From Los Angeles to Seattle by boat?

Great thread. The amount of weather and safety data keeps growing every year. We have a couple of years to get ready for a long run South from Portland. Heading up to the San Juans this coming summer. The trick is making enough time for the weather windows while still working. The Columbia bar can be like a beautiful lake some days, or a gigantic maelstrom putting your beautiful boat into 35 degree rolls. When I finally get good weather for that Ocean run to Neah Bay, if it is nice, my GB46 cats will burn some fuel that day, and the risky miles will be put astern, quickly.

denloe1 said:

The trick is making enough time for the weather windows while still working.

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You've hit the nail on the head

Marin said:

Years ago my wife and I and a couple of friends attended the Seattle Boats Afloat show on Lake Union.* One of the boats on display was a then-new*Nordhavn model (I don't remember which one).* When somebody remarrked at the relatively small size of the spaces in the boat, we were told that Nordhavn did/does this deliberately.*

The theory, it was explained to us, is that if you are making an ocean passage and the weather turns nasty, you don't want to be trying to make your way around in a boat with big open spaces in it.* Better to be in smaller spaces where it's easier to brace*yourself against a bulkhead or the side of a companionway or have a grabrail handy to catch yourself rather than risk taking a major tumble*across a big, open*salon or whatever.

How much of this is true or not I have*no way of knowing, but if it actually*is a design consideration of Nordhavn I can see the sense in it.*

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Hi All,

I bought a NP45 and would like to take it from Washington to Mexico in February - March but was told that it's the wrong time of year to do that. So I've been reading about people who have done the trip and the time of year, what issues they had etc. etc..

Then I read your post about Nordhavn purposely keeping the interior smaller than need be and the reason for it. I don't know about that but I was told by an experienced passage-maker to get a smaller boat rather than a larger one. When I asked him why he said that there is less distance/room for you to get tossed around in. His other advice was to just do it! Go for it! Don't spend years planning and thinking about it.

Well, after reading about some of the big seas that people have run in to I am definitely reconsidering going in the winter.

You are too late in the season. You could harbpr hop, but be prepared to stay in a port for weeks. You can get some short weather windows in April, but its better to wait until mid May, early June.

Your insurance company might have restrictions on time of year.

I'm glad to see this thread continued. I am considering the purchase of a boat in San Francisco and moving it up to Puget Sound. Lots of good information here.

I brought my boat up from LA to Seattle last year.

Dan, a few years ago another guy and I helped take a boat from Lake Union down to Stockton.


Here's the thread that I made that recorded the trip.
Journey of a Lifetime | Club Sea Ray

dirtdoc1 said:

...Then I read your post about Nordhavn purposely keeping the interior smaller than need be and the reason for it. I don't know about that but I was told by an experienced passage-maker to get a smaller boat rather than a larger one. When I asked him why he said that there is less distance/room for you to get tossed around in....

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The cruising sailboat crowd has know this forever. Vast open main saloons and galleys invite falls. Falls lead to injuries. Injuries at sea are bad.

"One hand for yourself, one for the ship." Kinda hard to do on some of the more polished-looking yachts out there with big, wide living spaces and a near total absence of strong handholds.

I looked at a stout older custom trawler yacht not long ago that had strong handrails running fore-and-aft down the overheads and continuing out into the rear cockpit. Cabin too wide to grab hold? Just reach up. It was brilliant.

tiltrider1 said:

I brought my boat up from LA to Seattle last year.

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What time of year did you do it? How was the trip? Did you run straight through or marina hop?

Sabre602 said:

The cruising sailboat crowd has know this forever. Vast open main saloons and galleys invite falls. Falls lead to injuries. Injuries at sea are bad.

"One hand for yourself, one for the ship." Kinda hard to do on some of the more polished-looking yachts out there with big, wide living spaces and a near total absence of strong handholds.

I looked at a stout older custom trawler yacht not long ago that had strong handrails running fore-and-aft down the overheads and continuing out into the rear cockpit. Cabin too wide to grab hold? Just reach up. It was brilliant.

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My NP45 has a hand-railing running all the way down the middle of the ceiling of the solon and in to the galley. I knew it was a serious trawler when I saw that. The problem is that it's up in Washington and I'm down in San Francisco.

Budds Outlet said:

I'm glad to see this thread continued. I am considering the purchase of a boat in San Francisco and moving it up to Puget Sound. Lots of good information here.

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Cormorant, a sister ship of the Coot, was shipped from the SF Bay Area to Seattle over roads by truck after rough times boating coming from southern California. Cruising guides say west coast cruising is very possible, but one must pick the right weather. Most ports along the coast experience large waves when river currents oppose the tides and winds... Having made the transit by large ships many times, I've noticed that foggy weather generally has calm seas. ... Good reason for radar.

