Weather forecast - is LW radio OK?

[slawosz]

Hi,
I am going to have odd stages during my trip when I will be 20-30 nm from the shore (say, Weymouth - Plymouth) or cross-channel from Plymouth. I am thinking about being able to receive Radio 4 forecast, just wonder if anyone is practicing this? I understand I need LW radio?

 

[jac]

Be aware that LW signals will stop shortly/ For Cross channel a good ships VHF radio with an aerial on the mast will pick up coastguard warnings the whole way across. In the meantime, if you have a radio with LW you can capture the forecast.

Just be aware that listening to it is fairly ;imited - best is to be able to see the synoptic charts - either ones you have drawn from the radio of from a smartphone

 

[lustyd]

I don’t generally bother on a trip like that the forecast is unlikely to change significantly over the 12 hours or so you’d be away from phone signal, and even if it did you have a choice to go on or go back one of which will probably be with the weather.

 

[johnalison]

Modern forecasting, internet or other sources, is pretty good up to three days, and certainly very good for 24 hours, with occasion exceptions locally. I would have no compunction about a Channel or North Sea crossing with a favourable forecast from a trusted source. The LW sea areas are so large that it is very unlikely that anything useful would be learned while on a passage of less than 24 hrs.

 

[srm]

LW was my only source of forecasts back in the 70's/80's. It takes quite a lot of practice to get the info written down, and if you miss one its a long wait to the next broadcast. Follow the advice in the posts above unless you want to develop your own met shorthand.

 

[Goldie]

I understand I need LW radio?

Radio 4 LW on 198 isn’t great in the SW (although at night, I’ve heard it from the Straits of Gibraltar!). However, R4 LW has MW repeaters in the SW, the most useful for you probably being 774 MW transmitting from Plymouth although obviously, these don’t have the range of 198 LW.

 

[srm]

Radio 4 LW on 198 isn’t great in the SW (although at night, I’ve heard it from the Straits of Gibraltar!). However, R4 LW has MW repeaters in the SW, the most useful for you probably being 774 MW transmitting from Plymouth although obviously, these don’t have the range of 198 LW.

But do the other stations broadcast the shipping forecast or local programes instead?

 

[Boathook]

Hi,
I am going to have odd stages during my trip when I will be 20-30 nm from the shore (say, Weymouth - Plymouth) or cross-channel from Plymouth. I am thinking about being able to receive Radio 4 forecast, just wonder if anyone is practicing this? I understand I need LW radio?

You will still be in vhf radio range and be able to listen to the forecasts transmitted by the coastguard. As mentioned by others as you close the coast use your smart phone for forecasts. Even the met office and bbc app forecasts for coastal areas will give a good idea of what is happening at sea.

 

[Roberto]

Also, if you are in an area with some traffic, don't forget you may hail another ship and ask them to relay the latest weather bulletin they have.
Terms like "big powerful giant of the sea, this is tiny lonely sailboat with vhf radio only" usually attract a lot of sympathy

 

[Goldie]

But do the other stations broadcast the shipping forecast or local programes instead?

I’m out of U.K. at the moment and so can’t check in practice, but my recollection is that 774 (Plymouth) and 756 (Cornwall) just relay whatever is on 198 LW so the answer I think is ‘yes’ to the Shipping Forecast. Certainly I’ve used it to listen to Test Match Special which is otherwise 198 LW only on non-DAB radios.

 

[doug748]

Hi,
I am going to have odd stages during my trip when I will be 20-30 nm from the shore (say, Weymouth - Plymouth) or cross-channel from Plymouth. I am thinking about being able to receive Radio 4 forecast, just wonder if anyone is practicing this? I understand I need LW radio?

As post2, your VHF is the first thing.

You could also equip yourself with something like this:

Roberts R871 R 871 BBC World Service Radio FM/MW/LW/SW World Receiver | eBay

It's old school which is often shorthand for more useful and robust. It will give you entertainment, on all the bands you could want, plus your weather on LW. It will not run down batteries when not in use, and also serves as a clock and alarm.


Navtex is excellent on a small boat, esp if you have no smart phone or a restrictive contract. It costs nothing to use and just sits there picking up the latest information. They are especially useful if you are at anchor and waiting for a good run of forecasts to set off, and are particularly handy in France for picking up the excellent local forecasts in English.
I bet you could get one for 50/100 quid if you put an ad in the "Wanted" column - a lot of folk on here don't seem keen on them.

.

 

[neil_s]

I've still got my Roberts radio - cassette! And it still works!

 

[chriscallender]

Hi,
I am going to have odd stages during my trip when I will be 20-30 nm from the shore (say, Weymouth - Plymouth) or cross-channel from Plymouth. I am thinking about being able to receive Radio 4 forecast, just wonder if anyone is practicing this? I understand I need LW radio?

