Introduction - Roughwater 35

Hello everyone. My wife Suzie and I have this year purchased a '73 Roughwater 35. In a few weeks we will be sailing "The Promise" from SF Bay to Puget Sound. I am looking forward to many years of enjoyment on this boat. We also sail a '78 San Juan 23.

Cheers,
Dave

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Welcome Aboard!

G'day Dave,

I have a dockmate with the same boat - about the same year.

Which motor do you have?

Where do you intend to moor once in the PNW?


I imagine you will shake her down well before venturing too far from port?


welcome aboard

dhmeissner said:

Hello everyone. My wife Suzie and I have this year purchased a '73 Roughwater 35. In a few weeks we will be sailing "The Promise" from SF Bay to Puget Sound. I am looking forward to many years of enjoyment on this boat. We also sail a '78 San Juan 23.

Cheers,
Dave

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We had one of those in our old harbor, very nice capable looking boats!

Regarding your trip from SF to Puget Sound...

This time of year the pacific coast can be a very nasty dangerous place. I'd dare say some of the most dangerous waters you might ever encounter. You're really out of your seasonal good weather window.

The best advice, and this comes from my son who served on a USCG Motor Lifeboat at Coos Bay Oregon is to be prepared to wait. Sometimes for several days. Then be prepared to just go to the next river and duck in there. He said that 100% of the SAR cases that he went out on were for people that made a bad weather decision, pushing the safe envelope.

dhmeissner said:

Hi All,

Thanks for the welcome! We are hiring a delivery captain, Alan Hugenot, to help us drive the boat north. I think I have found a place on the ship canal in Seattle at least for the next year or so. I will be creating a blog, and will post updates here as we progress.

She has a Lehman 120 with around 1300hrs.

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Sincere congrats on your choice for the dark side. Safe journey.

Even with our 58 ft long range full displacement Roughwater trawler I would not try to make it up the Pacific coast this late in the year. Even with a professional captain! Might want to look at trucking the boat as it well cost about the same, less wear/tear on the boat and you, quicker and safer.

If you do try check the NOAA National data buoy National Data Buoy Center so at least you know what its like out there before venturing out.

ksanders said:

We had one of those in our old harbor, very nice capable looking boats!

Regarding your trip from SF to Puget Sound...

This time of year the pacific coast can be a very nasty dangerous place. I'd dare say some of the most dangerous waters you might ever encounter. You're really out of your seasonal good weather window.

The best advice, and this comes from my son who served on a USCG Motor Lifeboat at Coos Bay Oregon is to be prepared to wait. Sometimes for several days. Then be prepared to just go to the next river and duck in there. He said that 100% of the SAR cases that he went out on were for people that made a bad weather decision, pushing the safe envelope.

Click to expand...

Phil Fill said:

Even with our 58 ft long range full displacement Roughwater trawler I would not try to make it up the Pacific coast this late in the year. Even with a professional captain! Might want to look at trucking the boat as it well cost about the same, less wear/tear on the boat and you, quicker and safer.

If you do try check the NOAA National data buoy National Data Buoy Center so at least you know what its like out there before venturing out.

Click to expand...

Very nice looking boat- Congrats!

I have to agree with the above gentlemen. This time of year, the Pacific coast of OR and WA are far from ideal cruising grounds, regardless of who is behind the helm. Most reputable marine insurers have specific restriction for coastal transit after September 30th.

dhmeissner said:

Hello everyone. My wife Suzie and I have this year purchased a '73 Roughwater 35. In a few weeks we will be sailing "The Promise" from SF Bay to Puget Sound. I am looking forward to many years of enjoyment on this boat. We also sail a '78 San Juan 23.

Cheers,
Dave

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Dave and Suzie - - > Welcome. If after warnings provided on this thread you still plan to take the journey north by water this time of year (not recommended) please be very careful of the qualifications and experience regarding any Captain you may hire to pilot your craft. Good Luck!

An option you might want to look into unless you've determined to bring the boat up on its own bottom is trucking. We had our boat trucked from Alameda, CA to Tacoma, WA by Associated Trucking in 1998. At the time the cost to truck the boat was the same as hiring a delivery skipper, and our insurance company was WAY happier with the boat on a truck than slogging along offshore somewhere.

And as it turned out the port engine had a failing coolant pump that finally blew the coolant out during the delivery trip from Tacoma to Bellingham. Finished the run on one but it was a whole lot less stressful to have this happen in the protected waters of Puget Sound with all sorts of harbors to go to than somewhere off the California, Oregon, or Washington coast.

The truck trip took two days.

Thanks everyone for all of the kind replies and advice. We left SF Bay on the 5th and passed through the Ballard locks at 00:30 on the 12th. The seas were calm during most of the trip. We stayed within 8 miles of the coast the entire time. We drove the boat 24 hrs a day. We stopped for fuel in Crescent City and Westport. The engine stopped once and we had to change the fuel filter and bleed air from the jerk pump. We averaged 2.1gph and traveled close to 900 miles.

It was a great experience and I learned much about the boat. I will add more info and details in our blog and update this thread with the link as soon as it's written. "The Promise" is now moored at the Canal Marina near the Fremont cut.

Dave

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Congrats on the big trip, sounds like the boat, and crew, did fine!
Steve W

Dave ans Suzie

I'm impressed congrats!

Dave

Likewise congrats. Sounds like you were wise to ignore the internet experts and rely upon your own experience and your Captain's expertise. Copernicus faced similar admonitions. Beware the onerous WA entry fee taxes.

Glad the trip went safely and well. Captain Alan has an amazing pedigree of experience.

Glad to hear you made it. The weather held until this week end. You ran 24 hour. how many on board. If when we head down the coast we plan on stopping in most of the pots and maybe go up the Columbia River.

There are several RW in the Seattle area. There is a RW yahoo group site and the CHB yahoo vroup site is good also as they are similar.