LA to Anacortes

[rmatics]

I have a 42 foot Ocean Alexander and am told it would not be able to make the trip from Los Angeles to Anacortes.

Is there a boat this size that could?

I am maxed out at my dock so cant go larger.

 

[mvweebles]

I have a 42 foot Ocean Alexander and am told it would not be able to make the trip from Los Angeles to Anacortes.

Is there a boat this size that could?

I am maxed out at my dock so cant go larger.

Who told you that? I know a guy with a 1972 Willard 30 that went from Ventura CA to Olympia WA a couple years ago. He had to pick his weather, but was a good trip. He's a school teacher or something and changed jobs. Hardly a salty mariner type. Just a guy who owns a boat who wanted it in Washington State..

Peter

 

[Comodave]

It is said to be uphill. And it is to some extent, however you will just have to watch the weather and be absolutely willing to sit it out until the sea state will be favorable. It takes some patience. We were going downhill with a previous boat, a 46’. We had to leave the boat in Eureka for a month before we could get back to finish the trip. It is more costly and time consuming but if that is the boat for you then that is what you have to do. If you are willing to accept that then there isn’t any reason it can’t make the trip safely. However if you make a schedule and intend to maintain the schedule then IMO it cannot be done safely. We had to travel 5 guys home from Eureka back to So California and Arizona and then travel back to Eureka. It was costly and time consuming. But it was what was required. Number 1 thing is be safe. You can always stay in but if you are out you may not be able to get back in on the west coast.

 

[mvweebles]

If this boat is anything like this advertisement, and assuming it's in half decent condition, this boat can easily move up the coast (well, winter time can be dodgy, but still doable)

https://www.denisonyachtsales.com/y...t-Sedan-1995-Newport-Beach-California/7597806

If the OP does not have the comfort and experience to move the boat, that's one thing. I totally respect that. But the OP said the boat wasn't capable. Unless there is an issue with condition, totally not true. It's a long run but totally doable.

If the issue is experience and knowledge of the owner, find a decent delivery skipper. These boats are moved up the coast all the time.

Peter

 

[sunchaser]

Codger could weigh in on this since he just sold an OA 42. Personally I foresee no unusual issues taking a well found OA 42 north. Obviously suitable crew experience is relevant. Pick your weather, fuel stops and cruise at 18 or so knots. What engines?

 

[tiltrider1]

I can’t see any reason why an OA 42 couldn’t make the trip. Range is the only limitation but at 8kts. Range shouldn’t be an issue. I ran my OA 54 from LA to Seattle. Had to sit it out in Bodega bay for 3 days for weather. It might be a challenge to only run in the daylight but not much of an issue if you run around he clock.

 

[Portage_Bay]

I delivered an OA 42 San Diego to La Conner. Take your time, watch the weather and you'll be fine. If you're going this year you're late. Expect a lot of weather delays and getting your butt kicked at times. You won't like it but the boat is capable of the trip.

 

[woodsea]

We took our Bayliner 47 up the coast from SF Bay to Puget Sound in 2018. We did not have a hard schedule. Left SF August 16 and pulled into Anacortes September 8. We waited out weather in Ft Bragg for 4 days. Wish we would have waited 5! It was pretty rough rounding Cape Mendocino. Left Ft Bragg about 0500. Skipped Eureka because of bar conditions. Arrived Crescent City 1900. Very long day. 5-6 days later a friend of mine went around the cape going south and it was flat. Make sure your boat is in good shape. Make sure you check the weather constantly. Talk to the coast guard about bar conditions current and expected. I called every station we were going to prior to leaving each port. The coast guard was very helpful to me. They get a 5 star rating! Get an app like Windy or predict wind. Get a product like Navionics and use for tide predictions. You need to understand the bar conditions of where you are leaving from and where you will be entering. Tide plays a huge roll. Timing arrival and departure is important. Read about the techniques of how to cross a bar that will work for your boat. For our boat, I waited for a smaller wave pattern then worked the throttles to ride the back of the wave in. We really only had two bars that we had to do that on. It was exciting for sure to have whitewater on each breakwater while riding the wave but in the end it was no big deal. The rest were almost flat when we crossed. Layout your complete route and all possible stops. Calculate distances and times. We made port every night. I did not want to be out overnight unless we absolutely had to. Crab pots are one reason. There are other things out there as well. A gray whale passed across our bow about 30 yards away. It was awesome but I’m glad I saw it and pulled back on the throttles. If not, it would have been a very close call! We passed a couple of trees, big trees. Easily avoided but we could see them. I’ve probably forgotten a bunch but at least this gives you some ideas of what we did. Overall our trip was fantastic and I would highly recommend it with proper planning!

 

[rsn48]

Weather windows are far more important than boat size and type. And OA's are excellent coastal cruisers. You're hanging out with the wrong crowd.

 

[Flyguy1967]

This lady did it in her Albin 26 (Astoria, OR to Tacoma, WA)

The Adventures of Shatoosh and Pashmina: Proposed Route

 

[Alaskan Sea-Duction]

Weather windows are far more important than boat size and type. And OA's are excellent coastal cruisers. You're hanging out with the wrong crowd.

