Best Year-Round Cruising - US / Caribbean

[imagine2frolic]

Sorry that was a pic from St. Augustine. If Shelter Bay says they can haul you,, then you're good to go......i2f

[estarzinger]

Originally Posted by Agility

Ok what marina for a big cat?

Friday harbour would be the top location (in US waters). They do have slips your size but there may be a waiting list.

[David M]

.....that I can keep the boat for a year and still get to use it most of the year and not have to put it on the hard during hurricane season.

Hawaii

[Abaco]

For locations in the US, it sounds like it comes down to warm water or cold water. For warm water, I recommend South Florida. Access to the Bahamas and Keys provides great variety of sailing venues and destinations. Several major airports provide plenty of flights (Miami & Lauderdale). Every yacht service is imaginable is available dockside. Dockage available on the well protected New River. Great restaurants and beaches even if you just come in for a weekend and the boat never leaves the dock. Another Atlantic 57 has been here off and on for a few years now. There is also and Atlantic 42 just down the river from my house that I see all the time.

I guess that's it for my Chamber of Commerce speach...

[David M]

I believe he is looking for a place without hurricanes.

[Jimbo485]

ABCs and Aves in that case.

[unbusted67]

Originally Posted by zeehag

have you been in san diego in winter during the storm season???????
san diego is NOT a year round sailing center. i KNOW. i just left that hole.
if you like sailing in 90+ kt winds, and 38 degree temps, san diego is the place.
having lived in san diego YEAR ROUND, on board, for umpteen million years too long, i concur with western florida and caribean. in hot air--anchor-- you will always have a thru breeze.

Whhhaaaat? I too have lived aboard in San Diego I have seen 38 degrees maybe twice. I have seen 90 knots zero times. I have also seen zero hurricanes blow through there in the last 30 years. I think you have lived there longer than I have but it seemed pretty tame to me. I've been sailing there in February and been too hot. You want to talk inclement weather? Try coming up here. Western Florida and the Caribbean get hurricanes that, to me, excludes then as a good place to keep an unattended boat.

[zeehag]

unbusted--were ye in a marina or on a mooring , where you feel and can measure the true strength of the wind. yes we did have 90+ more than once MEASURED, and more than one year. sorry.,i have lived aboard year round in sd bay since 1995, and in many different areas in san diego bay. i know the weather very very well.... way too well.
seems most the folks who allegedly reside aboard in sd do not realize exactly how many days their coma lasted in the cold and the wind is badly guesstimated.
they also live in mission bay, where it is protected and much warmer.
we actually measured the wind speeds and the temps while aboard, and we measured these in various areas, NOT IN JUST ONE PLACE.

[unbusted67]

Originally Posted by zeehag

unbusted--were ye in a marina or on a mooring , where you feel and can measure the true strength of the wind. yes we did have 90+ more than once MEASURED, and more than one year. sorry.,i have lived aboard year round in sd bay since 1995, and in many different areas in san diego bay. i know the weather very very well.... way too well.
seems most the folks who allegedly reside aboard in sd do not realize exactly how many days their coma lasted in the cold and the wind is badly guesstimated.
they also live in mission bay, where it is protected and much warmer.
we actually measured the wind speeds and the temps while aboard, and we measured these in various areas, NOT IN JUST ONE PLACE.

Ok Ok I meant no offense. I guess my point is that I moved to San Diego and was able to sail there year round from a place where you most certainly are unable to sail year round. Compared to most places San Diego is ridiculously temperate. Is Southern California not known for its consistent weather? Please see:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate_of_San_Diego

And also

"San Diego is only 3° further north than New Orleans, and technically within reach of East Pacific hurricanes. However, cold California Current off the coast of California keeps ocean water significantly colder than in the Gulf of Mexico and western Atlantic. As a result, virtually all northbound hurricanes dissipate over Baja California and fail to bring any precipitation to San Diego. The only tropical cyclone known to impact San Diego as a hurricane in around 200 years of record-keeping was the 1858 San Diego Hurricane. Two more cyclones managed to bring tropical storm-force winds to Southern California: the 1939 California tropical storm and the Hurricane Kathleen (1976)."

The last hurricane there was in 76!

Sounds pretty good to me...and I still mean no offense, to each her own!

