It’s Showtime

You can eat tuna out of the can, sans mayo, trust me in that.
Spices help though, like Texas Pete or pepper sauce.

ksanders said:

I do not have a problem with two people onboard, sharing the duties.

In open water at 7 knots I also have no problem with leaving the helm and getting a drink, or something from the fridge, or a pee break.

Not much happens all that quickly at 7 knots. And in the dark you cant see anyway.

On long passages, you need to do something to pass the time. Reading a book, watching a movie, or even surfing TF is just fine as long as you're maintaining a good level of situational awareness

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Agreed. At night, you can't see a darn thing anyway, so you rely on electronic eyes that can awake you with an alarm. We hit a whale in the Pacific at night and at the time I was staring out into the waves and saw absolutely nothing so I might as well have been taking a nap. During the day, depending on wave conditions, you will see some things with a diligent watch, but it always seemed to me that the main purpose of a watch was to respond to electronic sightings, which are few and far between on many routes.

I'm not saying that single or double handing ocean crossings conforms to best practices, but as a practical matter the increase in the margin of safety at least from a watch standpoint isn't that much different with a crew of 4 vs. a crew of 2 assuming the boat is taking advantage of the wealth of gizmos available from AIS to radar. Fall down the companionway ladder and break your leg....well under those conditions the more the merrier and hopefully one of them is a doctor....

ianonhercules said:

I have been following this thread with interest. My wife and I did a similar trip across the Pacific. True, it was on a sailboat but still some things do translate. I wonder why they can't just heave-to under A/P and head into the wind and waves until the weather ameliorates, thus holding position and not running the risk of missing their destination. They might get a little respite from the watch and watch they must be keeping. There's nothing magical about the schedule of 13 days, other than a self-imposed goal. I also wonder if they have the fuel for an alternative destination.

Ian

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Ian, I'm like you, coming from a sailing background and it seems the idea of heaving to is pretty alien to most trawler folks. Plus the hull forms and windage distribution means most trawlers couldn't heave to even if they wanted to, so a para anchor on a bridle would be needed to hold position. That said, without any question, we'll carry a para anchor on Delfin when we head out simply because the luxury of just 'pulling off the highway' and taking 24 hours to rest and recharge is worth the effort of learning how to manage the process.

Back to the weather forecast. To those who can read wx charts & understand forecasts....how does the rest of the trip look?

HeyJude said:

What equipment would Richard need to have access to above links or same data via shortwave?

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A Pactor II/III/III radio modem will work when connected to a SSB or Ham radio. We have used Pactor modems since 2000 and have email/weather information access all over the world. You can receive up to 8698 bpm, request weather charts & information on demand via SailMail or Winlink networks, receive NAVTEX weather and marine hazard transmissions and receive Weather FAX transmissions directly. A modem is expensive. A Pactor II is ~$1400 and a IV is ~$1800. For Ham operators, data and usage is free with pretty much unlimited data. For SSB use, you pay around $250/year and you have data limits but can conduct business which you can't on Ham.

SCSmail 2.0 —

HeyJude said:

Back to the weather forecast. To those who can read wx charts & understand forecasts....how does the rest of the trip look?

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I'm using passageweather. Right now he is between the detailed charts, so have to extrapolate from them and also use the whole n atl chart.

He's in heavy seas from the west now, that should diminish come tues and wed. Then on thurs when he should be nearing Ireland, a bad low is coming in, which looks worse than what he is in now. If he can make port before thurs, that would be good.

Hopefully seas on the stern are giving him some surfing, and making good time.

Here's the forecast via Buoy Weather for today at 48N/15.5W which is real close to Richards last posted position.

Tuesday 8/26
Morning 
Breezy whitecapping conditions with moderate choppy seas. Large short period wind waves.
Seas: W 3.1 to 4.1 meters at 9 seconds.
Winds: WNW 12 to 16 knots.


Afternoon 
Light winds with a slight chop. Moderate short period wind waves.
Seas: W 2.8 to 3.6 meters at 9 seconds.
Winds: W 7 to 10 knots.







