when I wish to visit another country. It works well for us.
However, all the best.