so are you going to sail through the UK winter?

[NormanS]

We don't need to sail in the winter. This "Summer" in the Outer Hebrides we had plenty of days with hail storms and temperatures in single figures.

 

[Plum]

In UK waters that is? I have in the past raced through to New Years day and then re-started end January. But racing is time limited to max 6 hours and is reasonably active. Wouldnt fancy cruising, anchoring overnight etc.

What about you|?

I stay afloat all year so on the occasions when the weather is settled I can escape for a few days or more.

 

[Poignard]

The thing I liked least about winter sailing is the long evenings when it's too dark to sail.

Not such a problem in a marina where you can go ashore for a walk, a good dinner and a few pints, but on a mooring or at anchor I found it pretty dreary.

 

[trapper guy]

In case you have not noticed- This is autumn- winter has not officially started yet

in the uk there is spring and summer for 4 months and winter..... for 8 months

 

[xyachtdave]

I’m not as keen for getting togged up in multiple layers as I once was for winter sailing.

I think you get a lot of weather induced wear and tear on the boat gear not packed away - sails, covers, running rigging etc for maybe a couple of weekends of sensible weather.

I’ve come out a bit early this year as I have quite a few jobs to get on with. I can say sitting outside a job waiting to start in the pouring rain this morning with our boat is tucked up with a tarpaulin over it and anything that’s going to go green removed, that I feel like I’m missing out.

 

[Boathook]

My boat is being lifted out next week. I'm hoping to get a final sail in the week but the weather whilst mild has strong winds coming in.
Presently sitting at home waiting for the rain to stop so that I can load the car up. Should have done it yesterday !

 

[mrming]

I think you get a lot of weather induced wear and tear on the boat gear not packed away - sails, covers, running rigging etc for maybe a couple of weekends of sensible weather.

That’s definitely one of the drawbacks. Our external canvas etc is being replaced this year. Being rigged permanently definitely takes its toll.

 

[dunedin]

in the uk there is spring and summer for 4 months and winter..... for 8 months

There’s nothing like a bit of positivity - and that’s nothing like positivity.

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[dunedin]

I’m not as keen for getting togged up in multiple layers as I once was for winter sailing.

I think you get a lot of weather induced wear and tear on the boat gear not packed away - sails, covers, running rigging etc for maybe a couple of weekends of sensible weather.

I’ve come out a bit early this year as I have quite a few jobs to get on with. I can say sitting outside a job waiting to start in the pouring rain this morning with our boat is tucked up with a tarpaulin over it and anything that’s going to go green removed, that I feel like I’m missing out.

I reckon you probably get more wear and tear removing things and refitting them - certainly if remove the mast.

Different if stored inside in a shed, but otherwise mostly still exposed to the weather - and stuff unused tends to corrode etc.

One thing we do is put on the old jib for the winter as spends a lot of time furled in strong winds.

 

[Poignard]

in the uk there is spring and summer for 4 months and winter..... for 8 months

And that's in a good year!

 

[wombat88]

Winter is for varnishing. Stupid really because it takes an age to dry.

 

[lustyd]

Last day of work is 31st December so we'll be setting off in January for Ireland and Scotland then possibly Norway before turning south to escape. Thankfully I'll only be 45 so although a "retiree" I hope to be young enough to enjoy the crisp mornings and night sails for a few years at least

 

[trapper guy]

There’s nothing like a bit of positivity - and that’s nothing like positivity.

More forum grumblies

you are correct, its not positivity, its reality. its mid oct now, its cold, and its going to BE cold till mid may or early june, i make that 8 months

 

[johnalison]

The English winter, which ends in July, to recommence in August, as Byron said, is only for enthusiasts as far as I’m concerned. After I retired we kept the new boat in commission through the winter for a couple of seasons. In the end, we found that the few days that were half nice let alone magical weren’t enough to justify the effort. As well as the cold, which my Raynauld’s doesn’t like at all, there was the need to keep the insurance going, and the need to attend the boat regularly just to run the engine to warm properly even if the weather was foul.