It looks like Richards is 3-4 days from Ireland. He should reach port well before the Cristobal. He said he was bearing more to the east than he would like due to the waves which he reported at 10 feet. I assume the wind is affecting his course as well.

Yesterday's wave height forecast off the south of Ireland has drastically changed for the better. It might be because of the gap between current and 48 hour coverage. Sailing Weather - Marine Weather Forecasts for Sailors and Adventurers - PassageWeather wave predicted wave height is showing 3 meters where as yesterdays 48 hour wave forecast had 3, 4, 5 meters in the same area. There is a time gap here so maybe tomorrow the NOAA forecast will appear.

The low that is moving from from the ESE of the tip of Ireland to the tip of England in the next 24 hours. This is the big low that is in Richards way but it should move to the E before he gets close. However, it might put more wind on his bow.

There is another low moving in from the west over the next 24 hours which should behind Richard. The low on Tuesday should be to the WSW of Dauntless and maybe ESE on Wednesday. If the low does go ESE then Dauntless is likely to be running into the wind for a day or so. NOAA say the low will go ESE which is what I think it will do due the 500MB chart Bet on NOAA not me.

However, the UK Met has the low turning north to follow Richard into Ireland.

There is another low at the tip of Greenland that NOAA says will be over Ireland in four days. UK Met has the same low staying in place. Go figure. This low needs to be watched even though the NOAA current surface chart has the low moving NNE in the next 24 hours.

Two reputable organizations with different forecasts. Which to believe?

Remember, Richard does not care to see the 48 and 96 hour charts. He only wants to see current and 24 but 24 does not cover his position. He has been using the current which does show the movement of highs and lows over the next 24 hours.

Later,
Dan

Rambler said:

You can eat tuna out of the can, sans mayo, trust me in that.
Spices help though, like Texas Pete or pepper sauce.

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Yeah, Texas Pete helps plain old tuna!

But Texas Pete is NOT from New York City so I bet Richard has a different hot sauce!

Just mentioned this to Richard but he had sent out a text about a 30 degree roll! So he might want to hold off the tuna for now.

Later,
Dan

Is there a reason he doesn't want to see more than 24hrs out?

Delfin said:

Ian, I'm like you, coming from a sailing background and it seems the idea of heaving to is pretty alien to most trawler folks. Plus the hull forms and windage distribution means most trawlers couldn't heave to even if they wanted to, so a para anchor on a bridle would be needed to hold position. That said, without any question, we'll carry a para anchor on Delfin when we head out simply because the luxury of just 'pulling off the highway' and taking 24 hours to rest and recharge is worth the effort of learning how to manage the process.

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I don't know if the trawler we want can heave too but I suspect it can depending on the sail plan. I need to ask some of the owners to see if they have tried...

I have no idea if a KK42 can heave too but right now Richard would have issues if he could stop. He has two lows arriving in Ireland this week and another one pushing up behind him. If he stops, the low behind him will catch him. He needs to move SLOW enough to avoid the first low to hit Ireland but fast enough to avoid the low moving up behind him AND fast enough to get to port before the second low hits Ireland.

On the 48 & 96 hour wave forecasts the low moving behind Richard is going to have 3 to 4 meter waves moving from the SSW to Ireland. He needs to get to port, not to fast, not to slow, but Goldilock Speed.

Later,
Dan

dannc said:

I don't know if the trawler we want can heave too but I suspect it can depending on the sail plan. I need to ask some of the owners to see if they have tried...

I have no idea if a KK42 can heave too but right now Richard would have issues if he could stop. He has two lows arriving in Ireland this week and another one pushing up behind him. If he stops, the low behind him will catch him. He needs to move SLOW enough to avoid the first low to hit Ireland but fast enough to avoid the low moving up behind him AND fast enough to get to port before the second low hits Ireland.

On the 48 & 96 hour wave forecasts the low moving behind Richard is going to have 3 to 4 meter waves moving from the SSW to Ireland. He needs to get to port, not to fast, not to slow, but Goldilock Speed.

Later,
Dan

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With a paravane on a 'Pardey' bridal, you could bring a barge into a hove to state if there is a bit of wind, or so I believe. Just has to be sized for the boat.

