Weather info on passage.
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pauldoody
Member
"Yeah, but I wonder what Joshua Slocum would have to say about it?"
And we all know what happened to Joshua. I would agree with Frank re VHF etc for inshore comms it is essiential basic equipment. For ocean work recieving weather is extremely important for a safe and efficient passage. I have used Meteo France text bullitins on my SSB, and have found them to be more accurate than the basic grib files.
Apart from safety it enables you to position yourself on a favourable tack for landfall.
And we all know what happened to Joshua. I would agree with Frank re VHF etc for inshore comms it is essiential basic equipment. For ocean work recieving weather is extremely important for a safe and efficient passage. I have used Meteo France text bullitins on my SSB, and have found them to be more accurate than the basic grib files.
Apart from safety it enables you to position yourself on a favourable tack for landfall.
Pye_End
Well-known member
When you say text do you mean the spoken forecast after 12.30, or do they do a CW version as well?
Athene V30
Active member
'any' is a bit bold but I am not going to react as this isn't the lounge.
I still hope to be at the start of JAC12 in my low tec 40 year old boat and all being well I will be at the finish line too. Getting a shipping forecast to tell me there is a Force whatever on the way for Biscay won't change the boats position to avoid it, so I'll have to deal with it. A barometer dropping or rinsing rapidly and the change in clouds and swell will tell me of the approaching weather too.
Conachair
Guest
I came back via the Azores solo form the caribbean last year, a few thoughts on weather..
Assuming you have a laptop onboard then weatherfax is yours for the costs of a degen 1103 off ebay. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/DEGEN-DE1...71169?pt=Shortwave_Radios&hash=item335054ddc1 I had good signal from northwood all the way up from Flores.
Each skipper to their own, but it's big out there, anything you can do to tip the dice in your favour is a good thing. Weatherfax will give you a good big picture of whats going on in the Atlantic, not too many miles change of course could make a big difference to your speed and comfort.
I prefer weatherfax to gribs, with gribs I found a tendancy to think it was "real" and not just a forecast. Also unless you can afford big download times you'll only be downloading a small area around the boat.
Didn't have much joy with navtex.
Didn't really bother with voice forecasts, weatherfax, visual clues and barometer will give you a much better idea of whats going on with the weather to you and your boat.
Offshore solo for me, way up near the top of the list is an ais reciever with loud alarm and a way to get weatherfaxes. And a pressure cooker
Good luck.
Assuming you have a laptop onboard then weatherfax is yours for the costs of a degen 1103 off ebay. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/DEGEN-DE1...71169?pt=Shortwave_Radios&hash=item335054ddc1 I had good signal from northwood all the way up from Flores.
Each skipper to their own, but it's big out there, anything you can do to tip the dice in your favour is a good thing. Weatherfax will give you a good big picture of whats going on in the Atlantic, not too many miles change of course could make a big difference to your speed and comfort.
I prefer weatherfax to gribs, with gribs I found a tendancy to think it was "real" and not just a forecast. Also unless you can afford big download times you'll only be downloading a small area around the boat.
Didn't have much joy with navtex.
Didn't really bother with voice forecasts, weatherfax, visual clues and barometer will give you a much better idea of whats going on with the weather to you and your boat.
Offshore solo for me, way up near the top of the list is an ais reciever with loud alarm and a way to get weatherfaxes. And a pressure cooker
Good luck.
lenseman
Active member
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I am surprised no one has even mentioned the Vion A4000 series of electronic barometer. Outside France they are sometimes re branded as Weems & Path 4002.
They are designed specifically for the yachtsman and include a 'stylised' yacht being blown over' on the LCD display and it also sounds the alarm if the pressure falls more than 4 milli-whatsits per hour. It is almost like having a weather watch-keeper onboard constantly monitoring the 'glass' who warns you of approaching bad weather.
I have found mine to be extremely accurate to the point of the alarm going off in the middle of the night, looked out, flat calm?
Six hours later the glass had really fallen and it was blowing a hooley!!!
It also gives you a trend for the past 8 hours displayed as a bar-graph below the digital pressure display.
I would not be without it . . . .and the cost, £59 when I bought mine 5 or 6 years ago but I think they are about £85 today. They are sold in most reputable chandleries:
http://www.vion-marine.com/english/
http://www.vion-marine.com/english/recherche_produits_fiche.asp?id=77&lng=2&fam=2
Front panel display details here:
http://pdf.nauticexpo.com/pdf/vion/vion-marine/21873-1890-_4.html
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franksingleton
Well-known member
I have no problem with that pragmatic approach. For choice, I would like as well. I agree that GRIBs look convincing but, used with care they are probably a better decision making tool than charts as a cruiser found last year when he gave the AZAB fleet a day start and arrived back home before they did.
Remember that GRIBs probably underestimate strong winds by about 20% (Stan Honey’s figure) but get directions pretty well to about 5 days and are rarely grossly misleading up to 6 or 7 days.
The Météo France forecasters should give better wind speeds over the first 24 hours using their knowledge of the model output. GRIBs will give good advice way beyond that.
However, if a storm has your name on it then you will not avoid it unless you have a very fast boat. But, forecasts will give you time to prepare.
Forecasts in voices are available from the USCG and from Radio Monaco, all on HF/SSB. If you can get email either via Iridium or HF/SSB, then sending an email to query@saildocs.com with text “send http://.......” will get an email with just the text off the relevant page. I have many links on my site that can be used for that purpose.
