Crossing Uruguay to South Africa

[TikiRambler]

Hi. Soon I will be heading across from Uruguay to South Africa, considering skipping Cape Town and just going all the way round to Richards Bay. Is there anybody here who has done this? Any advice will be welcome. Cheers

[hellpants]

Hi there. Considering the latitudes and how difficult the sail could be, I’m wondering why you wouldn’t want to stop in Cape Town? Depending on the conditions and time of year, you could be facing some seriously unpleasant and unpredictable Indian Ocean. With seriously limited anchorage and ports in SA. You could be weeks before getting safely to Richards Bay. Since you are going to need to keep close to the cost as it is, I’d suggest Cape Town for provisions, checking in and a little sight seeing first.

[TikiRambler]

Hi there. The thinking was staying well offshore to miss the worst of the agulhas, almost like heading for Southern Madagascar, then cut back across the current to Richards Bay. Stopping in Cape Town would add weeks on to the trip just waiting waiting for weather windows to hop along the coast. Besides the time taken for clearing in and out of every South African port. Cape Town is an awesome stopover, and great sightseeing, however I have been to Cape Town many times.

[daletournier]

I think the weather will dictate whether you stop at Capetown or not, it's not often you get a window that will take you all the way to Richard's Bay.

The Weather on that coast should be taken very seriously , sail hide, sail hide.

[TikiRambler]

Thanks for your input Dale. In your opinion, staying way offshore (as if heading towards the South of Madagascar) is a bad idea?

[JohnT]

It depends when you want to do the trip. I prefer the counter-current close to the coast than the route you propose, which has just as many dangers as the coastal route.

[TikiRambler]

Hi John T. Thanks for your input. Within the next week I will go leave Uruguay and head to Southern Brazil. Will look at leaving from there and crossing towards the end of January. So Expected arrival close to Cape Town is late February. The big decider will be weather forecast as I get closer. If the weather is suitable I could try make PE or EL.
Cheers

[DefinitelyMe]

We did the easy way (east to west) earlier this year. I think you've got two options:

1) stay well offshore.
2) stay well inshore (like, 1-2nm off the coast) and use the counter-current.

Which is best depends on how much time you have available and what the weather is doing at the time. You're likely to get a gale at some point I think. Would you rather be well offshore for that or try to time it to make port somewhere?

[DefinitelyMe]

Originally Posted by TikiRambler

the time taken for clearing in and out of every South African port.

Based on our experience earlier this year:

Cape Town - Nightmare
Haut Bay - V. Easy
Simon's Town - V. Easy
Port Elizabeth - V. Easy
East London - quite easy
Durban - nightmare
Richard's Bay - Nightmare

[TikiRambler]

Yes.. Those are the 2 options... If I had to face a gale I would feel safer offshore with space to manoeuvre, run... Stream a drogue... Close inshore becomes a bit tricky if I am caught. However if I do the typical hop skip and jump between the fronts then the inshore option is better.

[TikiRambler]

Originally Posted by DefinitelyMe

Based on our experience earlier this year:

Cape Town - Nightmare
Haut Bay - V. Easy
Simon's Town - V. Easy
Port Elizabeth - V. Easy
East London - quite easy
Durban - nightmare
Richard's Bay - Nightmare

Thanks for that. Yes I understand the ports of entry (Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, East London, Durban, Rich Bay.) are difficult, and the others like Hout Bay, Gordons Bay, St Francis require almost no paperwork.

[DefinitelyMe]

Originally Posted by TikiRambler

Thanks for that. Yes I understand the ports of entry (Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, East London, Durban, Rich Bay.) are difficult, and the others like Hout Bay, Gordons Bay, St Francis require almost no paperwork.

We found East London and Port Elizabeth to be fine, but we only needed domestic clearance there. Port Elizabeth didn't require anuthing of us, and at East London they just wanted one form dropped off to an office on the other side of the harbour. By all accounts, Durban, Richards Bay and Cape town are the worst whether for domestic or international clearance.

If I were in your shoes I'd probably plan on the offshore option but modify that plan if something really nasty looms on the horizon.

[TikiRambler]

Originally Posted by DefinitelyMe

We found East London and Port Elizabeth to be fine, but we only needed domestic clearance there. Port Elizabeth didn't require anuthing of us, and at East London they just wanted one form dropped off to an office on the other side of the harbour. By all accounts, Durban, Richards Bay and Cape town are the worst whether for domestic or international clearance.

If I were in your shoes I'd probably plan on the offshore option but modify that plan if something really nasty looms on the horizon.

Its good to know PE and EL are easier. Yes I am leaning towards the offshore option. Thanks again

[Breaking Waves]

Originally Posted by TikiRambler

Its good to know PE and EL are easier. Yes I am leaning towards the offshore option. Thanks again

I done it “offshore”, but without any stop in s Africa at all .... Cape Horn direct to Perth. There is usually a nice East going current down around 38-40s, with nice warm water temps. It was breezy for a while, but pretty much as expected for 40s.

And we have also done it east bound in the normal way with the typical stops. Liked Knysna, but the rest were nothing special. The real magic is inland Drakensberg, game parks, etc - but you need some time for that.

It’s a bunch of extra miles to go south if in the end you want to stop at Durban or Richard’s.

[TikiRambler]

Originally Posted by Breaking Waves

I done it “offshore”, but without any stop in s Africa at all .... Cape Horn direct to Perth. There is usually a nice East going current down around 38-40s, with nice warm water temps. It was breezy for a while, but pretty much as expected for 40s.

And we have also done it east bound in the normal way with the typical stops. Liked Knysna, but the rest were nothing special. The real magic is inland Drakensberg, game parks, etc - but you need some time for that.

It’s a bunch of extra miles to go south if in the end you want to stop at Durban or Richard’s.

Yes it is extra miles, however I'm hoping its quicker time wise and less chance of getting caught close to the coast in the wrong weather. My plan is not to go all the way to Perth, after a few repairs and restocking in Richards Bay I will continue up to Tanzania, then across to Seychelles.