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Old 03-01-2013, 07:31 AM   #8
O C Diver
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City: Fort Myers, FL... Summers in the Great Lakes
Vessel Name: Slow Hand
Vessel Model: Cherubini Independence 45
Join Date: Dec 2010
Posts: 12,834
Quote:
Originally Posted by ksanders View Post

I would argue that almost any of our boats could safely, and comfortably travel the full coastline of north America, much of central America, and almost all of the carribbean.

Here's why...

Looking at the charts I find that there are safe harbors no more than 300NM apart, in pretty much this entire area. 300NM at 8 knots is 37 hours of cruising.

Weather forecasting is really good for two days in advance. That means that there is nowhere an 8 knot boat could not safely travel to in good weather.
I use to second captain 2 or 3 trips each July to the wreck of the Andrea Doria on the Seeker a 65' Harkers Island. The Doria is 101 miles SE of Montauk Long Island NY and around 80 south of Nantucket MA. On one trip back from the Doria to Montauk we drove back during the night into 20'+ seas out of the NW with in 80 miles of Montauk. Not exactly what the noon forecast of 10 to 15 knots out of the NE was predicting! Yes it was a rare freak storm, but the weather service didn't see it 8 hours before it started!

Then there was the time I got caught in 10 to 12' seas in my 42' steel boat going from Nags Head NC to Ocean city MD within 50 miles of land, again during the night on a 10 to 15 knot NE forecast.

The weather service is good most of the time 24 hours in advance, fair 48 hours out, and dreaming at 72 hours. Unfortunately, when they are wrong, good people get killed going places they shouldn't be going with the boats they have because they can't reach safe harbor fast enough!

If you go out on the Ocean often enough, sooner or later you are going to taking a pounding. Thankfully, you get to choose the boat, how far from safe harbor and whether or not to go. Choose wisely!

Ted
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