Yes, I hope Dauntless can ride what sounds like a benign middle between two fronts. Much more comfortable, especially as a single hander.

With apologies for the food diversion...

bluebyu said:

It's bad enough that I finished my last pecan pie AND I have 20 cans of tuna fish, but NO mayonnaise.

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I've made tuna-fish with ranch dressing instead of mayo. And on a long spell away from a store used some hot and sweet mustard. Definitely the ranch was preferred, but every condiment is an option.

For the past year or so I've added lentil sprouts to my tuna too. The sprouts offer a bit of texture. Ditto boat-grown scallions.

P.S. - Foil packages are the best for tuna. The StarKist brand has some with seasoning that are amazing. Lemon Pepper is my favorite.

psneeld said:

Is there a reason he doesn't want to see more than 24hrs out?

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Lack of accuracy.

Predicted front locations can be off by a couple hundred miles which we have seen in the last couple of days. The lows also have moved a bit from predicted locations 48 and 96 hours out. I am pretty sure I saw a series of forecasts where a low hitting Ireland moved from the south of the island to the north and back again. In hindsight, I wish I had printed out the charts so I could have referred back to them to see what was predicted and what actually occurred.

It will be VERY interesting to hear what Richard has to say about his trip. I am really curious about the turn he took early last week. I am wondering if the turn was due to the 48 and 96 hour forecasts I gave him. At that time he did not have the current data, at least not from me, though I gave him that information the next morning. Did the data arrive to late?

Every weather data text I send is prefaced with the chart name, CurrentSurface, 48HRSurface, 96HRSurface, etc. For the first few days I was also sending the charts issue and valid time stamp but he asked me to stop providing that info as well. It might have made the order of charts unclear or made more work for Richard? I don't know but he asked me to stop, so I did. I REALLY try to make it crystal clear what chart the data is being pulled. I even tell him that N number of texts were sent.

Later,
Dan

janice142 said:

With apologies for the food diversion...



I've made tuna-fish with ranch dressing instead of mayo. And on a long spell away from a store used some hot and sweet mustard. Definitely the ranch was preferred, but every condiment is an option.

For the past year or so I've added lentil sprouts to my tuna too. The sprouts offer a bit of texture. Ditto boat-grown scallions.

P.S. - Foil packages are the best for tuna. The StarKist brand has some with seasoning that are amazing. Lemon Pepper is my favorite.

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The foil pouches do taste better.

I will try the ranch dressing idea that sounds like it might be good. BTDT with mustard and I no not like.

Later,
Dan

Blubyu, Dannc or anyone talking to Dauntless,
Have you noticed that his battery on the Delorme is indicating low? Has he mentioned anything about this?

Rogerh said:

Blubyu, Dannc or anyone talking to Dauntless,
Have you noticed that his battery on the Delorme is indicating low? Has he mentioned anything about this?

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I saw that low battery on his last two position updates. I messaged this to him.

I sent Dauntless a text around 4:30 est.
Have not heard back. he is most likely resting?
also noticed the low battery....
all the speeds I have seen are around 6.7 mph...

deckofficer said:

I saw that low battery on his last two position updates. I messaged this to him.

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I noticed that in his last update that his speed had dropped to 3.11 mph. Hope he is not having alternator problem

Edit: Speed back up to 6.9. Maybe his readings are going up and down the swells. Battery in Delorme unit showing low.

Moonstruck said:

I noticed that in his last update that his speed had dropped to 3.11 mph. Hope he is not having alternator problems.

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I believe he meant his DeLorme, unless It's connected to the alternator?

Moonstruck said:

I noticed that in his last update that his speed had dropped to 3.11 mph. Hope he is not having alternator problem

Edit: Speed back up to 6.9. Maybe his readings are going up and down the swells. Battery in Delorme unit showing low.

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I noticed a few times that his speed had dropped from 6-8 knots to 3ish. I don't know if it is an error in transmission or if he did indeed slow down.

I have noticed the low battery but did not say anything. I don't know if the low battery is correct either. He does not seem to have a problem sending or receiving texts and I have not seen a problem with tracking when I have checked.

