Is this true? Time under sail vs motor in Caribbean

[DefinitelyMe]

I think it depends hugely. Cats seem to motor more in my (unsubstantiated) opinion. We carry 40 gallons of diesel and it is plenty. The only times we'll motor for extended periods are, a) getting through a stationary convergence zone, b) in the lull between lows when transiting towards the equator in winter or, c) when the breeze dies suddenly and we're left in a calm but with a heavy sea. In that case we motor at about 3.5 knots, which is fast enough to get some water over the keel but burns about 1 litre/hour. Otherwise we motor in and out of port sometimes for a short period, or maybe between anchorages on the lee side of a high island. If there's not enough wind to sail then we heave-to or just take in all sail and wait. Distance covered under power is minimal. Time under power is about 3% based on log entries. We're not 'purists', we just don't often have a schedule to keep.

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by Fore and Aft

Your right Simi 60, there was a bunch of yacht's out in the Sandy Straits yesterday and none had a sail up.

...

When I worked as a charter captain in Belize, I often saw charter boats on perfect sailing days motoring with no sails up. So much so that I always made it point to sail. I often finished charters by coming back into the harbor under spinnaker, or at least under sail.

One day I was having a glorious sail back into Placencia with charter guests aboard. As we approached Placencia we could see about a dozen other sail boats underway. It was an absolutely perfect day and only one had sails up. As we got closer, I recognized the one other boat that was sailing...its was a buddy of mine on his little Wharram Tiki rolling along faster than the motoring boats.

It wasnt that the boats would not sail well, it was that the charter guests were usually inexperienced and they were in the complex waters of Belize...so, motoring was less stress inducing.

Its popular sport to bash charter catamarans, but realistically they sail acceptably well for a cruising boat. Ive sailed many miles on Lagoons, Leopards, Voyages, etc. They are not performance boats, but for most charter/cruising type sailing are just fine. The real reason they sail less is usually who is sailing them.

Again, it depends on a lot of factors. In this case the factor was who was skippering the boat. I would often run those exact same boats on charter and sail them.

[Joli]

From November last year till June this year we sailed about 5100 nautical miles. We motored about 200 hours so about 1200 miles of the 5100 miles or 80% sailing, 20% motoring. We love to sail but if we have to motor we do it, especially when there is a schedule.

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by LifeUnderway

... This is from the Bumfuzzle blog, and for context they have lived aboard a cat, a monohull, and now a trawler ...

Wow!
I don’t recall previously having heard the Bumfuzzles quoted as experts, on anything cruising/sailing [except, perhaps, where to get the best pizza, and the like].
Thanks for the chuckle.

[valhalla360]

In the Caribbean: Charter vs Owner would likely make a difference.
- If you just dropped $10k on a week charter, dropping another $200 for fuel for the week is nothing. The goal is the next beach bar.
- Owners cruising long term, particularly on lower end boats, $100/wk for fuel would be a big part of the budget. They have plenty of time to mess around making 2-3kts towards their destination.

Keep in mind, the 90% rule is about what is observed. Individual anecdotes don't change that.

As far as why: Sailboat hulls are very efficient. When we did the Great Loop, we switched from a fly bridge power boat that got 1.5MPG to a sail catamaran that got 6.0MPG. While we would sail when conditions were conducive, we weren't going to turn a 4hr run into a 10hr run to save 3-4 gallons of fuel.

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

Boat = Tool.
Gets you from A to B.

Stick with your trawler, you are not a sailor.

Originally Posted by valhalla360

...While we would sail when conditions were conducive, we weren't going to turn a 4hr run into a 10hr run to save 3-4 gallons of fuel.

We don't sail to save money, we sail because we love sailing.

Originally Posted by seandepagnier

...
I never used an engine and went to all these places mentioned and many more

I notice you gave up cruising and don't have that boat anymore and you've put a motor on your tri.

[valhalla360]

Originally Posted by wingssail

We don't sail to save money, we sail because we love sailing.

Based on observation, you are the outlier among long distance coastal cruisers.

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by valhalla360

Based on observation, you are the outlier among long distance coastal cruisers.

Yes, I agree with that and I think it is sad that so many people don't have that joy (or just don't have the energy to get off their butts and do it.)

[valhalla360]

Originally Posted by wingssail

Yes, I agree with that and I think it is sad that so many people don't have that joy (or just don't have the energy to get off their butts and do it.)

What is "sad" about it? They just have a different "joy".

If we are just going out for a couple hour day cruise, we will usually sail but then we can pick a direction based on wind conditions.

When we are traveling to a new destination, we get joy out of seeing new places and we enjoy the challenges of navigating narrow waterways. As an engineer, I find locks and lift bridges fascinating.

[nextis12]

I’ll go with 70% - 80% motor. As a condo cat owner upwind is almost always under motor and downwind if I can’t sail better then 5kn then its the iron sail.

I see it as the best of both worlds, the motor gives you the ability to get to A-B and back in time for the job,add in a nice downwind sail and it’s a great weekend.

[crewtv]

Originally Posted by C420sailor

Can’t speak to the Carib, but I’d say the 90/10 rule applies to me.

There just isn’t good wind where I sail. Many days, it’s like a sheet of glass.

I’m turbo sailing in the north Baltic as I write this. Sometimes you want to get to a Harbour at a decent time.

[Motorsailer4me]

We have a motorsailer so we are 60% motor and 60% sail lol.

[zstine]

90/10 No Way!! Especially in the Caribbean!

This came up in a thread a year or 2 ago and I actually went to my log book for the 15 months we lived on the boat cruising and I compared engine hours to hours sailed. I don't remember the exact number but it was over 80% sailing and under 20% motoring. In the Caribbean the trades are almost always blowing and 25 - 30 knots is great sailing winds! The problem we saw is there are a lot of non-sailors who own sailboats and they wait for light wind to go on passage. Then they motor. They live on sailboats, but are not sailors who live on a boat... FWIW we only took on ~200 gal of diesel in our 15 months cruising and went ~8,000 miles.


I also consider running the engine in fog or at night a hazard... Yes I will do it, but I'm much more likely to sail in fog or at night so I can hear other traffic and not rely on visual navigation when visibility is bad.

[canman]

We completed the ICW from Annapolis to Florida and back on just 55 gallons as we sailed 65% of the time. Took us five weeks down and six weeks back and we only moved when the winds were favorable. First time we ever took a trip with no schedule and no destination! It’s the way to go.

[zstine]

Originally Posted by boatpoker

Not much interested in A or B but I do love the space inbetween.

YES!! We even sail from point A to point A sometimes!