Best way to get weather updates “near offshore”

[mvweebles]

It's been 20 years, but I've cruised the channel Islands and don't recall being outside range of VHF. Islands with ranger stations would happily share wxfax readouts. A couple of the islands are very remote - San Nicolas and San Clemente (which is restricted anyway) but for the most part, the islands are 30 nms from Santa Barbara or Santa Catalina. There may be gaps, but it's not like Dry Tortugas that are absolutely outside VHF

I was through there 18-months ago when bringing my boat from San Francisco to Ensenada, the most direct route threads between Santa Rosa and Santa Cruz islands and then outside most of the rest (except for San Clemente and San Nicolas). I had some decent gaps in cell phone coverage (Verizon), but I don't recall VHF gaps, but who knows - there isn't a ton of vessel traffic on VHF anymore.

For me, wx would be a nice to have. Not a deal killer. And I'm pretty touchy about having access to weather. But it's a personal decision. I found the coverage to be spotty at worst. It wouldn't keep me from going, nor would it compel me to make heroic measures to get WX forecasts. Just depends on how comfortable you are with your boat, your skills, and the area.

[ka4wja]

In the Mood,
First off, make sure your VHF system is up to snuff....and then, read the answer below...
Spoiler alert: You do not have to buy any satcom gear, nor pay for any weather products / subscriptions...

Originally Posted by In The Mood

We are coastal cruisers who wish to spend more time at the Channel Islands off SoCal. Most trips are a week or so in duration. Depending upon anchorage we are 20-50 miles offshore. When on the back side there is no cell coverage and vhf only occasional for weather updates. We have looked at Iridium Go and PredictWind but this is very expensive. I am interested in hearing other suggestions and reactions. Hardware suggestions are appreciated.

1) Well, the short answer / solution to your situation is of course NAVTEX. (and, fyi, they are not shutting down NAVTEX....they just wanted some public comment to help with the budgeting proposals....NAVTEX is of course an integral part of the GMDSS...)

https://ocean.weather.gov/offshore/index.php?basin=pac&type=navtex#close

As you can see, these are continuous transmissions, although the stations take their turn transmitting in a round-robin...your NAVTEX receiver stores the forecasts for you, so you always have the most up-to-date info/forecasts (and well as warnings and NTM's)

Of course buying a NAVTEX receiver, such as a Furuno NX-300 (~ $600-700 new; ~ $300-350 used) means spending some money, but that is really the best overall solution....
[note: there are some cheaper NAVTEX receivers, but the ones from Nasa Marine, Sitex, etc. have poor performance and bad reviews....so, buy a good NAVTEX unit, such as the Furuno, and you'll be good-to-go!]

https://www.furunousa.com/en/products/nx300

https://www.defender.com/product.jsp?id=97108



2) Now, like most of my answers/solutions, there is usually more than one answer, more than one option....and as usual, this means a longer answer...

I'm not in So Cal, and except for a day sail out of Coronado decades ago, I've never sailed So Cal....but I do know radio communications, and I can offer some helpful info / advice...

a) As I write above, NAVTEX is the solution to your issue....it's transmitted continuously on 518khz (and 490khz), and is available night or day, rain or shine, on the open sea or behind hills, by 100's of stations worldwide (it is an integral part of the GMDSS)....the normal range (under GMDSS spec) is 200-250nm offshore....

The USCG NAVTEX station in So Cal (Cambria; 35°31'.12N 121°03'.60W), has a spec'd range of 350nm, and as such covers not just the waters that you are sailing, but from north of San Fran to just south of the US/Mexico border....

Here is this afternoon's forecast (for your area):

Point Conception to the Mexican Border



Updated:
348 PM PDT Mon Apr 13 2020 .

TONIGHT...NW winds 10 to 20 kt. Seas 4 to 7 ft. .

TUE...N winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 5 to 7 ft. .TUE NIGHT...N to NW winds 10 to 20 kt. Seas 4 to 6 ft.


WED...NW winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 4 to 6 ft. .WED NIGHT...NW winds 10 to 20 kt. Seas 5 to 8 ft.


THU...W to NW winds 10 to 20 kt. Seas 5 to 8 ft. .THU NIGHT...NW winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 5 to 8 ft.


FRI...W winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 5 to 7 ft. .FRI NIGHT...W to NW winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 5 to 7 ft.


SAT...W to NW winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 5 to 7 ft. .SAT NIGHT...NW winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 5 to 7 ft.

The weather forecast transmitted by USCG NAVTEX stations includes more than is required under the GMDSS, it has an area synopsis and a 5 day wind/sea forecast, updated 4 times per day...(as well as NTM's and warnings)...although these forecasts are for the "offshore waters" (generally "from 20nm, or 60nm offshore, out to 250nm offshore"), these would be your weather when you're on the western / southern sides of your S. Cal islands, and of course if you're on the other side of those islands you certainly should have excellent VHF coverage, for NOAA VHF Weather radio broadcasts, etc...

https://ocean.weather.gov/offshore/index.php?basin=pac&type=navtex#close

https://www.weather.gov/marine/gmdss

https://www.nws.noaa.gov/data/WNM/OFFN07



FYI, here is a complete navtex SAMPLE (from 2018) of what the forecast actually looks like:

FZPN22 KWNM
151033 OFFN07
NAVTEX Marine Forecast for southern California waters
NWS Ocean Prediction Center Washington DC
333 AM PDT Tue May 15 2018
Conditions given represent the highest within that period.
...Please refer to Coastal Waters Forecasts (CWF) available through NOAA Weather Radio and other means for detailed coastal waters forecasts... .

