Sea state slight to moderate

[Refueler]

I have tried to take pictures of monster waves. They end up looking like the worst your garden pond could do. It is hard even to get a photo of a wave breaking the horizon, unless you are of of those nutters who go off into the ocean for fun.

I have tried videoing greenies up and over bow ... but as said - looks like a casual shower !!

But then while sailing in company from Yarmouth .....

 

[geem]

They made very sleepy, i was slapping myself in the face trying to keep my eyes open, I will never take pills again. I find I am usually ok if I stay on the tiller with the wind in my face and look at the horizon.

Antihistamines work great for my wife. Start taking them the day before a passage. Try to eat foods low in histamines

 

[FairweatherDave]

But back to the title and "sea state". I spend plenty of time digesting wind forecasts but where do people go to get sea state forecasts, if they do at all? Pretty useful for crossing the channel and start from tucked behind the Isle of Wight for example?

 

[Refueler]

But back to the title and "sea state". I spend plenty of time digesting wind forecasts but where do people go to get sea state forecasts, if they do at all? Pretty useful for crossing the channel and start from tucked behind the Isle of Wight for example?

Windguru is my goto ...... we use it for Ship to Ship operations where we are putting ships alongside each other offshore ... if its good enough for that - its good enough for my boating.

I know someones going to pop up and say - Oh but it gets its info from such and such etc etc ... So what ? If it does the job and gives a good forecast of Winds, temps, wave height, precipitation etc ...

 

[Wandering Star]

Then I got really bad after taking a sturgeon pill.

Boathook:

Sturgeon sends me to sleep

**********+*++++++++++***********+

Sound rather fishy stories to me.

 

[srm]

A friend's teenage daughter joined for a day sail that took us through some potentially rough tidal waters. She had a novel and very effective answer to avoiding sea sickness. Hooked herself up to some rapid beat pop music and stood in the cockpit jiggling away to the beat holding on to the spray hood. She never noticed the boat's movements other than the visual effects.

 

[Sandy]

unless you are of of those nutters who go off into the ocean for fun.

Guilty as charged.

Do you mean like this? Not monster, but an interesting exit from the Exe a few years ago.

 

[wonkywinch]

Hydrobromide, no side effects, you say. Are you married?

You should try Finisteride. Not for sea sickness though. Treatment of enlarged walnut.

 

[finestgreen]

A friend's teenage daughter joined for a day sail that took us through some potentially rough tidal waters. She had a novel and very effective answer to avoiding sea sickness. Hooked herself up to some rapid beat pop music and stood in the cockpit jiggling away to the beat holding on to the spray hood. She never noticed the boat's movements other than the visual effects.

Not quite as much fun, but I've had some success pretending I'm the one rocking the boat by shifting my weight from one leg to the other and pushing down.

 

[johnalison]

Windguru is my goto ...... we use it for Ship to Ship operations where we are putting ships alongside each other offshore ... if its good enough for that - its good enough for my boating.

I know someones going to pop up and say - Oh but it gets its info from such and such etc etc ... So what ? If it does the job and gives a good forecast of Winds, temps, wave height, precipitation etc ...

I have seen sea state forecasts at various sites but I can't say that I find them very useful since conditions are so much influenced by local conditions where most of our sailing is done. In open water one can get a good idea from whatever the wind is doing. The sea state can be quite moderate over the wider area but sometimes a locally strong current such as at the Roompot can catch you out.

 

[FairweatherDave]

I have seen sea state forecasts at various sites but I can't say that I find them very useful since conditions are so much influenced by local conditions where most of our sailing is done. In open water one can get a good idea from whatever the wind is doing. The sea state can be quite moderate over the wider area but sometimes a locally strong current such as at the Roompot can catch you out.

Yes, that is my experience too. I've used wave height forecasts occasionally such as windguru but more often common sense experience of wind with/over tide, strong winds in the previous 24 hours etc but would find something more accurate useful- just wondered if I was missing some forecasting tool. The coastal/inshore waters forecast is usually reassuring but covers such large areas with bland terms like slight or moderate. If I'm planning a down wind passage with closely spaced waves it might be good for the sea sickness planning. That said it is supposed to be an adventure, boring knowing exactly what is going to happen.

