N/S Coastal Pacific Transit

[schrater]

I’m getting ready to take my boat north up to the Puget Sound in the next couple weeks. I’ll of course look for a good weather window. But I notice swells are almost always straight out of the west, meaning they’ll be directly across my beam the whole way up.

Given my rolly single engine semi-displacement CHB, are there any strategies I should consider? I could tack to keep them off my quarter, but then half the trip they’d be following, which might even be worse. Is it possible riding with swells across my beam isn’t as bad as I am imagining?

 

[tiltrider1]

This time of year wind waves are your big issues. Swells have such long periods that you won’t notice them. That said, do pay attention to the swell forecast so as not to pick the one window with a short period.

 

[schrater]

Thanks, that’s a good point. A swell with a broad period is more like an elevator than an escalator.

 

[schrater]

What are the recommendations for transiting from the ocean around Cape Flattery and into the Straits of Juan de Fuca? I guess riding in on a flood is still advisable?

 

[tiltrider1]

There are no recommendations. Riding the tide is helpful for the push. Once you turn the corner wind is on the stern. It’s not a river and there is no bar but there is current so a strong ebb with 20kts of wind can get uncomfortable.

 

[78puget-trawler]

The worse ride you take may be when you get to the corner around Port Townsend at Admiralty Inlet. If you get there on a big ebb and a west/nw wind you'll be looking for cover.

 

[Lepke]

I fished the North Pacific. Summertime weather is usually winds from the NW and get more westerly the closer you get to Cape Flattery. Windy.com is probably better than the forecasts. Your concern will be waves driven by the wind. About every 7-10 days a low goes thru and the wind blows for a day or two from the SW.
Most likely, you'll have swells on the port beam. I run in 100 fathoms or more about 25 miles out. Otherwise you have the ground swell effect where the swells get higher and steeper in water that's becoming shallower. Also, you miss most of the crab pot buoys and lines.

Grays Harbor is usually easy to get into, La Push is only good if the wind is from the west or NW. The La Push bar is usually closed if it's blowing heavy from the SW.
On bars, you want to avoid low tide, especially if the wind is blowing in and the tide going out. That's where you get the steepest waves.
I make the run from Astoria to Neah Bay in one shot. Usually starting about 3am on a favorable tide. The way I go it's 175 miles.