I agree. Making the trip up the coast should not be an issue. Weather windows are very important. You could "harbor" hop north of S.F.

I would not recommend the trip until summer. October and onward are dicey at best.

 

[bligh]

Really? I think fall is the best time to go north.. The relentless summer wind/swell has backed off and its before the winter storms.

I agree. Making the trip up the coast should not be an issue. Weather windows are very important. You could "harbor" hop north of S.F.

I would not recommend the trip until summer. October and onward are dicey at best.

 

[mvweebles]

I've made this trip dozens of times. Question becomes what's a weather window look like for a 1000 nm run? It looks like a rolling 2-3 day weather window and adapt along the way. For example, you could leave right now and make a straight run to San Francisco and put a helluva dent in the trip.

As Bligh suggests, somewhere mid/late September through mid/late October, a high pressure sets in over SoCal and lays-down weather along the lower/central coast for a few weeks. We're in the tail end of that pattern right now. From San Francisco, you might have to claw your way up to Ft Bragg to stage for Cape Mendocino, which you may be able to do mid-week next week.

When I was delivering, I usually took a 'beach route' and stayed very close to shore during windy periods. Would knock-down about half the junk and make otherwise shocking weather passable. Although they didn't start out planned non-stop, about half my trips ended up being non-stop runs - a lot of times I'd make the decision to endure a few hours of junk instead of getting stuck waiting for a major system to go through.

I'm not a fan of trying to day-trip up the coast. It's possible I suppose, but you spend a lot of time getting in/out of harbors which is often the trickiest part of the trip. Easier/faster to just keep going. And frankly, I enjoy long runs and don't mind passing-up towns.

I miss delivering. Was a great lifestyle while it lasted.

Peter

 

[Alaskan Sea-Duction]

Really? I think fall is the best time to go north.. The relentless summer wind/swell has backed off and its before the winter storms.

Well true but the weather windows are 2-3 days then spend a week or more for another 2-3 day window.

 

[sunchaser]

I've a friend who had his DeFever 60 delivered from San Pedro to Seattle. It was a pure delivery trip, no doodling. With full tanks, he departed fully anticipating a weather stoppage or two. A Pacific high just kept hanging on, no weather developed thus no stoppages until final berthing.

One approach, just as Weebles described, head North and plan sensible refuel stops but run as weather allows. Not to mention, delivery skipper costs are daily so very different than an owner doodling trip.

Long late spring or summer days also allow 14+ hours of daylight whereas days are getting shorter now that we're into Fall. My vessel was delivered, one stop, San Francisco to Seattle in August a few years ago.

 

[mvweebles]

Non-stop, it's a 5-8 day run depending on boat speed. There is no such thing as a 5-day weather window except for seasonal patterns such as the Sept/Oct high pressure system that sits over California and gives San Francisco it's only 3-weeks of true summer.

Deliveries are a bit of a chess-game with weather gambits. Of course you keep going when the weather is good, but often it's a judgement call. Very often, bad weather is short lived - 5-10 hours. Why not just muscle through it when you'll easily burn that much time diverting into port? For example, rhumbline past San Francisco is 25 nms from the GG Bridge which is 5-7 nms from a typical marina. In and out adds at least 45 nms plus the dwell time. At 8-kts, that's a lot of time.

 

[SR400DB]

I have made this trip in what many believe is a far less capable boat (Sea Ray 400DB) several times now. Each of my trips have been in October either going North or South. The timing was based on weather + sea conditions only.

In fact I am in Oregon now and this week would be very doable in many boats. That being said, things turn bad in a hurry. 2-3 day windows are absolutely the norm, but I have seen longer as on a few occasions. We also have always stayed fairly close to the beach. I know my boats range at various conditions and pay very close attention to the bar conditions / timing for fuel or refuge. I cannot believe a well found OA could not be successful with some planning and preparation (required for any vessel).

 

[Ted]

here are a couple of threads that might interest you

https://www.trawlerforum.com/forums/s28/west-coast-guide-book-anyone-29130.html

https://www.trawlerforum.com/forums/s3/going-up-down-west-coast-41330-3.html

 

[Portage_Bay]

I've made the coastal run north and south many times. I second mvweebles on not harbor hopping. It's much safer to keep chugging along than making almost daily hazardous bar crossings. The time it will take is as many have said dependent upon weather and vessel condition. In my experience as short as 7 days Anacortes to San Deigo and as long as 28 days San Diego to La Conner. Don't underestimate the need to properly prepare your boat. The 28 day delivery was mostly due to problems with the boat. Fuel contamination, charging system failure, Niad stabilizer failure, improperly installed new-ish engines. And a host of other small issues.



Watch those crab pots. When the fishery is active sometimes it's necessary to run out to 100 fathoms at night which is about 26 nm offshore.

