Heavy Weather Sailing

[SaltyC]

We did our first Biscay crossing in 2004 during a 15 month Atlantic circuit. Only overnight passages before that. Its hard to know how you would uild up to heavy weather slowly. It just happens.
We have had F8 sailing down to Padstow from Milford Haven when the forecast was F6 dropping to F4 at the start. Half way there the forecast said F8 imminent. We had at the point been in it for several hours! F8 in the Bristol Channel ain't much fun.
We also brought the current boat up from Falmouth to Milford. That was a conscious decision to leave in F7 that turned into an 8 but wind behind us so very bumpy but not life threatening. The seas at dawn were unreal as there had been F9 from a different direction the day before. Very confused but a heavy boat handles it well. We were still glad to arrive safely.

It happens!! Caught off Mull of Galloway with a forecast F8 behind the beam, overstated all week by a factor of 2 so manageable but not expected!?! ended up with F10 same direction which was 'interesting'

 

[Concerto]

I agree you do not need to be mid ocean to experience rough weather. My entry into Scapa Flow this year had some of the largest waves I have ever experienced and the wavelength was much shorter than it would have been mid ocean. This was my report for this sail and it has an unusual twist at the end. If you have read it before, then it is worth reading again. It was written just before going to bed that day, so was still very real in my mind.

Round Britain day 43 Stromness

 

[Talulah]

Thanks, Concerto.

I've just found - by looking further along the page - that it's available for a whisker over £30, and have just given in to temptation - again!

Let us know if it arrives. I’ve just been reading the sellers one star reviews.

 

[Daydream believer]

What one has to remember is that F8 is not just a few gusts of 34 kts. A F8 is a SUSTAINED wind of between 34 & 40 Kts
I have spoken to many who claim to have been in a gale, when in fact they have barely been in F7 (28-33Kts) . where there have been some gusts of greater strength
To be in a F9( one can expect a sustained wind speed of 40 Plus with gusts over 48 Kts. That is a VERY strong wind. It kicks up huge short seas in the N sea - I know.

In the grand scheme of things we (meaning Uk & surrounding areas) do not often have summer gales of that strength. ( perhaps NW) Of course someone will present wind graphs to prove the opposite, but these really are well forecasted. For trips within 75 miles of the coast, or in southern N sea it would be very unusual - or careless planning- to be caught in one.
There will be isolated areas of strong winds in coastal areas possibly caused by geographical situations. But one can usually get to shelter, or calmer water, within 12-15 hours. Well I have.
If one just wants rough seas then that is a different matter. F6-7 wind over tide through the Alderney Race can tighten the cheeks; as can going in a bit close off Barfleur in the right ( wrong) conditions. The entry to Boulogne can be awkward for an hour sometimes & Ostend used to excite in F7. I have never tried the races on the Uk side of the channel but I am sure that they can be just as trying. A strange port is always harder if one has a bit of a chop on the approach. It always seems to make the waves a few feet bigger than one would like. The abundance of You Tube videos does not help confidence either.

 

[geem]

What one has to remember is that F8 is not just a few gusts of 34 kts. A F8 is a SUSTAINED wind of between 34 & 40 Kts
I have spoken to many who claim to have been in a gale, when in fact they have barely been in F7 (28-33Kts) . where there have been some gusts of greater strength
To be in a F9( one can expect a sustained wind speed of 40 Plus with gusts over 48 Kts. That is a VERY strong wind. It kicks up huge short seas in the N sea - I know.

