Considering a Motor Cruise from SF to SD

[MethodMan]

I've got a Bayliner 3250 with twin 350 (gas) engines. It's my first boat, I've had it 8 months and cruise SF bay regularly. I'm thinking about wandering down the coast next summer to end in San Diego or maybe Mexico.

I've never been cruising outside the bay so I have no idea what to expect. My top speed is 20 knots.

Is this a really good idea or a really bad idea? Any wisdom would be most appreciated.

Miles

[Vyndance]

What kind of range do you have? You have 2 125 mile runs between fuel, Monterey to Morro Bay and Morro Bay to Santa Barbara. After that there is fuel within 5 to 50 miles. Once the Pacific high sets in in the summer it is a pretty easy and beautiful run.

[MethodMan]

Not sure what my range is, fuel capacity is 175 gallons. It's possible that I burn more than 1gal per mile at cruising speeds. Could carry a few jerry cans to extend

[Cheechako]

It's all about weather monitoring. Become good at looking at various sources, weather fax on your computer etc and listen to the VHF forecast a lot also. In different areas, different VHF pedictions mean different things! For instance, here in Puget Sound, a prediction of 5-15 usually means no wind. But a simple step up to 10-20 usually means lots of wind.

[Charlie]

It can be pretty uncomfortable outside the gate and all the way down to Point Conception. Of course it can be like glass as well. I would start with a cruise to Half Moon Bay and then back and see how you like it. It will be important to find out your burn rate at different speeds.

[MethodMan]

Great suggestion Charley

[Lancerbye]

From past experiences with the set up you have, you will be burning 24 gal/hr at a cruising rpm of near 3000. If you can cruise at 20 knts (should be close to that), you will only have a range of 145 miles. Looks like you will have to carry extra fuel which will inturn make you burn more fuel because of the extra weight. Now you can slow down to displacement speed and run only one engine you will be down to 3 gal/hr at approx. 7 knts. It will take yo three times as long but you will have enough fuel.

[Capt Phil]

If you do the trip, I'd suggest investing in a fuel bladder rather than jerry cans and store on swimgrid with a hand pump to replenish tanks through a filter system. Fuel transfer off shore with jerry cans full of gas can be problematic, deisel not so much. Use a weather router if you are not confident with your own forcast info distillation skills. You can't have too much info on weather. Don't try the trip until the spring when things flatten out a bit out there and you have longer weather windows to harbor hop. Make certain you have great anchoring gear, not adequate, great, with good chafe protection and spares. Fuel availability from Ensenada south is sparse as are places to hide until you reach Cedros Island and Turtle Bay. Fuel availability in Mag Bay is not easy either. You have a run to San Carlos across the bay through a windy, poorly marked channel to get there unless things have changed a lot. VyndanceII and Cheechako's advice is sound. Remember that the run down is a sleigh ride but the head on buck home can be tough... enjoy, Capt Phil

[MethodMan]

Thanks Lancer, good info on the fuel usage. The downside to running one screw, I found out a couple of weeks ago, is that you have to use a lot of rudder to keep the boat going straight and all that rudder is a lot of drag. If I keep my cruising speed to about 10kts with both screws turning I should make the distance.

[Siskiyous]

I suggest doing some serious math to learn your vessels range. You should read either "Voyaging Under Power" by Beebe, or as a weaker substitute "The Troller Yacht" by Bueller, to learn the formulas for calculating range.

You should also verify your estimates during local trips.

[jeremiason]

We have made the trip three times... Both times south we had mostly calm seas, but coming north once we got slammed between Morrow Bay and Monterey, with 30 knot winds on the nose and 13 foot seas at 6 sec, which slowed us to about 3 knots over ground for about 18 hours. Funny enough, all three times around Point Conception were easy...

You didn't mention your boating experience.... I boated in San Francisco pretty much all my life. I know that many of us SF boaters never venture outside the Golden Gate Bridge, becuase the Bay is so challenging and deverse with great places to go.

If you haven't gotten some ocean experience, you might want to start small and work your way to a longer ocean trips.

As suggested in a previous post, pick a good weather window and head down to Half Moon Bay, which is a nice day trip.

A short trip like this will expose you to the differences of the San Francisco Bay and the California Coast. If you like that, try a Farallone Islands trip or an overnighter to Drake's Bay. Consider buddy boating with some other people for your first trip for safety.

Many of the SF Bay Yacht Clubs head to Half Moon Bay on Labor Day weekend and it would be a good time to meet some buddy boats for the trip down.

If you have done overnight trips you should log some. I used do overnighters from Alameda to the Sacramento Delta, which would give you pleanty of experience using radar at night.

You didn't mention your boats equipment, but radar is a must when traveling south. Getting into Half Moon Bay or Morrow Bay is almost impossible at night or during fog without it. Once you get around Point Conception the shipping traffic gets pretty heavy, so a good radar and maybe even a AIS are good things to have.