There was one memorable occasion when we were sitting in the cockpit tent in the marina during a horizontal snowstorm and we recorded our all-time highest wind speed of 58 knots, and another when we anchored in solitude in Hamford Water for lunch, only to be joined a few minutes later by three blokes in an Achilles who anchored a few yards away and proceeded to talk loudly among themselves in the cockpit. We passive-aggressively up-anchored and repositioned ourselves out of earshot.

 

[Stemar]

While I tend to support the notion that there's no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing/ wrong boat, unless you lot are feeling particularly charitable, the right boat for johnalison's 58 knots or snowstorm is well out of my budget. I'm not sure what that boat is, but it almost certainly has a comfy deck saloon with indoor helm and efficient heating, and I doubt it's under 40 ft.

Jazzcat relies on mains voltage for heating, so our winter sailing is limited to the odd day sail or a potter up the harbour to a quiet spot for lunch

 

[Daydream believer]

I think you get a lot of weather induced wear and tear on the boat gear not packed away - sails, covers, running rigging etc for maybe a couple of weekends of sensible weather.

There are boats in the marina with green mould that will take ages to clean from the canvas. Whether that be dodgers, lazy covers, wheel covers, or sprayhoods. As for running rigging, the UV & green mould just spoils handling of the vessel. Nothing worse than trying to handle hard sheets or overcome friction on green halyards & vangs etc. You only have to walk along a pontoon early season & see the thick bits of rope on backstay & kicker tackle covered in mould & going hard to realise that the owners will lose the real enjoyment from sailing.

 

[trapper guy]

one thing i have noticed while sailing, is the complete lack of constitution of shoe soles.
ive had three pairs this year whose sole has fallen off cleanly within months of purchasing.
and ive a fourth pair that is showing signs of parting company with the rest of the shoe....

 

[jac]

We stay afloat - coming out only for two weeks when we can get a good price around Easter. We're on a sheltered mid river pontoon so other than anodes, pressure washing the coppercoat and polishing the hull we can do most winter maintenance tasks fairly easily nut have typically found that by the time we get to November the days of suitable weather that coincide with availability becomes vanishingly small!!!

 

[Birdseye]

I find leaving the boat afloat simpler and less stressful than ashore with worries about wind and freezing. But I lift every 2 years so I can check underwater, polish the hull, refresh the coppercoat, anode etc. I find leaving the boat commissioned and ready to go makes the next season easier too.

Yes thats something I found. In my early days the boat came out of the water onto the club hard end October and back in again in April. Of course sails were removed, all the running rigging into the washing machine, all papers, charts etc off the boat together with all electronics, raft, outboard, tender etc. Then a few months pottering, most jobs on the list not done, and several days spent putting everything back on the boat. And all done in the cold / rain of the miserable months.

Leave the boat in the water over winter, get in a bit of racing and have a lift out mid summer when conditions are good, days are long and you dont need to empty the boat. Much easier and way quicker.

 

[FairweatherDave]

Not enough distinction being made between those on swinging moorings and in the water in marinas over the winter....if you are going to actually sail in the winter. The effort of getting to our boat via dinghy in the winter is a real deterrent, The joys of a mains electric supply for maintenance tasks and keeping the boat fresh and dry while afloat in a marina appeals...easy to go for a sail if the weather suits......last winter we stayed afloat but being on a swinger had to remove all the canvas, bedding, curtains and cushions.....going for a short day sail not very appealing. You are frozen or soggy bottomed in the Avon dinghy before you've even arrived at the boat. I did have a very successful overnight maintenance visit in February in beautiful cold weather, just me, very basic camping and just motoring round the harbour to a free mooring at Itchenor, completely the opposite of a summer sailing weekend but magical. Being in two sleeping bags before 9pm a bit weird though . I think being in a marina over winter would be the way to do it, but even then my wife simply can't keep warm enough whatever.