Winter cruising in the PNW

[Delfin]

With a good heating system, and a being a bit more selective on travel days, cruising in the winter in the PNW is one of the best times of the year. This is dawn, looking SE from Fossil Bay on Sucia Island, with Venus and a sliver of waning moon. Sucia is an entire, fairly large island that is a State Park. About 8 miles of trails. One other boat was there for two days, so the Island was basically all ours.

 

[Alaskan Sea-Duction]

I agree winter cruising is awesome. We are on the Columbia River during the winter. Love it when it is flat and calm.

 

[Ken E.]

Great shots!

 

[porman]

Sucia island was saved from developers when it was bought by a group of Puget Sound yacht clubs and donated to the state in 1960.

 

[GFC]

We're a couple hundred miles upstream from ASD and enjoy winter boating on our end of the stream. We usually make the lighted boat parade the last cruise of the year and a New Year's Day cruise the first one of the new year.


Heat on a boat is one of the best thing going.

 

[C lectric]

No photos to share but we too used to winter boat.
Loved it.
So often English Bay would be absolutely flat and when we visited False Creek and then left for Howe Sound we could see our wake for a mile or more. ALmost no other boats.

Of course our diesel stove was running and doing its best to blow us out of the cabin.

But we had a great time.

 

[BandB]

Wifey B: From winter 2001. "It's 45 degrees out. Are you sure we want to go out on the lake today." Well, if it was above 32 degrees he was sure. Even went out in a snowstorm.

A month later, me "I was looking forward to getting out on the water today. You can keep me warm, let's go." I can see his mind working like what kind of monster has he created. So, it was 35 degrees and we were the only ones out there but top up and curtains and small portable heater and sun shining and we were bundled up in layers on layers but it was still a peaceful escape.

Now, below 50 degrees or so, still perhaps not, but the PNW has a lot of moderate temps. If the choice is boat in warm or boat in cold, I'm picking warm. But if it's boat in cooler or not boat in all, I'm going boating.

 

[ctjstr]

Winter cruising is great. But, I find the shorter days to be a pain. Plus, in our 30' boat, with sara and me, plus 3 dogs, it can get a bit crowded, especially because we tend not to use the fly bridge as much. I do find that we tie up at marinas or yacht clubs much more often once the days get short.

toni