In the grand scheme of things we (meaning Uk & surrounding areas) do not often have summer gales of that strength. ( perhaps NW) Of course someone will present wind graphs to prove the opposite, but these really are well forecasted. For trips within 75 miles of the coast, or in southern N sea it would be very unusual - or careless planning- to be caught in one.
There will be isolated areas of strong winds in coastal areas possibly caused by geographical situations. But one can usually get to shelter, or calmer water, within 12-15 hours. Well I have.
If one just wants rough seas then that is a different matter. F6-7 wind over tide through the Alderney Race can tighten the cheeks; as can going in a bit close off Barfleur in the right ( wrong) conditions. The entry to Boulogne can be awkward for an hour sometimes & Ostend used to excite in F7. I have never tried the races on the Uk side of the channel but I am sure that they can be just as trying. A strange port is always harder if one has a bit of a chop on the approach. It always seems to make the waves a few feet bigger than one would like. The abundance of You Tube videos does not help confidence either.

Agreed.
Another little story. We were in Ares near A Coruna. We had a couple of friends onboard who we were heading down to Cascais with where are friends would jump off and we would carry on South.
There is a flower festival in Ares where the whole families spend a day laying out flower petals to make intricate designs and picture. The next day the children have a procession through the streets and kick all the flowers. The wifes wanted to watch the procession after us guys had been subjected to a day of watching the flower petals be arranged. We had had enough. We told the girls we had a good forecast of F6 behind us so we would take it to head further down the coast. The real forecast was F8 but we thought we were only going 20nm down the coast so it would be fine. We were wrong! The seas were truly massive. Our boat was a Prout Snowgoose 37 in those days. We were surfing at up to 18kts. It was a real white knuckle ride with just storm jib up. Thr girls lay on the front double bed looking out of the front windows timing how long we were on the waves surfing!
We don't mess with forecasts any more?

 

[srm]

What one has to remember is that F8 is not just a few gusts of 34 kts. A F8 is a SUSTAINED wind of between 34 & 40 Kts

I seem to remember reading that F5 was a "yachtsman's gale".

As well as the sustained wind speeds one has to consider the length of fetch and time the sustained wind blows for a "fully developed sea state" to form. In coastal waters wind and swell against tide and shallowing water will give waves well beyond open water conditions for any wind strength. Concerto's description of entering Hoy Sound against the tide being a very good example. If he had waited outside, or slowed down on passage to enter with the tide he would have had a comfortable, smooth and fast ride in (the advantage of local knowledge).

I once made the crossing from Shetland to Norway in a sustained Nly wind of 35 to 45 knots with stronger gusts. It was uncomfortable with the wind and sea on the beam, but the sea had not had time to fully build so could have been much worse. Though the north going current off the Norwegian coast made the last stretch even more lively with steeper waves and more of them breaking. We anchored in the shelter of the islands for the night and the next day had an exhilarating beat north to Bergen inside the islands. Sustained wind were F7 to 8 for most of the passage but we were in sheltered water with small waves and the sun shining.

 

[LONG_KEELER]

Agreed.
Another little story. We were in Ares near A Coruna. We had a couple of friends onboard who we were heading down to Cascais with where are friends would jump off and we would carry on South.
There is a flower festival in Ares where the whole families spend a day laying out flower petals to make intricate designs and picture. The next day the children have a procession through the streets and kick all the flowers. The wifes wanted to watch the procession after us guys had been subjected to a day of watching the flower petals be arranged. We had had enough. We told the girls we had a good forecast of F6 behind us so we would take it to head further down the coast. The real forecast was F8 but we thought we were only going 20nm down the coast so it would be fine. We were wrong! The seas were truly massive. Our boat was a Prout Snowgoose 37 in those days. We were surfing at up to 18kts. It was a real white knuckle ride with just storm jib up. Thr girls lay on the front double bed looking out of the front windows timing how long we were on the waves surfing!
We don't mess with forecasts any more?

Love it .

Primarily a weekend coasting yachstman , I have no experience of coping with consistent heavy winds and seas but it's interesting hearing about them. Keep them coming.

Summer squalls can be a problem close inshore though. I have been knocked flat a few times when I have failed to get sail off quick enough. Particularly challenging when it happens running out of sea room approaching a berth or mooring.

 

[Stemar]

We don't mess with forecasts any more?