Later,
Dan

Back to Food. Its not off topic since it is an issue.

I sent a text to Richard with the idea of using Ranch dressing with tuna...

He replied that he makes his own Ranch and Russian dressing....

With Mayo!

Should we sent a case of Mayo, preferably Dukes Mayo from the deep south :lol:, to Ireland?

He is also said he was missing pie so maybe we should also send some pecan pies.

He was feeling a bit sea sick earlier today so eating was not really on the agenda. He said the paravanes are really working and without them it would be ugly.

Later,
Dan

psneeld said:

Is there a reason he doesn't want to see more than 24hrs out?

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Richard texted me at 1701 EST.

I mentioned in earlier texts that the wave and wind predictions were all over the place. He said that is why he does not use/need them. He said they really are not precise enough and that they are averages over a large area over a large time.

Very interesting to say the least.

Later,
Dan

No point in focusing on WXX more than 48 hours out. Predictions, particularly timing are highly uncertain. Even 24 hrs is iffy.

Jim.


Jim
Sent from my iPad using Trawler Forum

psneeld said:

Is there a reason he doesn't want to see more than 24hrs out?

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I would imagine accuracy. With all that weather forming and moving around in his area the forecast would be pretty fluid I would think.

To bad he could not have gone a bit earlier in the year when the weather might have been more stabile.

hollywood8118 said:

Single hand or double hand I do watches with a 20 minute timer on my harness.. and catnap between alarms. A body has to sleep, just watch the skippers on Deadliest Catch wear down on a 24hr sit at the helm.. and all the Red Bull doesn't help. Blue water cruising while doing the above is relatively safe.. it's close to land/shipping where most trouble happens.

Most people that worry too much about this kind of thing never leave the beach.

I applaud Richard for living his dream and not be afraid to step out of the comfort zone to make it come true.

Modern equipment and Nav systems make this much safer and more doable


HOLLYWOOD

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Absolutely correct. That is what we did as well. I calculated how long it would take a vessel to appear on the horizon and mow me down and it was right around 20 minutes. I didn't find that sleep to be particularly restful, but it kept me going with an alert eye often enough to likely do a better watch than was being kept on the very few ships we saw. Ships, by the way that rarely answered a VHF hail. I assumed it was because they didn't speak English or were asleep in their bunks.

Reply from Richard concerning the low battery and if he was aware....

I am now.
Thanks for watching over me
Richard Bost sent this message from:
Lat 46.231263 Lon -14.416337

Ok, the food and dining situation on Dauntless is getting critical....

No Mayo.
No Hot Sauce.
No Ranch dressing.
No PIE!

The rolling of the boat broke the bottle of vodka!!!!!!!

I asked Richard if he had a sponge or straw?

Maybe the award for Passage Maker, Ocean Crosser or whatever the term eventually becomes, should include a broken bottle of vodka?

Don't laugh about the straw...

For years I would buy my dad a vintage bottle of port. Recently we started to drink some of those bottles that I bought back in the 80's and 90's. We got curious and look up the value on one bottle and it was over $300!

When we decanted the bottle I told the wife to be very careful with her glass. It might hold $50 of Port! I told her if she knocked the glass over she was going to use a straw to drink the spilled port!

So you know what happened....

Yep, she knocked over her glass! I ran and grabbed TWO straws! I ain't kidding either!

That Port was the best Port I have ever drank from a bottle OR a counter top!

Later,
Dan

deckofficer said:

Reply from Richard concerning the low battery and if he was aware....

I am now.
Thanks for watching over me
Richard Bost sent this message from:
Lat 46.231263 Lon -14.416337

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Thank you for telling him. I was just checking weather to see if there were any surprises. None that I can see so far on 24 hours...

Later,
Dan

dannc said:

Thank you for telling him. I was just checking weather to see if there were any surprises. None that I can see so far on 24 hours...

Later,
Dan

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I debated about eating up some of his message data allotment but after reading about Delorme and the rates decided it wouldn't break the bank.

If I go cruising again I think I'll use Delorme.