How far offshore as a Orca avoidance measure

[Mike Bryon]

Planning a sail to Maderia from UK. Intend nonstop passage passing west of Finisterre shipping separation scheme so minimum of 60NM offshore after that seaward distance gets greater. Aim is to enjoy days on the Portuguese trades and experience ocean again after a 10 year gap. Done the trip twice before but well before Orca interactions!

Staying within 20m contour is a different trip which I am not considering on this occasion. Realise the subject is fluid and I’ll stay updated as to affected areas.

Question is: based on location to date of problematic interactions is this far enough offshore to be a troublesome Orca avoidance measure?

 

[Fr J Hackett]

I think that gives some chance of an interaction after the Northern Spanish coast, for me I would head direct for the Azores or 50 miles or so to the East then when level with the straights head for Maderia. That should keep you to the West of the Tuna shoals and away from the shipping until you are turning for Maderia.

 

[Mark-1]

Staying within 20m contour

I've seen this mentioned before, is this really a thing? Looking at the chart it seems completely impractical or are there only short spells where you need to be within the 20m contour?

 

[Mike Bryon]

Thanks for the replies. Would prefer not to go so far west as the Azores high zone and miss the trades. They are a lovely sail but is it nowadays possible to enjoy them without the risk of an interaction? I think going far offshore is a suggested avoidance measure but can’t find information on just how far ‘far’ is? All information/guidance welcomed.

 

[Fr J Hackett]

Thanks for the replies. Would prefer not to go so far west as the Azores high zone and miss the trades. They are a lovely sail but is it nowadays possible to enjoy them without the risk of an interaction? I think going far offshore is a suggested avoidance measure but can’t find information on just how far ‘far’ is? All information/guidance welcomed.

The object would be to be West of the main Tuna / Tunny which I think from past experience means quite away out. I have taken the direct route from the UK to the Azores and still encountered fleets of boats fishing for Tuna. Unless you accept the advice of staying inside the 20M contour then you need to use your judgement and accept you risk becoming a statistic, the best guide and it's by no means failsafe is to stay well offshore hoping to stay outside the migratory feeding lanes of the Tuna and their predators.

 

[Sandy]

Planning a sail to Maderia from UK. Intend nonstop passage passing west of Finisterre shipping separation scheme so minimum of 60NM offshore after that seaward distance gets greater. Aim is to enjoy days on the Portuguese trades and experience ocean again after a 10 year gap. Done the trip twice before but well before Orca interactions!

Staying within 20m contour is a different trip which I am not considering on this occasion. Realise the subject is fluid and I’ll stay updated as to affected areas.

Question is: based on location to date of problematic interactions is this far enough offshore to be a troublesome Orca avoidance measure?

We were in Brittany last week where my French speaking wife reads the local press and this was reported.

Orca attack off Brest

 

[Mike Bryon]

Yes Tuna all the way to the Azores from my experience.

Understand it is the Iberian resident Orcas that are of concern and incidents can occur anywhere in their range which is described as along the western Iberian coast, round top of Bay (even as far as Brittany) and either side of Straits. Online charts of their range (that I’ve seen) don’t show scale so its hard/not possible to be confident of how far offshore Iberian coast the risk extends. Frequency of reported incidents drops further offshore you go but then surely so too does frequency of yachts!

Probably move to South coast Ireland and depart from Cork where good flight connections and plenty of West.

 

[capnsensible]

Lots of tuna fishing in Madeira.

https://www.palheironatureestate.com/fishing-and-cruising/fishing-in-madeira.html

Have seen plenty of whales around the several Atlantic groups of islands, but not orcas. I suppose one just has to accept the risk. A few years ago on a transat we pit stopped in the azores and got a coastguard radio request to look out (all ships) for a missing yacht in the area our track was going to take us through. We saw lots of big pods of whales but no orcas. However we did wonder if the yacht hit one and foundered. On another trip sailing south along the Portugal coast a pilot whale swam right into us. No damage but the whale probably had a bit of a headache.....

 

[noelex]

I am not sure it is much help, but when heading from the west coast of Ireland to Madeira we stayed 250 nm offshore and had no encounters.

When crossing the continental shelf there were heaps of fishermen all clustered in a small group spaced no more than 100 m from each other. I wondered if they were fishing for tuna, as this species is often found close to this sharp drop in depth?