SYNOPSIS...A weak area of high pressure will continue over the waters today and tonight, rebuild into the waters from the W late Wed and Wed night and persist through Sat night. A trough will strengthen along the coast Fri and Fri night and persist through Sat night.
Point Piedras Blancas to Point Conception .
TODAY...Variable winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 3 to 5 ft. .
TONIGHT...W to NW winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 3 to 6 ft. .
WED...NW winds 10 to 20 kt. Seas 3 to 6 ft. .
WED NIGHT...NW winds 10 to 20 kt. Seas 4 to 7 ft.
THU...NW winds 10 to 20 kt. Seas 4 to 7 ft.
THU NIGHT...NW winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 4 to 8 ft. .
FRI...NW winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 5 to 8 ft. .
FRI NIGHT...NW winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 5 to 9 ft. .
SAT...NW winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 5 to 9 ft. .
SAT NIGHT...NW winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 7 to 11 ft.

Point Conception to the Mexican border .
TODAY...NW winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 4 to 6 ft. .
TONIGHT...NW winds 10 to 20 kt. Seas 4 to 6 ft. .
WED...NW winds 10 to 20 kt. Seas 4 to 7 ft. .
WED NIGHT...NW winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 5 to 8 ft. .
THU...NW winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 5 to 8 ft. .
THU NIGHT...NW winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 5 to 9 ft. .
FRI...NW winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 7 to 10 ft. .
FRI NIGHT...NW winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 7 to 10 ft. .
SAT...NW winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 6 to 9 ft. .
SAT NIGHT...NW winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 8 to 11 ft.

So, all-in, NAVTEX does in fact seem to be your best overall solution....
BUT..



b) But, let's not forget to have a good look at your primary VHF system!!

Yes, if you're tucked-in tight to a big hill / cliff / etc. on parts of the western / southern sides of some of your channel islands, it's unlikely that you'll have good NOAA VHF weather radio reception from the mainland, but improving / optimizing your primary VHF comms system on-board (and gaining a basic understanding of VHF radiowave propagation) will go a long way to improve both your reception of decent weather forecasts, and your overall safety communications!

Over here in flat S. Florida (even sitting right at the dock), I get perfect reception of 3 to 4 NOAA weather radio stations 24/7/365, and somewhat noisy (but very readable/usable) reception of 2 to 3 more NOAA weather stations on almost every day....now, I realize that getting VHF reception behind a big hill / mountain isn't easy (and many times, impossible), but please know that I've spent 5 decades in radio comms (learning, using, and teaching)

So, if your VHF antenna and coax is old (> 10 years old), and/or poor quality, and/or has moisture intrusion, etc., you'll likely find a surprising improvement in VHF system performance by replacing all your VHF coax and connectors, as well as VHF masthead antenna!!

Also, while most all modern VHF marine radios have the same/similar sensitivity specs, the simple fact is that some work better than others.....Icom and Standard Horizon (and Sailor, if you can afford it), are, in my opinion, the brands to consider.....and to be clear, spending extra $$$ on your primary safety communications system on board (your primary Marine VHF-DSC-FM system), the radio, the antenna, and especially the coax cable / connectors, is never a bad investment!! And, almost always money well spent!

https://www.weather.gov/nwr/california

https://www.weather.gov/marine/loxmz

https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/f13/vhf-and-ais-radiowave-propagation-and-vhf-and-ais-radio-range-149499.html

Have a look at these coverage maps of your local NOAA Weather Stations....
If you're not getting better results than these show, then you need to work on your VHF system on-board!! (these coverage maps are designed to show usable range for small/portable radios, so a masthead-mounted VHF antenna and a modern marine VHF radio will show better results)

https://www.weather.gov/nwr/sites?site=WWF62
https://www.weather.gov/nwr/sites?site=KIH34
https://www.weather.gov/nwr/sites?site=KWL22
https://www.weather.gov/nwr/sites?site=WWG21
https://www.weather.gov/nwr/sites?site=WNG584
https://www.weather.gov/nwr/sites?site=KIH31




c) Of course, if spending a few hundred on a NAVTEX receiver isn't in your budget, and you've already optimized your VHF system on board, there is another (less expensive) option....that is using a small / portable Shortwave Receiver (that has a "bfo", allowing "SSB" Voice reception), to receive the NWS NOAA Offshore Weather forecasts, that are updated and broadcast 4 times a day by the USCG, on multiple HF freqs, from Pt. Reyes, CA (easily receivable in So Cal, day and night)....
https://www.weather.gov/marine/uscg_broadcasts

[and, at some point you desire weather charts to look at, whether for your present So Cal location or worldwide, be aware that you can use this same portable shortwave receiver along with some free software, and use your laptop or tablet (or phone) and receive weather-fax images worldwide...]