[Rakuflames]

Originally Posted by Sand crab

I grew up in Fla. Jax and St. Pete. I saw a show about the worst case scenario for a hurricane in a major metropolitan area and Tampa Bay is at the top. If a major storm gets a good (bad) aim at the mouth of the bay then it would send a storm surge of 20 to 30 feet up the bay effectively wiping out just about everything. You and your boat would not survive. Katrina would be a minor catastrophe by comparison. Also, it is not warm in the summer it is brutally hot with bugs especially skeeters and noseeums. I also remember it being fairly windless. I still think the Atlantic side is windier but I could be wrong. Don't get me wrong, Fla is fine in the winter and if you don't mind sweating profusely every single moment you are outdoors then you will like it in the summer. But it's not for me. BTW in another life I might have gone shrooming in the cow pastures that used to be alongside the Manatee River. But that was the 70s and I don't remember much. Agility, I PMed you BOB

Windless? Heavens no!

No doubt IF a major hurricane came up Tampa Bay it would be bad. This would be just as true of Chesapeake Bay and a number of other places. But you have warning with hurricanes. It's all about having a plan.

As for windless, not at all. Especially in the winter, expect to have to reef on a fair number of days. In the summer, the wind dies down at midday. do your sailing earlier in the morning or later in the afternoon, but we have few windless days.

[zeehag]

of course kali gets no hurrycames--water is only 53-55 degrees F...LOL.. hurrycames need hot water. pnw winter storms do not need warm waters and they are not hurrycames. they do have 90+kt winds and big seas. live on a mooring out of the safety of mission bay for a few winters.
wiki is not a reliable source of info, being written by who th****cares, not by experts. your aunt martha could have written that. stay in sd for a whole winter and experience the storms of winter. there are 2 months wherein they come in every 3 days. is called dec-jan and jan-feb. el nino years are the worst. stay then.
is when all the boats break loose from moorings, during the el nino storms and storms of winter. i remained on board for these since 1995. measured winds from 68+ kts to over 90+kts with seas 3-4 ft inside san diego bay. tell the folks who have lost their boats in these that they donot have weather. last year we lost 4 boats in one day of storming with measured winds exceeding 90 kts. the winds during the breakaways was only measured at 41 kts , but the gusts were higher south of the airport. isnot a rare occurrance. go and live thru it--wiki is not reliable. is like telling a sailor how to sail when ye never left the computer desk.

[unbusted67]

Originally Posted by zeehag

of course kali gets no hurrycames--water is only 53-55 degrees F...LOL.. hurrycames need hot water. pnw winter storms do not need warm waters and they are not hurrycames. they do have 90+kt winds and big seas. live on a mooring out of the safety of mission bay for a few winters.
wiki is not a reliable source of info, being written by who th****cares, not by experts. your aunt martha could have written that. stay in sd for a whole winter and experience the storms of winter. there are 2 months wherein they come in every 3 days. is called dec-jan and jan-feb. el nino years are the worst. stay then.
is when all the boats break loose from moorings, during the el nino storms and storms of winter. i remained on board for these since 1995. measured winds from 68+ kts to over 90+kts with seas 3-4 ft inside san diego bay. tell the folks who have lost their boats in these that they donot have weather. last year we lost 4 boats in one day of storming with measured winds exceeding 90 kts. the winds during the breakaways was only measured at 41 kts , but the gusts were higher south of the airport. isnot a rare occurrance. go and live thru it--wiki is not reliable. is like telling a sailor how to sail when ye never left the computer desk.

I have lived in San Diego through a couple of winters, I have never lived in Mission Bay, I have lived on the hook in the bay, I have never seen 90knot winds there. I have seen 40 knot winds there and it was about 50 degrees out and spitting rain. Not my idea of a fierce winter storm. The weather in San Diego is ridiculously mild compared to the Northeast where I have lived for about 30 years. That's all I have to compare it to. That's why we keep a boat out there year round untended to other than by the marina manager.

To say that boats broke free from moorings in the harbor is not saying a lot considering the condition of some of the boats and their moorings in the harbor. I don't know I guess weather is just all relative. If you looks at the references in any wikipedia article it can give you some idea of the authenticity and validity of that article just like in an academic paper.

