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Old 31-08-2019, 15:14   #1
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Sailing a 32’ Hunter Vision from Seattle to San Fran and more!

Hi! My husband and I and our best friend are a group of adventurous 20 somethings that all just quit our jobs, bought a 1989 Hunter Vision 32, and plan on sailing down the West coast to Chilé. None of us have any prior sailing experience, but have been living aboard and practicing sailing all around the Puget Sound, Straits of Juan de Fuca, and the San Juans since July. We are planning to make the big left turn out of the Strait on September 16th ish (in 2 weeks).

We’ve heard the trek from Neah Bay to San Fransisco is the worst, so we are planning on harbor hopping and waiting for good weather windows.

Any advice on harbor hopping from Neah to San Fran, input on leaving mid September, and any useful info at all would be greatly appreciated!
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Old 01-09-2019, 00:23   #2
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Re: Sailing a 32’ Hunter Vision from Seattle to San Fran and more!

Well. that's a pretty ambitious plan for a crew with only a month's experience in sailing and with a middle aged boat.

All I can say is that I wish you a safe journey and a successful ascent of the learning curve.

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Old 01-09-2019, 05:33   #3
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Re: Sailing a 32’ Hunter Vision from Seattle to San Fran and more!

Welcome to the forum! Your plan is a great adventure.
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Old 01-09-2019, 05:49   #4
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Re: Sailing a 32’ Hunter Vision from Seattle to San Fran and more!

The early you leave the better, provided it is a good weather window. As you approach Oct you have much more chance for tough weather. This can get even worse when yoh have to layup in harbor for repairs and then wait for another window.

Be very cautous of the bar entries. You can call the CG running down WA and OR coast and ask for current bar conditions and they will update you. Don't ask directly if it is safe to cross, that is your decision.

The Capes in S. Or and Cape Mendicino in Cal are where you are most likely to get serious conditions. On my 4 trips down we've had benign conditions on most of the capes, but one caoe on each trip has presented tough seas and high winds.

Good luck
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Old 01-09-2019, 09:10   #5
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Re: Sailing a 32’ Hunter Vision from Seattle to San Fran and more!

OK, here comes the tough love:
Number 1: learn to sail, everybody on that boat should have some basic ASA certifications at the very minimum. The first leg of your journey down the West Coast can be a very difficult one depending on weather and is not recommended for rookies .
Number two: go through your boat with a fine tooth comb, consult a riggerAnd have him check every aspect of your rig including chain plates. Make sure your engine including all hoses/impellers/thermostats/heat exchangers/props and shafts are in perfect condition. Check and exercise all through hullsAnd make sure they are strong and do not leak, check all hose connections, check your switch panel for corrosion and on and on.
Number three: See number one, and add to that harnesses/tethers/ Jack lines/Man Overboard drills/AIS/MOb's and so much more.

While you 20 somethings may perceive this as a coastal cruise, it is not. Depending on weather you may be forced to go hundreds of miles offshore to avoid strong winds and see state.
Hunters, especially older ones are coastal cruisers at best , Lightly/poorly built and with many vulnerabilities.

While I admire your passion and your dream , I would hate to see a bunch of enthusiastic young kids perish in a heartbeat due to inexperience and Poor preparation. Please be careful, and be smart. Wishing you Fairwinds and flat seas, as well as the best of luck.
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Old 01-09-2019, 09:13   #6
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Re: Sailing a 32’ Hunter Vision from Seattle to San Fran and more!

Sounds pretty adventurous!

We would like to do that one day - and ran across this book, Cruising the Northwest Coast, which we picked up, from a link on CF. It is written by a person named George Benson and covers the west coast in short hops in a small vessel; stopping at many places that most folks would not normally do. The excerpt from his web page is below:

The preface for this book is quite simple. Traditionally, the majority of cruisers that made the trip along the north coast make about four stops between San Francisco and the Strait of Juan de Fuca, at the four major harbors of Humboldt Bay, Coos Bay, Yaquina Bay, and Grays Harbor.

They shape rhumb-line courses well off shore outside of the headlands, and know nothing of the spectacular scenery and cruising grounds they pass by. The only cruising guide of the north coast I was able to find at the time I planned my cruise reflected this tendency.

My pre-cruise research revealed that there were so many places to stop along this coast that the short handed cruiser need not make any leg between stops longer than about 70 miles, in fact the majority of the legs are only 20 to 40 miles.

During my 48-day cruise to the Pacific Northwest I made 21 stops for one or more nights, and 16 exploration visits to various coves, landings and anchorages. Visiting all those marvelous places motivated me to write this book.

