travel to the carribean

[Jeff F]

Originally Posted by bowball

How would one get a 60’ trawler from PNW to do the loop? Or just get a boat already on the east coast, as the more practical alternative?

The Northwest Passage is easier than it used to be. I'd consider taking a well found 60' trawler across the top.

[BandB]

Originally Posted by Jeff F

The Northwest Passage is easier than it used to be. I'd consider taking a well found 60' trawler across the top.

Wifey B: You'd be lucky if all you froze was your sweet bippy.

[bowball]

What a loop that would be! The Uber Big Loop!
Anyone do it? Wouldn’t be me alas.

[BandB]

Originally Posted by bowball

What a loop that would be! The Uber Big Loop!
Anyone do it? Wouldn’t be me alas.

Wifey B: We've done it, although not in one run. In the NW, the furthest points we made were Valdez, Seward and Kodiak. In the NE, we've made it to Halifax,, Hawkesbury, Prince Edward Island and then up and around and down to Montreal. It's like the Loop. We didn't do it all at once and we didn't do to just prove we could, but we want to see all the areas. So, we've done the East Coast often and the Gulf Coast from Key West to Corpus Christi a good bit. Then for us the key part of looping was what we had to do in one season and that was NY to the Ohio River off of the MS River. Then once we reached Aqua Yacht Harbor on the TN River we spent the next summer doing the rivers but still not going down to Mobile. That came later.

The longest part of the Big U for us was getting a boat home from the PNW.

[Jeff F]

Originally Posted by bowball

What a loop that would be! The Uber Big Loop!
Anyone do it? Wouldn’t be me alas.

I had an acquaintance who did it in a steel sailboat. Five years south from Nova Scotia to BC, then three summers north to get home. A grand adventure. He completed it in 2006.

But the numbers are small, I'm sure. He was the 100th yacht to complete the NWP.

Wifey B, you need to take the northern route between Alaska and Halifax to get your Uber Big Loop certificate. Get planning!

[Lostsailor13]

Imited range on a 36 trawler?what about the 36 willard that went from cali to Hawaii and burned under 400 gallons,thats about 2500 miles,and my 36 Willard holds 500 gallons in the tanks,and seen plenty of 36 footers in Puerto Rico,U.S and British virgin islands,and even smaller sailboats,ive commercially fished certain times of the year all the way down the edge of the continental shelf to the Puerto Rico trench and been to the Caribbean plenty,and with the right planning,knowledge and vessel it is very doable

[BandB]

Originally Posted by Lostsailor13

Imited range on a 36 trawler?what about the 36 willard that went from cali to Hawaii and burned under 400 gallons,thats about 2500 miles,and my 36 Willard holds 500 gallons in the tanks,and seen plenty of 36 footers in Puerto Rico,U.S and British virgin islands,and even smaller sailboats,ive commercially fished certain times of the year all the way down the edge of the continental shelf to the Puerto Rico trench and been to the Caribbean plenty,and with the right planning,knowledge and vessel it is very doable

But his isn't a 36' Willard.

Also, while plenty around PR and the VI, getting there and getting from them to the rest of the Caribbean is the challenge. Can all be done with care.

[Johnboyrtw]

I have a GB’s 42 and I plan to just stay in the Bahamas, there is so much more to do, more secluded anchorages, better beaches, for myself its just better cruising and easier.
But, if you want to head south to the Caribbean your GB’s 36 should have no problem doing that. Don’t be on a schedule and pick the best weather windows. I am assuming you have a single ford lehman. Make sure its in good shape for that trip.
This couple did it in a Grand Banks 36
https://www.followingseas.media/blog.../stormy-petrel

[Hippocampus]