Me neither. I once thought S becoming SW, 4-6 was a good forecast to come back from Weymouth to the Solent. It was a bit bumpy, so I went well offshore at St Alban's Head. Even so, it was more than a bit bumpy out there. I looked at Bramblemet afterwards, and we'd had sustained 33 knots. Not a proper gale, but more than enough for a Snapdragon 24. We went and hid at Goatshorn Point in Poole Harbour, at low tide, we couldn't see any of our 17m of chain, it'd been dragged down into the mud. I've no idea how deep the anchor went, but it took several tries to motor it out the next day.

The boat was fine, but that little episode cost me all the sailing brownie points I'd ever earned with Madame

 

[Supertramp]

The book provides useful information for surviving extreme weather, and the numerous posts here from experienced, long term cruisers adds to it.

But I see several posts from people who sail locally or on short cruises where true gales rarely encountered and to be avoided (including me).

After 6 weeks where I couldn't find a day to venture out in N Wales due to wind, I went ahead for a day sail in a SW 4-6 forecast, with a substantial swell. It was a tough and exciting sail as about 8 miles out a coastguard warning for F7 imminent was broadcast, which duly arrived with 35-40knt gusts, 30knts sustained. All in a days work for some but new territory for me as a skipper.

All went well, including reefing in 30+knts, dropping the jib in 40knts and heaving to for a rest and lunch. All singlehanded.

The point of the story is that I chose to go out and sail in adverse conditions and learn rather than being caught out. Something well worth doing to build confidence in self and boat for those not blessed or cursed with having to do it.

 

[NealB]

I've got several editions: it's one of the most stirring, inspiring, impressive, and frightening, books in my nautical library.

I was about twelve years old when I read the first edition: I thought that beating through the Swin Spitway (between the Crouch and Blackwater rivers), on a breezy day, must be just like rounding Cape Horn in a full gale.

We were in my Dad's converted 1939 ex-naval cutter: the book didn't prepare me for the need to pack the top of the centreboard case with tea towels: a serious omission, that has never been addressed.

Is it covered in the latest edition?

 

[Blueboatman]

I have been caught out too many times not to take heavy weather impact on boat and self as seriously as I could .

Water is heavy . And it is incompressible

So if you let it smash down on the boat it will inexorably break the bits of the boat.
And pummel the crew

Imho the great thing about classic heavy weather books is that the subtext is ‘‘ you are on your own - so think about it ! Don’t pick up the phone and say help me now..”

 

[srm]

Heavy weather is relative, and people experience it differently. Talking to a couple who had cruised in Patagonia they said they became "wind blind" and would happily sail in conditions they would never have considered in the past.

By way of contrast a friend came and sailed with me for a couple of weeks in the Azores. The following summer he chartered a bigger boat locally for his family and we joined them. The first couple of days were wet and windy so we toured the island.
The next day was bright and sunny with a good forecast so we set off for a longish day sail to the next island.
The Azores are volcanic islands rising from the ocean floor so no continental shelf to dampen the long residual swell. After two or three hours only my wife and myself were enjoying the trip, everyone else was suffering from seasickness, and the destination was still a grey shape on the horizon. My friend's ambition was overruled by his family and we turned back.

 

[Daydream believer]

I was about twelve years old when I read the first edition: I thought that beating through the Swin Spitway (between the Crouch and Blackwater rivers), on a breezy day, must be just like rounding Cape Horn in a full gale.

Fantastic comment that took me back to 1968 when I did my first "long distant " trip from Burnham to Brightlingsea in my new Stella. I had only had it that season. The weather got breezy & coming back via the Swin seemed like the hairiest thing in the world. My wife sat on the bog box( bucket & chuck it encased in a neat ply box between the two forward pipe cots) , frightened to come out. She just peered out the 2 windows. My mate & I just hung on for dear life wondering if a Stella could survive such conditions. It was probably only F5/6. But to us it was a severe gale.
These days I would probably think about turning the engine off & wondering if there was enough wind for sailing