The objective of this book is to aid the reader in planning and making a pleasant near-shore cruise along the northwest coast.


I have not read all of it yet - but looks to be a great resource. Here is a link to his web page (and I do not even know if he is still alive) where the book is available from his daughter located in Oregon. We received ours in just a couple of days.

http://georgebenson.us/sailing/

Good luck!
Ron
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Old 01-09-2019, 09:13   #7
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Re: Sailing a 32’ Hunter Vision from Seattle to San Fran and more!

At that time of year the weather should be very cooperative. With the high in place, winds should be steady out of the NW and bad weather very rare. Might think about making the sail to SF a straight shot and get it over with quickly while there is a good chance of fair weather. Then again if you want the experience of going into new ports have at it. Just be aware that the later in the fall it gets, the chances of uninterrupted good weather drops drastically. If you elect to go in one jump, angle off to get 50 mile or so offshore to avoid bad conditions from the Capes and stay clear of coastal ship traffic. When entering the Gate, stay in the ship channel. The areas close to the north and south of ship channel are treacherous and could sink your boat with breaking waves seemingly out of nowhere, btdt.

Practice your bad weather sailing techniques. Have the reefing drill down pat and practice often. If you are planning on dragging drogues or whatever in survival conditions practice deploying and retrieving it and look for wear points on the line and how you are going to install chafing gear at them. You don't need to spend a lot of money on this gear. A couple hundred feet of 1/2"-5/8" 3 strand nylon and a couple of junk tires will do.

Sounds like a grand adventure. And yes, get and read George's book.
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Old 01-09-2019, 09:20   #8
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Re: Sailing a 32’ Hunter Vision from Seattle to San Fran and more!

I have to agree with all that have been said by the previous replies, particularly from Jim Cate. Besides keeping a close eye on the weather, having exponential growth in your learning curve will contribute to your success. The admonition from Paul L is particularly cogent, regarding checking in with the USCG on bar conditions for each of the potential harbors down the coast. His reminder not to ask the Coasties if it's safe to cross; as with the entire voyage, that is the sole responsibility of the skipper of the vessel to evaluate all safety considerations for his/her vessel and crew. All of us who cruised by sail make mistakes, regardless of breadth of experience. You'll also have an opportunity to learn from your mistakes. It's worth the exercise, when conditions allow, review these opportunities to understand what happened and how it could have be anticipated and mitigated. Chances are, none will be of a life threatening nature and you'll enjoy an adventure with stories to share. Good luck and check back to share your experiences when you get to San Francisco.
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Old 01-09-2019, 09:33   #9
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Re: Sailing a 32’ Hunter Vision from Seattle to San Fran and more!

In 2014/5 I sailed down the Pacific coast from Glacier Bay, Alaska, to and through the Panama Canal, just the wife and I.
Best book for the Neah Bay to Ensenada passages is the guide, Exploring the Pacific Coast, by Don Douglass and Reanne Hemingway Douglass.
We left Neah Bay Sept 25 and had brisk winds in the 20knots to 30 knots range. The forecast Northwesterlies were late coming in and we tacked offshore for the first 8 hours, almost due west and then sailed direct to Drake Bay just outside of San Francisco to wait for favourable tide conditions to enter SF Bay.
A friend who sailed the inshore route, leaving Neah Bay the following day from us, made several stops and experienced a wider range of winds and waves, both higher and lower than we did.

The above guide gives several options for making the the passages. We took the 'outside of the fishing activity and barge traffic' route, about 75 miles offshore and sailed direct.
They also describe a port to port day sailing option.

The dominant NW wind makes for steep waves, but with reefed sail are manageable.

We took the offshore and direct route as we did not want to continuously be going in and out of harbours with dicey bars and we had a good passage.
No matter which route you take, there will be steep waves and the boat will roll around. Be sure your fuel tanks are clean and carry extra fuel filters and know how to bleed the diesel while underway.

Older boats tend to have a build up of sediment and possibly algae in the tanks and, the first time you are in rough seas, that mixes with the fuel in the tank will clog the filters and the engine will die. That can be dangerous when crossing bars and relying on the engine.
I had a boat that had tank sediment problems and took an outboard engine gas tank with clean diesel fuel in it and the hose set up to bypass the filter ready to switch out from the main tank. The squeeze bulb on the outboard tank hose is a good aid to bleeding the engine. It saved some drama from time to time until I removed the tank and cleaned it thoroughly.
You can get the fuel pumped and cleaned, but there is likely to be a lot of stuff still clinging to the sides and bottom of the tank.
I have also sailed the Chilean waters, coming from the Atlantic side and through the Beagle Channel to the Pacific and back around Cape Horn, it is a unique and challenging cruising area, but well worth it.
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Old 01-09-2019, 09:34   #10
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Re: Sailing a 32’ Hunter Vision from Seattle to San Fran and more!