My longest passages have only been across Biscay but I have met a number of oceanic sailors on our travels. Generally they carry SSB transceivers, Iridium and, sometimes, INMARSAT-C equipment as well as VHF and NAVTEX. Two have expressed surprise at the lack of such equipment on UK yachts.
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franksingleton
Well-known member
Nothing wrong with using a barometer. However, like looking at the sky or even at the swell directions, it is a short term tool. Vital if you have nothing else. Using forecasts – GRIBs especially, you would get days warning of strong winds rather than hours.
frauboot
New member
How waterproof are they? I replaced my aneroid barometer with an electronic barometer [not one of the brands you mention] and it only lasted a year on the boat until the salt water found its way in. I've gone back to an aneroid barometer. Although I do miss the 24 hour pressure record.
frauboot
New member
I would like to see where these 'obligations' are quoted? Chapter and verse please.
Conachair
Guest
Gmdss is a part of SOLAS.
Recreational vessels do not need to comply with GMDSS radio carriage requirements.
"Every ship, while at sea, shall be capable of transmitting and receiving general radiocommunications to and from shore-based radio systems or networks subject to regulation 15(8)"
http://www.inmarsat.com/Maritimesafety/gmdss1.htm
A couple of minutes on google and you can find all this stuff out for yourself
franksingleton
Well-known member
SOLAS Chapter IV places requirements on vessels >300 GRT and certain other vessels eg training yachts. These are international legal requirements.
A good clear starting point is http://www.icselectronics.co.uk/support/kb/gmdss
See the MCA table of communications compliance requirements http://www.dft.gov.uk/mca/mcga-goog...cations&sa=Search&siteurl=www.dft.gov.uk/mca/.
The relevant page is http://www.dft.gov.uk/mca/qms-msn1734-5.pdf.
These are advisory for most leisure vessels but recommended by the MCA
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franksingleton
Well-known member
Sorry, Conachair. I took so long composing a reply that I did not notice your much more concise response.
Pye_End
Well-known member
Frank - Can how far can radio Monaco be picked up?
Also, I have tried to follow your links on your website to see if there is a text somewhere of the Radio France 1130UTC transmission. As a schoolboy-French speaker only it will be much easier to understand if I know what the exact format is!
evantica
New member
There's also GRIB files...satphone pro or Iridium = sat nav. also somewhat safety phone in critcal emergency. I Think I'll go for it.
franksingleton
Well-known member
I do not have the frequencies at hand. But, they broadcast on 11 o2 12 mHz and around 15 mHz. those frequencies should, as far as I know, be capable of reception across all of METAREA II at least..
For texts try http://weather.mailasail.com/Franks-Weather/Southwest-European-Marine-Weather-Forecast-Texts.
franksingleton
Well-known member
A more complete answer as that ETAREA II .texts broadcast via INMARSAT-C are also broadcast on 8 806 kHz, 13 152 kHz, 17 323 kHz, 22 768 kHz. SSB (BLU) at 9h30 UTC (French and English). The area covered is at http://weather.mailasail.com/Franks-Weather/French-Weather-Forecast-Areas-Metarea2
There is also the Radio France Internationale broadcast on 6 175 kHz,(beamed for Europe), and 15 300 kHz, 15 515 kHz, 17 570 kHz and 21 645 kHz (for Atlantic reception) at 11h30 UTC. The area covered is at http://weather.mailasail.com/Franks-Weather/Radio-France-Internationale-Sea-Areas. These are HF (NOT USB.)
Broadcasts are intended to cover the areas of the forecasts.
Links to texts of these and other forecasts for the general area are at http://weather.mailasail.com/Franks-Weather/Southwest-European-Marine-Weather-Forecast-Texts.
Gargleblaster
Well-known member
Some of the more significant small boat ocean sailors I have met would agree entirely with Karouise. Although some would decry the need for a barometer. I'm thinking of the likes of Mike Richie, Trevor Leek, Roger Taylor and Bill Churchouse, 75% of whom don't even carry a VHF radio.
It was interesting that on the most isolated inhabited island in the world in mid winter last year of the 3 boats that were there only one was equiped with long range communications.
In my opinion it is the bigger boats (over 40 feet) that seem to be utterly dependent on communications to work out what the weather is going to do.
I find the clouds are the most reliable indicators of what the weather is going to do. I do watch the barometer and record it every log entry, and that tells me how bad it is likely to get although at times I, mistakenly, refuse to believe it. I have been caught our by squalls coming through in the middle of the night that have forced me to reduce sail in a hurry. But generally looking at the forces of nature around me gives me plenty of warning that things are going to get worse or better.
The times I have sailed on boats that can receive either synoptic charts or grib files, they have tended to not always agree with local conditions. It can be very annoying when you sail a course to give you an advantage when the forecast wind changes in a few days and that wind change never eventuates. I have had a 30 hour gale come through that did not appear in any of the forecasts in the South Pacific - I accept the fact that weather forecasting in isolated areas is not as good as you would expect in mid Atlantic. Interesting enough a day before the wind came in I had a 'mackerel sky' that warned something was brewing.
However if you have the inclination, electricity and funds to play with toys on your boat, I'm sure getting weather forecasts can be a lot of fun.
co256
Member
...nicely summed up John!
LASSALLE
New member
A bad news;
RFI does not transmit any more since the first january 2012.
RFI does not transmit any more since the first january 2012.