I brought it up in June. Not the best time of year for weather, April/May or July/August are better. I did a combination of harbor hopping and overnights. Originaly I had planned to run striaght thru to SF and then striaght thru to Seattle. However we had a mechanical right out of LA, we had to lay up in Santa Barbara for 24hrs. Then we ran into bad weather and the crew was exhausted by the time we hit Halfmoon Bay so we spent the night. The weahter broke for just 14hrs so we ran to Bodega Bay were we layed up for 4 days. After that the weather was good all the way but we ran into another mechanical and layed up in Cresent City for the night. We also stoped for fuel only in Morrow Bay and Newport Bay.

When the weather was good we could run at 10kts at 10gal per hr. When the weather was bad we were running 8kts and using 12 gal per hr. These are GPS speeds.

I would have harbor hopped more but the crew had limited time which is a real mistake, forced us to go in less than ideal conditions.

If you can go 48hrs with out stopping for fuel you can knock out some serious miles. At that time, I could only run 36hrs between fuel stops, problem with this is fuel is not available after 5pm or before 8am so we really had to manage our fuel stops.

Going LA to Seattle you are head on to the waves and wind so calmer conditions mean more to the crew. At times we ran into a 1kt current.

All that said, I wouldn't hesitate to do it again. My mechanicals were raw water pumps, I had replaced the impellers and seals before departing but the bearings gave out on both pumps with in 80 hrs of each other. I tried to have two pumps flown in to Santa Barbara. I figured if one was done the other was close behind. Unfortuneatly the second pump missed the flight. By the time we got to Cresent City the second pump was done. Called the wife and she FedExed it to me.

April and May are better than June?

Thanks for the info it was helpful.

On any given year there is no guarantee which month will have the best weather. One of my crew Captain's a fishing boat that works the Oregon Coast. He is the one who told me that June is the worst month for wind and getting layed up for a week is not unusuall. It took us 9 days to get past Bodega Bay and 5 days from Bodega to Seattle. Both legs lost 1 day to a mechanical, there were no losses to weather on the second half of the trip but we both fought and hid weatjer on the first leg.

Every one warned me about Point Conception, Poit Reyes, and Cape Blanco, these turned out to be easy but Morrow Bay to Half Moon Bay was hell. Weather perdictions were pretty spot on so I was never surprised by what I hit.

If you can give yourself 3 weeks leaway its easy to find weather windows and have a smooth trip. I was trying to get it done in a given 2 week window and the weather was uncooperative. Still, I got it done in 2 weeks despite the weather but there were some uncomfortable times.

tiltrider1 said:

On any given year there is no guarantee which month will have the best weather. One of my crew Captain's a fishing boat that works the Oregon Coast. He is the one who told me that June is the worst month for wind and getting layed up for a week is not unusuall. It took us 9 days to get past Bodega Bay and 5 days from Bodega to Seattle. Both legs lost 1 day to a mechanical, there were no losses to weather on the second half of the trip but we both fought and hid weatjer on the first leg.

Every one warned me about Point Conception, Poit Reyes, and Cape Blanco, these turned out to be easy but Morrow Bay to Half Moon Bay was hell. Weather perdictions were pretty spot on so I was never surprised by what I hit.

If you can give yourself 3 weeks leaway its easy to find weather windows and have a smooth trip. I was trying to get it done in a given 2 week window and the weather was uncooperative. Still, I got it done in 2 weeks despite the weather but there were some uncomfortable times.

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We had the same experience coming from Ensenada to SF last May. Point Conception was a piece of cake with light swells and 5 kts of wind. So easy that we decided to run all night for home. About across from the mouth of Morrow Bay we hit nasty wind and waves that pounded us all the rest of the night. We were all beat so we ended up stopping in Half Moon Bay for a rest up before going on. I've talked to others who have made the trip and they say to go 15 or more miles offshore and it's smoother. We were 5 to 10 offshore.

Delta Dog said:

I've talked to others who have made the trip and they say to go 15 or more miles offshore and it's smoother. We were 5 to 10 offshore.

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With almost any coastline, it is lumpy where the bottom is sloping. Further out where the bottom is flat, the seas are usually flatter as well. The depth contour lines tell the story.

AusCan said:

With almost any coastline, it is lumpy where the bottom is sloping. Further out where the bottom is flat, the seas are usually flatter as well. The depth contour lines tell the story.

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That makes sense.

I want to hire a captain to help me bring her south to Mexico for the winter. I was told that most captains will not make the trip from the PNW - south after September. It sounds like it's doable and safe if you watch the weather and wait it out if needed.

We’ve done the trip twice from the PNW to MX. After September, the fronts can come more frequently as winter can come early and the days are getting much shorter. If you find a delivery skipper, who will do the trip, plan on extra lay days which will drive up costs. After SF it becomes easier and once you’re past Santa Barbara you can relax.

Google USCG rescues on the WA/OR Coast. You find some sad stories where the USCG has lost more than its share of personnel trying to rescue recreation boaters transiting the coast in the winter time.

Larry M said:

We’ve done the trip twice from the PNW to MX. After September, the fronts can come more frequently as winter can come early and the days are getting much shorter. If you find a delivery skipper, who will do the trip, plan on extra lay days which will drive up costs. After SF it becomes easier and once you’re past Santa Barbara you can relax.