I used George's narrative for my trip UP the coast in 2016.


I've posted our log (with charts & photos) here:

Travels with Aquavite: San Francsico Bay to British Columbia 2016

Photos are under each of the months' tabs, click on the month to expand to see the photo listings


Quote:
Originally Posted by Smokeys Kitchen View Post
Sounds pretty adventurous!

We would like to do that one day - and ran across this book, Cruising the Northwest Coast, which we picked up, from a link on CF. It is written by a person named George Benson and covers the west coast in short hops in a small vessel; stopping at many places that most folks would not normally do. The excerpt from his web page is below:

The preface for this book is quite simple. Traditionally, the majority of cruisers that made the trip along the north coast make about four stops between San Francisco and the Strait of Juan de Fuca, at the four major harbors of Humboldt Bay, Coos Bay, Yaquina Bay, and Grays Harbor.

They shape rhumb-line courses well off shore outside of the headlands, and know nothing of the spectacular scenery and cruising grounds they pass by. The only cruising guide of the north coast I was able to find at the time I planned my cruise reflected this tendency.

My pre-cruise research revealed that there were so many places to stop along this coast that the short handed cruiser need not make any leg between stops longer than about 70 miles, in fact the majority of the legs are only 20 to 40 miles.

During my 48-day cruise to the Pacific Northwest I made 21 stops for one or more nights, and 16 exploration visits to various coves, landings and anchorages. Visiting all those marvelous places motivated me to write this book.

The objective of this book is to aid the reader in planning and making a pleasant near-shore cruise along the northwest coast.


I have not read all of it yet - but looks to be a great resource. Here is a link to his web page (and I do not even know if he is still alive) where the book is available from his daughter located in Oregon. We received ours in just a couple of days.

http://georgebenson.us/sailing/

Good luck!
Ron
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Old 01-09-2019, 09:37   #11
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Re: Sailing a 32’ Hunter Vision from Seattle to San Fran and more!

Great plan! Good for you young’ins! I would recommend you subscribe to as many YouTube sailing blogs and channels you can and learn from those who have done what your going to do! Even a few boat maintenance channels too! Stuff happens and you have to be prepared! Boat Galley is another one that just came to mind. This couple has been sailing for years and years and have put together a pretty good website and blog to help us all out here! I’m a Power/Fishing guy and I learn so much from these blogs and channels. Also forums just like this one! I’ve gotten great advice! Just ignore the occasional sarcasm that take place sometimes! Safe sailing and God bless you kids!
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Old 01-09-2019, 09:54   #12
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Re: Sailing a 32’ Hunter Vision from Seattle to San Fran and more!

Read all the replies, there is something in each that will offer you information. You don't want a FNKM diary of entries. When we did the trip we planned on sailing. Ran out of diesel at Yaquinna Head, so had to go into Newport Oregon, but couldn't get in because of the fog. Flat seas and fog. Rescued an empty liferaft the morning after a storm after leaving Newport, took it into San Francisco for the CG to recover for the family. Someone should have First Aid. By the way FNKM is for Freakin Near Killed Myself, you don't want that. Have fun, it will become part of a life memory. Oh yeah, don't carry a calendar, it will be useless.
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Old 01-09-2019, 10:13   #13
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Re: Sailing a 32’ Hunter Vision from Seattle to San Fran and more!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Greg Mason View Post
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Oh yeah, don't carry a calendar, it will be useless.



I just came back from two weeks on the boat in the San Juan and Gulf Islands.


Calendars ARE necessary for determining the tide heights for anchoring and flood & ebbs for entering and leaving bars.


Unless it's Endless Summer you're after...
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Old 01-09-2019, 10:38   #14
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Re: Sailing a 32’ Hunter Vision from Seattle to San Fran and more!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Glassdog View Post
OK, here comes the tough love:
Number 1: learn to sail, everybody on that boat should have some basic ASA certifications at the very minimum. The first leg of your journey down the West Coast can be a very difficult one depending on weather and is not recommended for rookies .
Number two: go through your boat with a fine tooth comb, consult a riggerAnd have him check every aspect of your rig including chain plates. Make sure your engine including all hoses/impellers/thermostats/heat exchangers/props and shafts are in perfect condition. Check and exercise all through hullsAnd make sure they are strong and do not leak, check all hose connections, check your switch panel for corrosion and on and on.
Number three: See number one, and add to that harnesses/tethers/ Jack lines/Man Overboard drills/AIS/MOb's and so much more.