Simple examples
Leave north sound BVI. Landfall French side St. Martin. Usually a reach. Sometimes a beat. Can pick your window but if you want landfall in day light it’s long enough you need to leave in the evening. Transit at night . Landfall in the morning. Heavily travelled. Especially at night for small boats. All levels of expertise in boat operators. So really need to pay attention. In a unstabilized boat without good crew and decent electronics it can be stressful. On a good boat usually a very pleasant transit. We’ve taken to stay a bit off the rhumb line to decrease intercepts. Agree with B&B. Easy trip and easily done on a GB36 but not the platform I would choose.
Although Bequia and surrounds is perhaps my favorite place in the Caribbean St. Vincent has some rough spots. Has been a hotspot for crime including violent crime by some reports. Many cruisers won’t stop there at all. (We have stayed there without incident. Had great fun and were safe). If you want to make the trip south and bypass St. Vincent it’s a hike.
To get to the southern bays of Grenada you either make use of the lee of the island then turn to port to skirt the southern coast until you reach the bay you want. Turn left again. No need to dance. Easy to navigate. Even on light air days it’s a compression zone for the swells coming in from the Atlantic Ocean. Due to the small islands and reefs you can either dance between those which can be very stressful with the risk of grounding or standoff and deal with the compression zone. Not a big deal but can be most unpleasant on a boat such as a GB36. Other choice is to run the Atlantic coast of Grenada to get to the bays. Then the trip is against the trades and North Atlantic gyre.
In short of all the places I’ve been the windwards are my favorite. Personally preferred over the Bahamas. Bahamas are not the Caribbean. Different geology, culture, fauna and flora. Each of these features is different on each island. Rain forests, waterfalls, rivers, monkeys, plantations, history, different cuisines and languages. Better diving and snorkeling. Find less variety in the Bahamas. Hope to cruise it more. Perhaps it’s more subtle. But the Caribbean is best done on the right boat.
Like Stormy Petrols attitude. Again different boats for different folks. Please note I haven’t said it’s not doable. Of course it is. It that’s your dream go for for it. I get bored waiting for windows but strongly agree schedules kill. What’s acceptable depends on the boat. I’m very conservative and hold to
There’s old sailors
There’s bold sailors
There’s very few old, bold sailors.

[mvweebles]

Interesting 1-hoir video on a sailboat that did the Northwest Passage on 2019.

https://youtu.be/APUP23_uKck

[Hippocampus]

Looks like a Boreal. Was on our short list but wife said no high lat so went grp. Whole other level of complexity to do high lat. have great respect for those folks. Thanks for the link.

[Jeff F]

Originally Posted by Hippocampus

Looks like a Boreal. Was on our short list but wife said no high lat so went grp. Whole other level of complexity to do high lat. have great respect for those folks. Thanks for the link.

I saw six Boreals in NS this summer. Had four in Lunenburg Harbour with me at one point.

I was sort of admiring them until an Outbound 46 came in. That's a sweet boat.

Sorry for the thread drift...

[Trolerman]

Originally Posted by Lostsailor13

Imited range on a 36 trawler?what about the 36 willard that went from cali to Hawaii and burned under 400 gallons,thats about 2500 miles,and my 36 Willard holds 500 gallons in the tanks,and seen plenty of 36 footers in Puerto Rico,U.S and British virgin islands,and even smaller sailboats,ive commercially fished certain times of the year all the way down the edge of the continental shelf to the Puerto Rico trench and been to the Caribbean plenty,and with the right planning,knowledge and vessel it is very doable

[mvweebles]

Originally Posted by Lostsailor13

Imited range on a 36 trawler?what about the 36 willard that went from cali to Hawaii and burned under 400 gallons,thats about 2500 miles,and my 36 Willard holds 500 gallons in the tanks,and seen plenty of 36 footers in Puerto Rico,U.S and British virgin islands,and even smaller sailboats,ive commercially fished certain times of the year all the way down the edge of the continental shelf to the Puerto Rico trench and been to the Caribbean plenty,and with the right planning,knowledge and vessel it is very doable

In October of 1987, the owner of one of four pilot house version W36s (a Blaine Sealey adapted W36 of a Wm Garden designed hull) departed Los Angeles for Honolulu, roughly 2250 nms. This 1969 version was equipped with hydraulic stabilizers (Vospers) , a small sail plan, and a single 75hp Perkins 4.236 diesel. Over the next 15-1/2 days, she burned 335 gallons of fuel and averaged around 6-kts for an average burn of 0.9 gph, likely helped by the modest sail plan and favorable currents and conditions. What is not known is how the boat returned to the US. She's currently based in the PNW. .

The sedan version of the W36 like Lostsailors and mine carries 500 gallons of diesel but the PH version carries only 300. The owner carried 200 gals on barrels which was obviously not fully needed (which he noted as the only thing he'd change about the trip)

The "Vega" came off Garden's drafting board in the 1950s as a 34 footer. When Vega Marine decided to go into production in 1961, the hull was stretched to 36 feet by Garden, a modification that's noticeable in the flat mid-beam sections. Weebles, my boat, was the last of 39 hulls laid launched in 1970.my avatar picture is first launch day from a marine railway in Newport Beach.

When I first bought Weebles, I moved her to Treasure Island Marina at Naval Station Treasure Island, San Francisco CA. Three slips down was Rattler, the first W36 built in 1961 owned by Ken McBain, a firey old timer prone to incredibly tall stories ("the waves coming into The Gate were so tall you could see the bottom between them!"). Ken was an incredibly active member of the CG Aux and Rattler was well known in SF Bay. It was a sad day when he could no longer pilot his beloved boat.

