Quote:
| Originally Posted by martinjc I’m planning to bring a 50’ Navigator from Seattle to San Francisco the end of May. Avg speed 10 – 15 kts. I would be interesting in hearing from someone that has made that trip before, tips, recommendations and such. |
martinjc,
As a regular on the Oregon and Washington Coasts I'll feel free to chime in here. Weather windows are critical. Always be willing to put in for a couple of days to let a system or two blow by. This is not the place to be "brave." Well thought out, however, it is also not a place to fear.
Crossing bars is something you should be prepared for; rule of thumb says to enter with the slack flood tide and leave with the slack ebb tide. It's not always the case but generally you'll get better crossings that way. This is true of the Straits as well. Each bar has reports available through the CG. Keep a watch on 16 and listen for the reports. They will let you know when and how the report was taken if you ask. Also listen for other boaters who report back that the bar is better or worse than reported.
While the Columbia River Bar is noteworthy it is also crossed 50-100 times or more per day during the season by boats in the 16-26' category. (Not always recommended, mind you, but done nonetheless.) No reason to avoid it due to its reputation; all Oregon coast bars share that same rep. A nice crossing is available at Newport but that's quite a stretch from Neah Bay.
Going south from Seattle at your speeds I'd suggest Neah Bay, Ilwaco, Newport, and Coos Bay. That makes for some pretty reasonable 120-180 mile days with services at each stop.
The 30 fathom is a minimum IMO; less than that and you'll be dodging crab pot buoys. All things being equal between 30-40 fathoms is probably a good balance. Generally there's not much need to venture further out than that, at least not at your speeds.
Not sure what other resources are out there but NOAA has a lot of buoys on the coasts. Their main site is
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/pqr/buoys.php. You can also get the buoy info on your cell phone (Dial-A-Buoy 888-701-8992) or via your cell phone's browser (cell.weather.gov). They've got more info at
http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/marine/internet.htm#pda. These are free aside from your cell charges. Cell service, by the way, is generally good on the coast with some windows of poor coverage.
Have a great and safe trip.