While you 20 somethings may perceive this as a coastal cruise, it is not. Depending on weather you may be forced to go hundreds of miles offshore to avoid strong winds and see state.
Hunters, especially older ones are coastal cruisers at best , Lightly/poorly built and with many vulnerabilities.

While I admire your passion and your dream , I would hate to see a bunch of enthusiastic young kids perish in a heartbeat due to inexperience and Poor preparation. Please be careful, and be smart. Wishing you Fairwinds and flat seas, as well as the best of luck.
Thanks for the tough love! It is much appreciated, but didn’t shake our confidence.
Number 1: We have been taking every sailing online course, reading every book, and sailing all day every day learning everything we can. I have some ASA certificates as well.
Number 2: we’re all over that! We’ve been doing tons of engine work making sure it’s tip top shape, and getting probably more than enough spare parts for all of the things. The Hunter Vision is a free standing mast so we don’t have any rigging to check, which is nice.
Number 3: we just got our jackline, harnesses and AIS this week! We bought an old radar system from a guy and during our bench test today found out it doesn’t work. Do you have any recommendations on an adequate radar system that’s on the cheaper side?

We don’t have any solid timeline that we are depending on, so harbor hopping and waiting out safe weather windows for any amount of time won’t be a problem, so hopefully we can keep the Hunter as a coastal cruiser. If it doesn’t look safe, we just won’t go.

We also would love it if we didn’t perish! So thank you so much for the advice, and if you have any more things we should be thinking of please don’t hesitate to let us know.
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Old 01-09-2019, 10:56   #15
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Re: Sailing a 32’ Hunter Vision from Seattle to San Fran and more!

Oh, my :-)! Going down the West Coast ain't like buying a Ram 350 and blowing it down IS5!

Have you made a voyage plan? D'ye know how far you can go in 24 hours in a 27ft LWL boat? D'ye know how long it'll take you to get from Port Townsend to Neah Bay? This ayem the wind is a mere 5 knots out there, but it's straight down the throat of Juan deF. So therefore, as if by magic, the 75 NM from PT to Neah becomes 150NM!! Even in a Hunter 32, which is not really a cruising boat but a glorified racing dinghy. So right there's a nice gentle 30 hour sail for you.

But Juan deF can blow up to 30 knots quite suddenly. Again, straight down the throat. Is your boat set up to handle 30 knots of wind? Are you? Boats that have spent their lives in the Salish Sea - call it Elliott Bay and Puget Sound - generally are not.

Once you're round the Swiftsure - count another day from Neah Bay - you'll be beating into the wind all the way to Cape Blanco. The rhumb line is 325 NM so by the time you've finished, you'll have done over 600 NM THROUGH THE WATER. At 6 knots, max! This morning it's benign out there, only about 15 knots from the south, but in a Hunter 32, in 15 knots of wind in the open ocean, you should IMO be down to a 60% headsail (heavy cloth) and a double reefed main. Conservative I know, but by your own admission you are raw greenhorns. And you certainly shouldn't venture on the foredeck, so maybe that's all the rags you should wear coming out of Neah!

As for "harbour hopping": Are you aware that professional mariners wet their nickers when they have to cross the bar and then "hit the hole" going into places like Newport Beach OR, let alone Depoe Bay? The difference between the "professionals", including many "old hands" in this forum, and the newbies is that the sea dogs can keep their wits about them and work affectively AFTER they've filled their knickers! Can you?

Here's what I'm talking about:



Bear In mind that this lad has a 870 HP to get him, and keep him, outta trouble. You have something like 25 or 30. This lad has the maneuverability of twin screws. You don't. This lad can do five and twenty knots. You can do six. On FLAT water. You can do the square root of squat in breakers.

Wishing you all the best, I'd like to suggest that you revise your plans and start your cruising career by spending a year or two circumnavigating Bainbridge Island. For that matter, come on up and spend a year in the Broughtons. We'll be glad to have you, and you'll learn a lot. In safety :-)!

Give me a shout as you come up Stuart Channel and I'll stand you a yard of ale. Each :-). And we can have a chin-wag

All the best

TrentePieds
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