[zeehag]

ewxcuse me, unbusted, but you know nothing opf the moorings and their conditions. the lines ar eprovided by mooring compnany who had just the previous day, checked and replaced many lines. these lines snap as they are yacht braid.
so cal storms ar e not like back east by a long shot for cold, but we measured 4 times in 35-38 range for duration of 2 days each last year alone and one storm , my final one, with 90+kt winds after breaking those nice new lines. the only boat that broke away due to boat problems/failures in coronado moorings, and we lost 4 , was a lafitte 44--really pretty and shiny./ the cleats broke from the bow.
the only ugly mooring boats are in laurel street. you truly should start measuring your wind.
and there are no anchorages for duration longer than 3 months in sd anymore. that one is near the uscg.
now, as one who has lived in san diego bay ON BOARD for over 10 years, i can say there is NOT year round sailing in san diego . west florida, yes. so cal--no. there are 2 -3 months, depending on weather patterns, of non sailing weather. didnt find that when i was sailing in gulf of mexico. got cold in northern gulf, but ye go to caribean in dec-march anyway.
if you like HOT weather, we have had year round sailing ability here in mazatlan......

[Rakuflames]

Originally Posted by unbusted67

I have lived in San Diego through a couple of winters, I have never lived in Mission Bay, I have lived on the hook in the bay, I have never seen 90knot winds there. I have seen 40 knot winds there and it was about 50 degrees out and spitting rain. Not my idea of a fierce winter storm. The weather in San Diego is ridiculously mild compared to the Northeast where I have lived for about 30 years. That's all I have to compare it to. That's why we keep a boat out there year round untended to other than by the marina manager.

To say that boats broke free from moorings in the harbor is not saying a lot considering the condition of some of the boats and their moorings in the harbor. I don't know I guess weather is just all relative. If you looks at the references in any wikipedia article it can give you some idea of the authenticity and validity of that article just like in an academic paper.

We had a big thunderstorm here in April, but nothing that would make the national news. At the end of it, EIGHT boats were aground just in our small area. Throughout the region it was probably over 100. They weren't all neglected, but some were. I know for a fact that one owner had been told that his three-strand rode was down to one four days before the storm.

The others were just not adequately anchored. There are three boats out there with really well-built moorings, and they never drag or go aground.

Even if I had one of those moorings, I would worry about one of those other yahoo boats slamming into mine.

[unbusted67]

Originally Posted by zeehag

ewxcuse me, unbusted, but you know nothing opf the moorings and their conditions. the lines ar eprovided by mooring compnany who had just the previous day, checked and replaced many lines. these lines snap as they are yacht braid.
so cal storms ar e not like back east by a long shot for cold, but we measured 4 times in 35-38 range for duration of 2 days each last year alone and one storm , my final one, with 90+kt winds after breaking those nice new lines. the only boat that broke away due to boat problems/failures in coronado moorings, and we lost 4 , was a lafitte 44--really pretty and shiny./ the cleats broke from the bow.
the only ugly mooring boats are in laurel street. you truly should start measuring your wind.
and there are no anchorages for duration longer than 3 months in sd anymore. that one is near the uscg.
now, as one who has lived in san diego bay ON BOARD for over 10 years, i can say there is NOT year round sailing in san diego . west florida, yes. so cal--no. there are 2 -3 months, depending on weather patterns, of non sailing weather. didnt find that when i was sailing in gulf of mexico. got cold in northern gulf, but ye go to caribean in dec-march anyway.
if you like HOT weather, we have had year round sailing ability here in mazatlan......

I feel like you are getting mad, don't get mad. We are just talking about weather for God's sake. I certainly don't care about it enough to upset you. I wish you a very nice day in Mazatlan.

I know that Lafitte anchored under the bridge there, always looked like a slick boat. Too bad. Very sad. The moorings in America's Cup Harbor certainly aren't 3 month moorings. Neither are the ones in Rocky Road or whatever the heck you call it. I do think it is interesting that you say that those 2 to 3 months are non sailing months, indeed those are the months that my family and I move aboard from back East and start sailing in San Diego. We usually come out there in Early December, sail all winter, and leave in April. I was always amazed how it seemed like things were rainy and snotty there right up until New Years Day and then like clockwork it cleared up for early January.