Have a look at the links in these "stickies", regarding SSB Receive Only, etc....

https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/f13/marine-ssb-stuff-how-to-better-use-proeprly-install-ssb-and-troubleshoot-rfi-etc-133496.html

https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/f13/hf-ssb-radio-proper-installation-tips-techniques-etc-198305.html



Here is the condensed / abbreviated version of this afternoon's Offshore Waters Forecast via USCG SSB Voice:

FZPN36
KWBC 132132
OFFN36 Marine Weather HF Voice Broadcast

NWS Ocean Prediction Center Washington DC

232 PM PDT Mon Apr 13 2020

California waters- Inner waters from 60 nm to 150 nm offshore. Outer waters from 150 nm to 250 nm offshore.


Conditions given represent the highest within that period. Seas given as significant wave height, which is the average height of the highest 1/3 of the waves. Individual waves may be more than twice the significant wave height. .

SYNOPSIS FOR CALIFORNIA WATERS...A high pressure ridge will persist W of the waters tonight through Thu night, then gradually weaken Fri and Fri night. A low pressure trough along the California coast will persist through Thu night before diminishing Fri and Fri night. Low pressure will approach the N waters from the W Sat and Sat night.


Point St. George to Point Arena .

TONIGHT...N winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 5 to 9 ft. .
TUE...N winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 4 to 8 ft. .TUE NIGHT...N winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 5 to 9 ft. .
WED...N winds 20 to 30 kt. Seas 6 to 10 ft. .WED NIGHT...N winds 20 to 30 kt. Seas 6 to 11 ft. .
THU...N winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 7 to 11 ft. .THU NIGHT...N winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 7 to 10 ft. .
FRI...N winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 7 to 10 ft. .FRI NIGHT...N winds 10 to 20 kt. Seas 7 to 9 ft. .
SAT...NW winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 6 to 7 ft. .SAT NIGHT...N winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 5 to 6 ft.



Point Arena to Santa Cruz Island, CA .

TONIGHT...N to NW winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 5 to 8 ft. .
TUE...N winds 10 to 20 kt. Seas 5 to 8 ft. .TUE NIGHT...N winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 5 to 9 ft. .
WED...N winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 6 to 10 ft. .WED NIGHT...N winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 6 to 11 ft. .
THU...N to NW winds 15 to 25 kt. Seas 7 to 11 ft. .THU NIGHT...N to NW winds 10 to 20 kt. Seas 6 to 10 ft. .
FRI...N to NW winds 10 to 20 kt. Seas 6 to 9 ft. .FRI NIGHT...N to NW winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 6 to 8 ft. .
SAT...N to NW winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 6 to 7 ft. .SAT NIGHT...NW winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 5 to 7 ft.



Santa Cruz Island, CA to San Clemente Island, CA...south to Guadalupe Island .

TONIGHT...NW winds 10 to 15 kt, becoming 10 to 20 kt. Seas 4 to 7 ft. .
TUE...N to NW winds 10 to 20 kt. Seas 4 to 7 ft. .TUE NIGHT...N to NW winds 10 to 20 kt. Seas 3 to 6 ft. .
WED...N to NW winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 3 to 6 ft. .WED NIGHT...NW winds 10 to 20 kt. Seas 5 to 8 ft.
THU...NW winds 10 to 20 kt. Seas 5 to 8 ft. .THU NIGHT...NW winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 4 to 8 ft.
FRI...W to NW winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 4 to 7 ft. .FRI NIGHT...W to NW winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 4 to 8 ft.
SAT...W to NW winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 4 to 7 ft. .SAT NIGHT...NW winds 5 to 15 kt. Seas 4 to 7 ft. .

Forecaster Holley. Ocean Prediction Center.

3) To sum up....while on-board your boat, in the area you mention, you have 3 options for getting official NWS NOAA weather forecasts:

a) --- buy a NAVTEX receiver (~ $300 - $700), and use USCG NAVTEX broadcasts

b) --- improve your VHF system (~ $100 - $500) and use VHF NOAA Weather radio broadcasts

c) --- buy a simple portable SW rec, with SSB receiving capability (~ $150), and use NWS Offshore Waters forecasts, broadcast on HF-SSB Voice, by USCG.


While NAVTEX ("a") is certainly the best / optimal solution, I first recommend you compare your VHF coverage to those published coverage maps, and if you're not getting better results than shown, improve your VHF system on-board first....and then, if you find you still need weather forecasts in areas where you have no VHF coverage, then go for a NAVTEX system....

All pretty easy-peasy...




4) Oh, and yeah, you could of course spend more money than what I mention above, and install a cellular booster and external antenna, to increase your cellular phone coverage....but you'd still not get the coverage you desire, and of course you'd be relying on your cell provider to get you data/internet connection in order to access weather....so, this option is a sort-of "if you had money to waste...go for it" option....not really a great solution...

And, yeah, you could spend $1000's of dollars on a satcom system and paid weather subscriptions, etc....but, not sure why...




I do hope this helps.

Fair winds..

John