As I understand it, there have been no encounters this far offshore, but only a small number of boats take this route, so it is difficult know if the risk is indeed very low or non existent (if anyone knows please let me know).

The drawback of staying this far offshore is that if you were attacked it is probably too far away for a tow.

 

[Pye_End]

The drawback of staying this far offshore is that if you were attacked it is probably too far away for a tow.

Might not need a tow after an attack.... WATCH: Orca yacht sinking – Sailor shares details of two-hour orca encounter which sank his yacht off Spain - Yachting World

 

[Major_Clanger]

I don't believe it makes any difference whether one is inshore or offshore, it's just the luck of the draw.

That isn't mean to sound lame and fatalistic - I've sailed up and down Biscay/Spain/Portugal several times over the last 4 years and have yet to even see an Orca. Whales, dolphins, porpoises yes, but not Orcas. I know boats have been attacked of course, but look at the risk from a scale of probabilities..... The chances of an interaction is remote at best, so take your preferred route and enjoy the sail.

 

[starfire]

British-registered yacht sinks off south coast of Spain following 'encounter' with killer whales | Sur in English

 

[Pinnacle]

British-registered yacht sinks off south coast of Spain following 'encounter' with killer whales | Sur in English

Any chance you could paste the article here? I could not access the site. Thks.

 

[Koeketiene]

Any chance you could paste the article here? I could not access the site. Thks.

Crew aboard the sailboat Bonhomme William had to be rescued from the sea off the south of Spain on Wednesday night as the boat was sailing across the waters between Tarifa and Barbate (Cadiz province).


According to Spain's coastguard and maritime rescue service (Salvamento Marítimo), their rescue boat Enif was mobilised after receiving the alert that this British-flagged vessel was apparently in distress. As the crew stated when the alarm was raised, they had suffered an "encounter with orcas". Within minutes of the collision it was reported that the boat had sprung a leak and it was sinking.


The rescue boat immediately headed towards the coordinates provided. When it arrived at the point where the boat was sinking, the crew could see that the people who had been on the yacht had lit two hand flares to wave around and a third one with a parachute had been launched into the night sky so that their position could be easily seen. All the sailing vessel's crew members were wearing life-jackets and were in a life raft in the water. After being picked up, they were taken to the port of Barbate, where all were found to be uninjured. However, the small yacht, a sailing boat some 12 metres in length, was badly damaged and sinking.


Once the statements given by those involved are verified, this could be a new case of an 'attack' or at least an aggressive encounter with orcas for another nautical vessel crossing the Strait.

Just a few weeks ago another group of orcas caused the crew aboard the sailboat Kelba, moored in the port of Ceuta, to need to be saved. The encounter caused the rudder and keel to break requiring the intervention of maritime rescue service and Guardia Civil to rescue the three crew members on board the boat at the time.

These 'attacks', or 'encounters' as the experts like to call them, are already common along the Cadiz coastline during the season from March to October, from approximately Barbate to the Strait of Gibraltar.

Several theories​

This behaviour from these cetaceans is still being studied and there are several theories. Some specialists believe that it is a form of training - the mothers teach their calves to hunt head-on the many tuna found in the Strait of Gibraltar and they end up confusing rudders for fins.


Another view is that this is simply a 'game', something they do for entertainment. This is the theory of the International Whaling Commission (IWC).


In view of these encounters not being a one-off and thus the risk they pose to maritime navigation, the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITECO) is carrying out a study in collaboration with CIRCE (an organisation for the Conservation, Information and Study of Cetaceans). This will involve satellite tags being placedon six orcas.

As part of this project one specimen has already been tagged, having already been identified as one of those involved in the recent clashes with boats. For its part, the Capitanía Marítima (an independent maritime authority for the principal coastal areas of Spain, responsible for shipping licences and maritime safety) has called for caution and has recommended that boats do not navigate in the areas where most killer whales are being spotted.

 

[pmagowan]

Particularly if offshore, given that they appear to attack rudders, I would make provision for getting good access to the rudder stock as it enters the hull so that any damage can be quickly fixed. This seems to be the reason boats sink in these interactions. Risk is low but consequences high so have fun but be prepared