Too cold for me

I have worked and lived in the Bahamas the last 26 years and also own a home in Fort Pierce. The other week the temperature dipped down to the fifties at night and around seventy during the day. I don't like the cold and don't hold up well against it. My thinking was "this is about as cold a day as I want to be out on the water" as I huddled behind the windscreen and console.

So I ask - what is your threshold for heading out on the water during the colder seasons?

It depends on how long we'll be out, what the wind is doing, if it's sunny, etc. Late in the season when we're trying to get a few more days in, it's not uncommon for us to be out with temperatures in the mid 50s, but at least some sun.

Our record was a "last run before winterizing" with some friends to check out out the trees up-river. We got back as it was getting dark, so no meaningful sun, and the weather app on my phone was showing 36* outside...

Greetings,
Mr. JC. My threshold is more than 1/2" ice thickness. Really can beat up the hull. Not too fussy about blizzards either when the visibility is less than a mile, or so.

I left Crisfield, MD on the Chesapeake in February of 2016. The brackish water was below 32 degrees and the air temperature was in the teens around 2 AM. There's a lot to be said for a pilothouse with cabin heat off the engine.

These days my coldest day boating is usually in July crossing from the Keweenaw peninsula to Isle Royale on Lake Superior. Water temperatures can be in the 30s.

Ted

65 is it for me. Takes to long for the ice to melt I'm my drink. I prefer bikinis to parkas.

I used to love putting around Cape May Harbor, NJ in a light snowfall in my center console. Trailer boat so easy to haul and drain.

When I had my pilothouse boat, the temperature year round was 70-ish INSIDE, so I could care less what the weather was like outside. Rain, snow, sun… didn’t make a difference, and I love the feeling of being all warm and bundled up inside my cozy PH.

That’s why I can’t go back to sailboats.

My pilothouse boat is set up for winter operations. Anything above freezing is fine. Some of the nicest cruising I've had has been in 30-50F air temperature range.

I spent a rare sunny and calm but cold week working remotely from my boat in the San Juan Islands in November and loved it. Had all the anchorages and towns to myself, and the winter light on the water and shore was like liquid gold. Temps were in the thirties but I was snug as a bug with the diesel furnace going. Bundled up and took the dogs for long walks off leash on my “private islands” every day. In places like there that are a zoo in the summer but don’t close down entirely in the off season, winter is a great time to cruise!

in 2015, we had at that time a 32 Ericson sailboat with a dodger/bimini and no enclosure. We departed Muskegon, MI for a trip up to the North Channel of Lake Huron on May 21. It was 36 degrees. That was a little too cold, but we did it.

Choices said:

65 is it for me. Takes to long for the ice to melt I'm my drink. I prefer bikinis to parkas.

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That’s about my limit, too. Luckily, we only get a couple of months where it gets below that some days down here!

I just drive from inside if it starts getting chilly or wet.

LenBuchanan said:

in 2015, we had at that time a 32 Ericson sailboat with a dodger/bimini and no enclosure. We departed Muskegon, MI for a trip up to the North Channel of Lake Huron on May 21. It was 36 degrees. That was a little too cold, but we did it.

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I did a sailboat delivery last year between Chicago and the Bruce Peninsula. I told the owner I wouldn't leave before June 1. Even that can be early.

We USED to go out in inclement weather.
Kicked the frozen to the dock lines to free them.
Cleaned 6"-8" snow off the boat.
Broke ice to get home.
Heavy fog in ferry lanes so we hung at the marina untill we were sure they were no where near us.

We didn't go out looking for it but we knew the conditions could cause those troublesome conditions.

Often the conditions were absolutely beautiful. Flat, calm sea we could see our wake in for several miles back, almost no other boats, clear blue skies.

But no more.

Mako said:

When I had my pilothouse boat, the temperature year round was 70-ish INSIDE, so I could care less what the weather was like outside. Rain, snow, sun… didn’t make a difference, and I love the feeling of being all warm and bundled up inside my cozy PH.

That’s why I can’t go back to sailboats.