 

[mvweebles]

Watch those crab pots. When the fishery is active sometimes it's necessary to run out to 100 fathoms at night which is about 26 nm offshore.

PB - it's been 16-years since I've delivered and made this trip. At the time there was a burgeoning 'crab trap free lane.' Turns out it was slightly mis-labeled. Yes, it's where the commercial tug/tow would run, but they didn't care if they ran over a trap, so it was really fair-warning to fishermen to avoid placing gear which they did anyway.

Were there any updates to trap-free zones?

Amazing the depths they fish in the Pacific.

Peter

 

[tiltrider1]

I see crab gear in anything less than 400’ deep. Once I get to 500’ deep I know I’m safe to run through the night.

 

[Portage_Bay]

The crab trap free lanes are useless. They're as full of pots as anywhere else.

PB - it's been 16-years since I've delivered and made this trip. At the time there was a burgeoning 'crab trap free lane.' Turns out it was slightly mis-labeled. Yes, it's where the commercial tug/tow would run, but they didn't care if they ran over a trap, so it was really fair-warning to fishermen to avoid placing gear which they did anyway.

Were there any updates to trap-free zones?

Amazing the depths they fish in the Pacific.

Peter

 

[Portage_Bay]

On recent deliveries I've seen thick deployment of pots out to the 100 fathom curve. It appears to be less about the depth. More about how steep the bottom is. On much of the coast at 100 fathoms the bottom drops away steeply. I hate snagging crab line so I run past the 100 fathom curve in darkness of bad visibility.

I see crab gear in anything less than 400’ deep. Once I get to 500’ deep I know I’m safe to run through the night.

 

[markpierce]

Sea conditions on the western coast are usually pleasant when there is fog.

 

[steelheder]

No issues in a OA 42. Did the run from LA to Tacoma in my Meridian 411 in May of 2019. Took us 8 days with a 2 night layover before taking on Cape Mendicino. Point Conception was smooth, Mendicino was bad and Cape Blanco was rough.
Talk to the CG, they were great. Windy App was instrumental as were real time buoy apps.
Plan your trip, make sure the boat is equipped and in tip top mechanical shape and go for it.

 

[RoseLoper48]

You can certainly make the trip. The real question is how long and at what expense. You may find it actually cheaper to truck the boat north to Olympia, Tacoma or Seattle than drive it. If you consider fuel, engine maintenance, cost of possible repairs, slip fees while waiting for weather, etc. you will discover the real cost of the trip. Then you can compare that to the cost of trucking your OA 42 north.

Rose Loper
KK42
Catharine

 

[Stonechamps]

On the other hand....

I have made the trip outside in my sailboat and it was an El Nino year...no wind in May going up, no wind in October coming back to SF...This year I decided to truck my 36ft boat from SF to Seattle....its about $4/mile at 55mph plus yard costs either end....my calculation was that it ended up being about a wash in terms of wear and tear, extra insurance, fuel, time used (unless you get lucky with conditions and can do a non stop run).

 

[mvweebles]

You may find it actually cheaper to truck the boat north to Olympia, Tacoma or Seattle than drive it. If you consider fuel, engine maintenance, cost of possible repairs, slip fees while waiting for weather, etc. you will discover the real cost of the trip. Then you can compare that to the cost of trucking your OA 42 north.

By all means, all owners who need a boat relocated should consider all options. As a general rule, if it fits into a box of 13'6" high x 12' wide, trucking is a strong option. Wider than that requires two pilot cars and severe limits on hours of travel, especially with a starting point of Los Angeles area. Taller than 13'6" means surgery and considerable expense and risk of damage. Add in yard fees at each end plus hotels/meals at whichever end is not home and you end up with considerable costs.

Peter

 

[Forever Friday]

Time and weather are key

We motored our American Tug 34 to LA Harbor from La Conner, WA in 2014, and had an absolutely fantastic trip. The key is to wait for a favorable weather window, in a largely favorable month. In our case, the middle of August. Make sure you are well versed in your boat's radar, as many encounter periods of fog. We had only a brief period of fog while rounding Cape Flannery, and then again a bit south of SF (Moss Landing area). Make sure you ask for & receive up to date bar conditions in northern CA through Washington...We had a blast.
M. Kelley
M/V Forever Friday
2008 American Tug 34
Currently lying Bellingham, WA

 

[Fletcher500]

I have made the trip outside in my sailboat and it was an El Nino year...no wind in May going up, no wind in October coming back to SF...This year I decided to truck my 36ft boat from SF to Seattle....its about $4/mile at 55mph plus yard costs either end....my calculation was that it ended up being about a wash in terms of wear and tear, extra insurance, fuel, time used (unless you get lucky with conditions and can do a non stop run).

Depending on how things go with Covid, I am considering running our boat up to the SF Bay Area/Delta in 2021 - a big TBD at this point. Trucking it up there is an option I am still weighing.

I have not asked for any quotes, but $4/mile seems very cheap to me. Would you mind telling us what the yard costs amounted to? Only asking so I can get a better handle on what people have paid to do this.