Some real life weather experience. I sailed a boat up from Southampton to the Firth of Clyde in May 2011; generally the weather was pretty unsettled and grotty for the time of year with low pressure systems coming in at 3 day-ish intervals. I spent plenty of time in ports waiting out the worst of it, but almost always knew what would be happening a day or 2 ahead. There was only one exception to that when I did make my one and only weather related diversion. I had left Ardglass planning to go to Portpartick, but then a couple of hours out of Ardglass the coastguard put out an updated strong wind warning on VHF. I didn't fancy crossing the North Channel in those conditions, so just continued up the coast of Ireland and into Belfast Lough, and then across to Troon after the crappy stuff went through.

Make of it what you will. I was a similar distance from land at times, even back in those days when mobile internet wasn't what it is today, LW wasn't the most critical source of information and on the whole it was pretty easy to get the forecasts/updates I needed from marina notice boards/VHF/internet. The weather made it a hard trip but in the end I got to where I wanted to get to. I was amazed at the comfort of the train heading back down south and standing in Kings Cross 4 hours after leaving Glasgow .

 

[johnalison]

I think the last time we were misled by a forecast was in 2003 when we set out from the Scillies for Cork. There was almost no wind but the forecast was SW 3-4, which sounded ideal. In the night it blew F6 from WNW and we had an unpleasant five hours before it dropped to almost nothing and we ended up motoring in, after 24 hrs. Other than that, I have only encountered local variations that have occasionally been annoying for a short time, such as the forecast 15 kn that turned out to be 28 kn on the nose when leaving the Roompot.

 

[dunedin]

I think it is extremely rare nowadays that severe weather hits within UK waters without being forecast at least 36 hours in advance. Hence there should be no issue sailing the channel or similar waters without Navtext etc.

What is NOT rare is people:
(a) not monitoring the forecasts sufficiently prior to departure - if doing a longish leg should be looking at over a period of 2-3 days ahead, using 2 or 3 separate forecast models (not just web sites using the same model), and not just looking at the short term Inshore Waters forecast
(b) being over optimistic and setting out into an iffy forecast without slowing for a slight worsening of the forecast - a F5/6 on the nose is probably already a bad idea, but should assume likely to get F6/7 for some of the time
(c) not allowing for expected increases round headlands etc.

With modern forecasts, good practice assessing multiple medium range forecasts is worth much more than an extra short term forecast en route when probably already committed.

 

[jac]

I think it is extremely rare nowadays that severe weather hits within UK waters without being forecast at least 36 hours in advance. Hence there should be no issue sailing the channel or similar waters without Navtext etc.

What is NOT rare is people:
(a) not monitoring the forecasts sufficiently prior to departure - if doing a longish leg should be looking at over a period of 2-3 days ahead, using 2 or 3 separate forecast models (not just web sites using the same model), and not just looking at the short term Inshore Waters forecast
(b) being over optimistic and setting out into an iffy forecast without slowing for a slight worsening of the forecast - a F5/6 on the nose is probably already a bad idea, but should assume likely to get F6/7 for some of the time
(c) not allowing for expected increases round headlands etc.

With modern forecasts, good practice assessing multiple medium range forecasts is worth much more than an extra short term forecast en route when probably already committed.

Good list.

My personal take is never set off if the forecast mentions a 6 unless downwind / reaching in vaguely sheltered waters and with tide. Good the boat take it? yes. Would beating into 30 knots apparent be fun? No - so why do it.

 

[lustyd]

a F5/6 on the nose is probably already a bad idea

At 16kt a F4 will be an apparent F6 if you're doing over 6kt through the water into it, worse if you have favourable tide too. It's a difficult subject to discuss because everyone means something slightly different when they talk about it, and each boat handles differently, and each skipper understands the changes that boat speed and direction make differently. I don't feel it's a particularly well taught subject either, even something as simple as points of sail and the mythical beam reach that doesn't really exist in the real world.

 

[franksingleton]

I have only just noticed this thread which has more good sense than is often the case In YBW forums. Just a few comments.

1. You may hear HMCG on Ch16 a long way off but working channels far less.

2. If you hear a warning announced but are out of working channel range, you might make a request on Ch16 and ask to stay on that channel. Reasonable for a warning, if not for a routine forecast.

3. Good to see NAVTEX mentioned but the sea area forecasts on 518kHz are only every 12 hours. The main plus for the shipping forecast on R4 is 4 times daily. If you really want more frequent forecasts, you will nee 490kHz for the inshore forecast.

4. I echo the need to see forecasts for several days ahead. On a substantive passage, I would be watching forecasts for a week or more ahead. Also that some people do take a chance.

5. As we all know, forecasts are far better than in the not too distant past. BUT, there can still be errors, albeit fairly rare and localised.