Med Which Way

[Sybarite]

I have written to the VNF asking them about draft (water and air) as well as seasonal variations.

I'll post their reply if and when I get it.

John

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[Sybarite]

See posting on scuttlebutt May 21.

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[samuel]

Yes: I have seen that. Thanks for trying. We have decided its the long way round !!
Short hops to L Rochelle .Then aim for the coast of Spain. Actually quite looking forward to Portugal. Once we have got past the Bay then I suppose the next big obstacle will be the last bit before Gibralter .Subject of another thread I think !!
Regards


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[zefender]

You have time on your hands, which is unusual for most doing the trip. So you don't need to compromise between a perfect whether window and your desired ETA. I agree with others that waiting in Falmouth or maybe somewhere in Brittany for decent steady weather should be fine. When you look at the charts though, you'll see where Biscay shallows - in some places this is a very sharp reduction in depth. These are the bits to really avoid as this is where the seas will be probably be steepest. Some argue, with a decent forecast, that to go out to deep water is by far the safest thing to do rather than going too far South and making the SW hop shorter. I would either do Camarinas in one direct hit from Falmouth or coast hop as far as La Rochelle and go from there. If you land Santanderish you may have a very, very long beat until you turn the corner and head South. I strongly advise radar as fog and traffic are big features of the Galician coast.

As far as the Raz and Four are concerned, as others have said, it's just down to timing and doing what the pilot books say. Despite doing this though, when I went through, it was still pretty wild water!

You've got a smallish boat and a small crew. The cost of the haulage will not be wildly different to the living costs and diesel (and radar) of staying on board for the 2-3-4 weeks it'll take to get to the Med. The Med is also a big place to explore in luvverly sunshine. Personally, I'd stick her on the back of a truck and enjoy the med a couple of days later!

Also, from my experience last year, remember that coming back, due to typical winds/current will be a lot harder (on your engine) than getting down!

Apart from South of Sines to the Algarve, there are plenty of safe marinas along the way down the Atlantic coast of Spain/Portugal.

Have fun!



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