The Great Australian Bight

[Rhubarbx3]

What is your opinion about sailing Florida to New Zealand via Indian Ocean departing November on a 31-foot Tashiba. The Panama Canal seems time consuming, a hassle and expensive, then doldrums. Pacific Islands are nice under normal circumstances, but more hassles with covid.
I am considering going the other way underneath Australia with stops in
Ascension Island, St Helena Island, Amsterdam Island and Tasmania.
What is your opinion? Thanks.

[grantmc]

Check eligibility carefully of all crew. Borders of both Australia and New Zealand are firmly closed and certainly wont be open this year. The Govts may give permission so you need to gain that first. And even for returning citizens, ports of entry for yachts are very limited. And of course the criterion rules might change at any time during the trip. Oh and leave your guns at home.

[RaymondR]

The old sailing ship route to Australia and New Zealand was from Europe or Britain across to the Brazilian coast, then to South Africa at Cape Town then down into the Roaring Forties for the crossing to Australia or New Zealand. This was also the route to the Dutch East Indies except they would turn north short of the Western Australian coast to sail up to Batavia.

[ChrisJHC]

Hmm, some basic high-level passage planning:

Florida to NZ via Panama Canal
Approx 7200 nm = 48 days @ 150 nm / day
Requires a few days plus (at a guess) a couple of thousand dollars to go through the Panama Canal.
Then you can pick a route and schedule that is relatively easy sailing.

Florida to NZ via the Cape of Good Hope
Approx 13000 nm = 87 days @ 150 nm / day
Takes at least 40 days more than Option 1 (which will more than consume the cost of going through the Panama Canal).
Then sailing through some of the gnarliest waters known!

If there are no other considerations, I would suggest it’s a pretty simple answer.

Note that the figures above need lots more work to be closer to the real values!

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by ChrisJHC

Hmm, some basic high-level passage planning:

Florida to NZ via Panama Canal
Approx 7200 nm = 48 days @ 150 nm / day
Requires a few days plus (at a guess) a couple of thousand dollars to go through the Panama Canal.
Then you can pick a route and schedule that is relatively easy sailing.

Florida to NZ via the Cape of Good Hope
Approx 13000 nm = 87 days @ 150 nm / day
Takes at least 40 days more than Option 1 (which will more than consume the cost of going through the Panama Canal).
Then sailing through some of the gnarliest waters known!

If there are no other considerations, I would suggest it’s a pretty simple answer.

Note that the figures above need lots more work to be closer to the real values!

Do note that the OP stipulates making the trip in a Toshiba 31. For such a vessel averaging 150 nm/day is way beyond belief. A more realistic number would be 100 nm/day, and that would not include any stops or slowdowns for repair, rest or other delays.

And for the OP... what has the Great Aussie Bight got to do with your proposed routing? And as of now, you would not be admitted here in Tasmania. The chances of that improving in the next year of so are pretty slim IMO. This is a terrible time to be planning long range cruising, for the plague is roaring and authorities change rules daily.

Sad but true.

Jim

[El Pinguino]

Ascension and St Helena are in the middle of the SE Trades and are normally stopovers for north bound yachts.
A handy chart was recently posted on another CF thread - see Post #10
https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...ml#post3467802
Be aware those are 'sailing ship' routes.

Essentially - when the world gets back to normal - it would be a trip with only two stops, Cape Town and an Australian port. I would opt for Fremantle and then through Bass Strait if it was me. Its what I did last time - Freo/Albany/Port Philip/Wellington - spread over nine years.

That way or the Pacific? Depends if you want some real seafaring or prefer to sit in the sun drinking drinks with little umbrellas in them.
That said Tonga/NZ is the hardest passage I have ever made. If I wanted to get from Tonga to NZ again I would be very tempted to go over the top of Australia and then approach NZ from the west.

[Rucksta]

Originally Posted by El Pinguino

That said Tonga/NZ is the hardest passage I have ever made. If I wanted to get from Tonga to NZ again I would be very tempted to go over the top of Australia and then approach NZ from the west.

What were the circumstances that made this a difficult passage?

The couple of times I've done Tonga- NZ (and one NZ-Tonga) the trip south was as easy as NZ-Fiji.

Plan was to stay east of the ridge then shape course for Opua once you have a weather window or a southerly shift doesn't mean beating to windward.

[El Pinguino]

Originally Posted by Rucksta

What were the circumstances that made this a difficult passage?

The couple of times I've done Tonga- NZ (and one NZ-Tonga) the trip south was as easy as NZ-Fiji.

Plan was to stay east of the ridge then shape course for Opua once you have a weather window or a southerly shift doesn't mean beating to windward.

A rather fresh breeze on the nose coupled with a heavy SWly swell, but like the curate's egg it wasn't all bad, just the bits I remember. The first bit was OK.

[HankOnthewater]

Like Jim in post #5, I was too expecting a question about the Australian Bight, but as I found out, it is about a trip from USA to NZ, going east or west.
I have not done either trip, but I guess the leg from cape town to West Australia will be the hardest. But if you do come here, drop in, and say helllo. But it can be done, a friend my mine did that in a Pretoria 30 (or was it 32 ft?)

And right now, and the next 12 months at least, I doubt if you can get permits to enter in Australia. And ending the same way Jim did: "Sad but true"

[ChrisJHC]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

Do note that the OP stipulates making the trip in a Toshiba 31. For such a vessel averaging 150 nm/day is way beyond belief. A more realistic number would be 100 nm/day, and that would not include any stops or slowdowns for repair, rest or other delays.

Good pickup. Makes the “long” route even more unworkable IMHO.

[El Pinguino]

Originally Posted by ChrisJHC

Good pickup. Makes the “long” route even more unworkable IMHO.

How so?
https://sailboat.guide/ta-shing/tashiba-31

[ChrisJHC]

Assuming 100 nm a day then going via the Cape of Good Hope would add at least 60 days compared to going via the Panama Canal.

The OP stated that the reason he was considering going the long way was to avoid traversing the Panama Canal.
Not sure that is worth the extra 60 days.

[El Pinguino]

Originally Posted by ChrisJHC

Assuming 100 nm a day then going via the Cape of Good Hope would add at least 60 days compared to going via the Panama Canal.

The OP stated that the reason he was considering going the long way was to avoid traversing the Panama Canal.
Not sure that is worth the extra 60 days.

Yes - but -
Once you allow for a month in the Marquesas, two months in Tonga and a fortnight in Fiji ..... it would be about the same.

Depends whether its about the voyage or - about the voyage.

I, me, and myself would - I think - go via Panama

[waterman46]

Originally Posted by ChrisJHC

Assuming 100 nm a day then going via the Cape of Good Hope would add at least 60 days compared to going via the Panama Canal.

The OP stated that the reason he was considering going the long way was to avoid traversing the Panama Canal.
Not sure that is worth the extra 60 days.

Wonder why OP didn't like Panama Canal and all the attractions of the tropical Pacific vs additional thousands of miles in cold stinko weather. We quite enjoyed our trip through the canal and thought it was a wonderful experience!

[BruceS]

Could the boat be transported by road to the West Coast & then sail the Pacific?
Yep down below is locked up tight as ............