 

[AntarcticPilot]

I have seen sea state forecasts at various sites but I can't say that I find them very useful since conditions are so much influenced by local conditions where most of our sailing is done. In open water one can get a good idea from whatever the wind is doing. The sea state can be quite moderate over the wider area but sometimes a locally strong current such as at the Roompot can catch you out.

Also, there's the question of the waveLENGTH as well as wave height. A wave height of several metres is not dramatic IF the wavelength is tens or hundreds of metres. But the same wave height with a wavelength comparable to the length of our boats is horrible! Of course, wavelengths shorten as waves get into shallower water - compare the North Sea chop with the West Coast of Scotland where waters are generally much deeper. When bringing Capricious from the Clyde I really noticed the difference!

Wave height is measured by satellite's over a footprint of kilometres, so although we know the wave height, we generally don't know the wavelengths. And of course it's not that simple - there are usually several interesting wave trains, so there are complex interactions.

Wave height alone doesn't give enough information.

 

[mrming]

We crossed back over the Thames Estuary a couple of weeks ago - Essex to Kent. I happened to look at the sea state prediction in the shipping forecast: slight to moderate. The first 2/3 of the passage were very calm, but I knew we were going to get it in the teeth at the end, with forecast gusts of 25 knots on the nose and wind against tide. Only one of the kids was sick as we hobby horsed over the nasty, steep, and surprisingly tall chop for an hour. All to be expected but there was nothing “slight to moderate” about it.

 

[debenriver]

Singing – you can't be sick and sing at the same time – most always worked for me – mind you the rest of the crew weren't too keen!! Now in my old age (80) I don't seem to get seasick any more.

Cheers -- George

 

[Rhylsailer99]

Also, there's the question of the waveLENGTH as well as wave height. A wave height of several metres is not dramatic IF the wavelength is tens or hundreds of metres. But the same wave height with a wavelength comparable to the length of our boats is horrible! Of course, wavelengths shorten as waves get into shallower water - compare the North Sea chop with the West Coast of Scotland where waters are generally much deeper. When bringing Capricious from the Clyde I really noticed the difference!

Wave height is measured by satellite's over a footprint of kilometres, so although we know the wave height, we generally don't know the wavelengths. And of course it's not that simple - there are usually several interesting wave trains, so there are complex interactions.

Wave height alone doesn't give enough information.

Waves felt big but was ok as the boat went up and down with them as not really very steep if that makes sense.

 

[Rhylsailer99]

How long did it take you

 

[Rhylsailer99]

I have a tracker here is my route with start and end times.

 

[Rhylsailer99]

How long did it take you

 

[srm]

Sea state forecasts do not take account of local effects such as tidal streams, shallow water etc. The only time I really looked for a sea state forecasts was before a west bound passage around Cape Wrath with a low in the Atlantic that could be sending a biggish swell towards us. The swell was not a problem in itself, except that we would be carrying a west going tide to get around the Cape and swell against a strong tide stream can give serious breaking seas. We delayed the passage and had a comfortable trip a day later.

 

[Rhylsailer99]

Waves always seem bigger from the deck of a small boat. I don't know for sure but it may be a similar effect to the way we see a full moon when it's near the horizon - it looks huge but if you photograph it, it looks much smaller in the photo. Waves also look smaller in photos than in 'real life'.

I find the best way to avoid seasickness is to keep my eyes focused on the sea and the horizon. I avoid as much as possible looking at the boat, the instruments, anything written, my phone. And if I have to go below deck for any reason, I keep my eyes closed - fortunately I know where pretty much anything I might need is stored so can do this. Seasickness is caused by contradictory inputs from the eyes and the ears - if you look at something on the boat, it isn't moving relative to you so your eyes tell the brain that you and it are static. Whereas the movement and balance sensors in your ears tell your brain that you're moving. The poor old brain gets confused and triggers the symptoms we label seasickness.

Yes, I tried to vdeo the waves but they look feeble . My 13yr old son was also sea sick, he never spoke for 7hrs its the most quiet I have ever know him to be.
It actually took 11hrs from Red Wharf Bay.