Google USCG rescues on the WA/OR Coast. You find some sad stories where the USCG has lost more than its share of personnel trying to rescue recreation boaters transiting the coast in the winter time.

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Hi Larry,

Thanks for the reply. What time of year did you make the trip?

My first time up the coast from S.F. to the Columbia River Bar we hired Omni Bob to give us our weather windows. We were very pleased with his forecasts. We traveled first part of October.


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dirtdoc1 said:

My NP45 has a hand-railing running all the way down the middle of the ceiling of the solon and in to the galley. I knew it was a serious trawler when I saw that. The problem is that it's up in Washington and I'm down in San Francisco.

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That centerline hand rail on the saloon ceiling is really helpful. I was on board a NP43 this summer and the owner had added a bunch of additional hand holds throughout his boat. They were very well done and placed in good locations. Maybe Rebel112r can recall whose boat it was but I was very impressed.

Dirt. I would bite the bullet and spend the winter in North West. Spend the summer in this area, and head South in the fall. How is the commissioning going? And Dave, I don’t remember the boat with the handrails. Dan

Rebel112r said:

Dirt. I would bite the bullet and spend the winter in North West. Spend the summer in this area, and head South in the fall. How is the commissioning going? And Dave, I don’t remember the boat with the handrails. Dan

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Actually, that is a very good idea. How early can you start boating in the PNW? I have to keep it out of CA for one year. Here's Plan B, Cruise the PNW from (April?)-August. Run down to Mexico in August. Hang out until November/December then I can take her home to Redwood City, CA. Is a run from Mexico to San Francisco in Nov/Dec doable weather-wise?

I think the NP45 has more hand rails but I've only been on it once and my memory is pretty sketchy these days. I'm pretty sure there is another one in the wheelhouse.

Damn it's hard to sit her in my office in Palo Alto, CA while my boat is in Bellingham, WA!! Talking with you folks does help so thanks for that!

dirtdoc1 said:

...How early can you start boating in the PNW?....

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A buddy of mine has a beautiful 1961 Chris Craft in Bellingham. At the last haulout he installed a few strakes of ice-proofing because his hull was getting chewed up by breaking through the thin ice skins that form in Squalicum Harbor. He and his wife use it at least a couple of weekends every month of the year. The park docks and buoys are always available in the off season, beautiful anchorages with few other boats in sight.

I commute to work year-round on a motorcycle unless there is the very occasional snow and/or ice on the road. Same with the boat...our winters may be dark and wet, but they're far milder than all the rest of the northern tier states.

Buoys are available but all the park docks are pulled out 3rd week in October here in the PNW.

Rebel112r said:

Dirt. I would bite the bullet and spend the winter in North West. Spend the summer in this area, and head South in the fall. How is the commissioning going? And Dave, I don’t remember the boat with the handrails. Dan

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Sabre602 said:

A buddy of mine has a beautiful 1961 Chris Craft in Bellingham. At the last haulout he installed a few strakes of ice-proofing because his hull was getting chewed up by breaking through the thin ice skins that form in Squalicum Harbor. He and his wife use it at least a couple of weekends every month of the year. The park docks and buoys are always available in the off season, beautiful anchorages with few other boats in sight.

I commute to work year-round on a motorcycle unless there is the very occasional snow and/or ice on the road. Same with the boat...our winters may be dark and wet, but they're far milder than all the rest of the northern tier states.

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That's good to know. I'm a California wimp when it comes to the cold. I guess I'll have to get used to it.

The first and last time that I was in Bellingham was late October - I think. Maybe early November. The weather was beautiful. Short sleeve weather all week. I had a great time walking to the boat from the hotel and buying things around town for the boat. We hadn't closed on it yet so I couldn't stay on it. The last day it rained and got cold. It snowed that night about 5". I drove back in snow for a couple hours. It was so damn cold. I hate snow. It was cold all the way through Oregon too. Then I hit the CA line and the sun came out and the jacket came off and I actually yelled "I love California!!" It was great to be back, until I hit traffic. Then I yelled "**** I hate California!!". The only time that I'm happy is when I'm on my boat. Even just in the harbor.

dirtdoc1 said:

Hi Larry,

Thanks for the reply. What time of year did you make the trip?

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The first trip, we left the end of August and did a straight shot from Uclulet, BC. to SF. We stayed off shore 50-100 miles to avoid the fog and crab pots. The last trip, we left June 1st and day hopped our way down. We got stuck in Coos Bay for 2 plus weeks right after the 4th of July. The USCG had the entrance closed to recreation boats under 45’ because of weather.

dirtdoc1 said:

.... How early can you start boating in the PNW?...

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Year around. The winter/off season is great imho. You never have to worry about getting a slip anywhere. We spent 3 Christmas’ in Victoria, BC in front of the Emperess Hotel and just loved it. You have pay more attention to weather but you pretty much have the area to yourself.

If traveling at night you need to be in 500’ of water to avoid the crab pots. They usually don’t fish in anything deeper than 350’ but on my last trip I saw a few as far out as 420’. Once I was in 500’ of water I never saw anything.