Hull #4, Linco (1963 I believe) , was owned by an attorney out of Portland OR. He organized the owners of W36s into what had to be the very first "Trawler Forum" by publishing a mimeographed newsletter a couple times a year. We know this because Ken McBain had a big stack of newsletters aboard Rattler that he gave me. I scanned and they now sit in the archives of Willard Boat Owners Group (open to all).

I really admire these early cruisers. The newsletters told of trips as far as the Galopogas Islands and many trips down Baja at a time where there was no highway south of Ensenada. I tbi k often of these hearty cruisers whos navigation was based on old charts and a depth sounder as inputs to Dead Reckoning and Celestial Navigation. Their boats likely had VHF radios, perhaps RDFs, but little else. And even these would be barely usable. 50 years later there are few of who would leave their slip without a full suite of electronics with redundant GPS just in case.

In 2013 the "Hawaii" W36 was listed for sale. The broker filmed this video which is still on the internet. He gets many of the statistics about the boat roughly wrong (WBO archives has the original letter from the owner to Willard Marine), but still very watchable.

Peter

https://youtu.be/0KNpJrXtKUs

[charlesamilton]

Really enjoying everyone's feedback. This question is probably going to sound stupid but here goes..... the islands of the Bahamas seem idyllic but a bit monotonous , is that so ? I have only been there once for a few days but is it a place to spend say a year? or will customs even allow you to stay there that long? I do realize that being bored with paradise sounds silly but just looking for input.

[Steve1.0]

There is much to see through out the Bahamas, deserted islands to..well Nassau. Here is a link to the ministry of health. https://travel.gov.bs/
Boats are generally allowed six month cruising permits and must be renewed for longer stays. Not a big deal, more of a tourist tax. The latest trend with many of the marinas is a "resort fee".
Bimini Big Game Club had no "fee" for decades, then the casino/marina resort opened and started charging one, so the BGC decided they needed to follow suit.
That has spread to many of the nicer facilities.
Hundreds of beautiful anchorages through out. World class fishing and diving. You just have to get used to traveling in 10'-15' of water while on the banks. It looks like 3' over super clear areas and is unnerving at first.
The "fish mud" is another fun illusion. Looks like a sand bar. Trust your charts and sounder.

[BandB]

Originally Posted by charlesamilton

Really enjoying everyone's feedback. This question is probably going to sound stupid but here goes..... the islands of the Bahamas seem idyllic but a bit monotonous , is that so ? I have only been there once for a few days but is it a place to spend say a year? or will customs even allow you to stay there that long? I do realize that being bored with paradise sounds silly but just looking for input.

Hundreds of islands, all different, much like people. Something special about each area. Ezumas certainly different than Abacos or Berry's. Nassau far different than outlying areas.

We live 60 miles from the Bahamas but hundreds of miles from some and they are often our fallback choice of places to go, but we've never been when we haven't enjoyed our trip there.

Still, whether you'd enjoy a year there or a year in any general location, is a matter of your personality a bit. My wife and I like to see a lot of different places so likely will never spend a year straight in one area. That would include the Caribbean as well though. However, I know many who have spent very long periods (year and more) in the Bahamas and only grown to love them more.

[bumpkin]

Originally Posted by charlesamilton

beauty! thanks for the info, any advise for the loop? do it in sections? all at once? 2 years? my 92 year old dad wants to come with me at least part of the time so I better hurry up, although hes in better shape than I am

The biggest source of loop information would be AGLCA. For more information, go to their website https://greatloop.org/page/JoinUs I copied the link that includes, why join.

Your boat is just fine for heading out to parts unknown. When you join the AGLCA you will be connected to people: who have finished the loop one or more times, who are in process, and who are planning to go.
The variety of boats that are used on the loop is pretty interesting. Those that have had fun on the loop take their boats on to other challenges.

Mike

[Group9]

You have to keep in mind, that the Bahamas are as big, or even bigger than the entire Caribbean.

I've been to a few places in the Caribbean, and a lot of places in the Bahamas. The main thing I love about the Bahamas, is how easy it is to find a beautiful place to anchor, and maybe not see another boat for days.

The places you can do that in the Caribbean, are getting fewer and fewer, and in fact most of the good anchorage seem to be very crowded a lot of the time.

And, if you really feel the need to be surrounded by two or three hundred other boats, there is always Georgetown!

[BandB]

Originally Posted by Group9

You have to keep in mind, that the Bahamas are as big, or even bigger than the entire Caribbean.

Sorry but Bahamas are 5,300 sq miles and Caribbean is 106,000 sq miles.

Bahamas could easily be tucked into a corner of the Caribbean.