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THIS^^^^!
We too have a pilothouse heater, and reverse cycle if the generator or main engine is running, and Hydronic heat for when they are not. So our tolerance is, as long as there is no ice on the water, we're game!

That being said, we're heading South for warmer waters come this Fall. Being comfortable in the boat, does NOT equate to being comfortable in the water. I'm done with drysuits.

As long as the inside temp is 70* we are happy campers.

When the rain turns to ice or slush on my wind shield I start looking for a safe harbor, unless I am less than 20 miles from my home port. Then I "run' for it.

pete

I took a ride on Saturday in my dinghy, no windshield, 52 to 55 degrees, moderately breezy. I was running 15 to 25 mph.

If it had been any colder, that would not have been at all enjoyable to me. The water temp was 49F, and that's a part of the comfort equation as well.

In 2019 I booked some extensive maintenance on my boat at Tri-County Diesel in Bellingham, WA. Bellingham is a long day’s cruise from Seattle… this was in January during a rare cold snap. Daytime temps were about 20F, night time temps about 10F. Thank goodness for my big Espar furnace! Heavy snow on my return journey…That was my coldest outing to date!

Well, hopefully all that are doing the cold weather cruising have the appropriate PPE aboard in case they happen to go into the cold water.

We lived in Tucson for 30 years before we moved back to Michigan. As we got older the heat was getting difficult to deal with. Boating when it is 115 to 118 degrees wasn’t fun anymore. So the opposite problem.

"Boating when it is 115 to 118 degrees wasn’t fun anymore."

Wow I hear that. When I was boating in the Persian Gulf we'd have to get off the water by 8am during the 5 summer months, otherwise it was getting dangerous. During Aug/Sep, not only was it in the 120°F area (at night) but those were the peak humidity months as well. Sorta like Miami on steroids - even boating at night your body could not cool off. Crazy.

Yes, it was quite hot. Running into the wind at 30+ mph when it is 118 degrees is like running into an oven. We would really have to stay hydrated and watch each other for symptoms of heat exhaustion or stroke.

My threshold has changed with age. About 10 years ago, sailed with a friend who had Espar heat down below so always toasty 72. Came out of Annapolis and it was snowing so hard, you could not see the bay bridge. We laughed our asses off in the cockpit! For about an hour! Then we took turns going down below to warm up and dry out our gloves.

Now my preference is the BVI forecast- 79 high, 72 low. No amount of long johns keeps me warm anymore.....

All I can say is it only hit 73 here in Kona today, overcast, rainy. We wouldn't go out. We need 80-82 and lots of sunshine. Our standards are different on the mainland LOL

If I have to put on pants - instead of shorts - it's too cold. For me, a Florida born and raised outdoor sun-bum, that's when it's less than 60 degrees. I've always said I would rather sweat than put on a jacket !

Yeah, I put on shorts at 40.

I have somewhere a short film when we broke,15 cm tick ice ...If I found I will post , after that you will enjoy 15°

Right this very minute in Northern Wisconsin it is about 27 degrees BELOW ZERO!!

That is too cold for me.

pete

Multi generation Floridian here, I hate cold water.


That said, I am starting to come around to some cool temps. It's nice to put on a hoodie and pants in the morning and drink a cup of coffee on the FB in say, 40-50 degree temps.


Up here in Wakulla county (just south of Tallahassee) we get a lot more cold weather than down in south Florida, during the cold snap the OP is talking about we saw night time lows in the high teens. I've been fishing the St. Marks river a lot this winter and like it. The ducks are all over the place, there is some pretty fog and it is not crowded. I start a little later in the morning and get back earlier in the afternoon, so miss the real cold. Usually, it's lows around 45 and high around 60.


One thing I do know, it feels A LOT colder on the water than it does on land. 50 with a 15 knot breeze can be be really cold in open water, especially if there is no sun.

Have spent a decade+ living in Florida (south and central) and really got tired of the lack of seasons, snow or wearing nice winter clothes and jackets.

Moving to the PNW shortly (just outside Seattle) and really looking forward to it. My wife... not so much.