Click for Furuno Click for Burger Click for Nordhavn Click for Nordhavn Click for Ocean Alexander

Captain's pay for this gig...?

Discussion in 'Yacht Captains' started by Norseman, Jun 24, 2016.

You need to be registered and signed in to view this content.
  1. olderboater

    olderboater Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 2, 2013
    Messages:
    7,132
    Location:
    Fort Lauderdale
    There is always the option of running the northern route as a choice too, although generally not the preferred choice.
  2. Norseman

    Norseman Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2005
    Messages:
    2,904
    Location:
    Ft. Lauderdale
    I considered that too, but experienced Mercant Mariners did not recommend it due to frequent Low pressure areas and sometimes fog.
    Before I do any planning I may contact a Weather Service and pull Pilot Charts, etc.
  3. HTMO9

    HTMO9 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 13, 2009
    Messages:
    1,670
    Location:
    Germany
    Norseman, I have done that northern route serveral times in both directions during my first assigment as the captain on one of my fathers coasters. No fun at all, especially with a leisure boat. Low temps, bad weather and drifting ice even during summer and the drings are far to expensive in Greenland and Reykjavik, Island. The only real advantage of this route is, that with proper planning (availabilty of diesel fuel in some little harbours in Greenland), it could theoretically be done with a 1000 NM range boat. The last time I did that route, was the island hopping (in the air of course) with my CJ2, when I picked it up in Wichita, Kansas. All other atlantic crossings, I have done with sailboats are via the southern route.

    The route via the Bermudas and the Azores to NW Spain and from their across the Bay of Biscay and the English Channel to Amsterdam, is perfect during summer. Make sure to drop your anker at Guernsey, to share some drings with Fishtigua :).

    Go for it Norseman, if You get permission by the admiral. Retirement does not have to mean, sitting in a rocking chair on your patio. With the proper planning and the appropriate safety equipment, a good ship and some well trained and obedience crew, a great adventure. The worst things, that can happen to you, is running out of drinks and a mutiny :D.

    5, 6 0r even 8 K plus expences and the fuel for the trip is still much cheaper for the owner, than placing this 70 ft, 92 metric ton boat on a special cargo vessel.
  4. Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 29, 2008
    Messages:
    8,118
    Location:
    Miami, FL
    And the typical track of a recurving storm is right along route to Europe. In August. Yikes
  5. HTMO9

    HTMO9 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 13, 2009
    Messages:
    1,670
    Location:
    Germany
    It is not that bad. Hurricanes are not a daily occurrence on the Atlanticduring summer. But You have to plan for taking a weather break on one of the intermediate stops on your way if necessary. I would not plan to cross a Hurricane alley with this boat either.
  6. Norseman

    Norseman Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2005
    Messages:
    2,904
    Location:
    Ft. Lauderdale
    Aye, the Admiral want me out of the house for sure.
    No rocking chair, but I am getting fat and lazy from surfing the couch too much:)
    Actually taking my own boat out every other day doing river cruises with the
    Occasional Flordia Keys or Bimini trip.
    Roger on the route, and with good Sat technology one could get a few days warning on a hurricane and steam 90 degrees off the path, probably straight North while watching the thing head for Florida to destroy my house and my boat. Then wife will kill me when I get back for leaving her alone in the hurricane season o_O
  7. Norseman

    Norseman Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2005
    Messages:
    2,904
    Location:
    Ft. Lauderdale
    Any safe harbors or hurricane holes in the Azores?

    (Only been there with an airplane, it was weird starting the descent in the middle of the Atlantic and 100 miles from the Islands, but down at low altitude, in the haze, we got land in sight)
  8. HTMO9

    HTMO9 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 13, 2009
    Messages:
    1,670
    Location:
    Germany
    Approaching the Azores with an aircraft or with a boat is a totally different story. During my first flight to the Azores and inbound our destination Lajes Air station in the NE of the Azore island Terceira, we had (because of range) a point of no return in our flight planning. Pretty stupid from my todays point ofvview but....! 80 NM out of Lajes, we got a weather report of 50 Kts crosswind and wet runway. Our alternate was Santa Maria airport about 100 NM SSE. Their weather was even worse. Means the weather changes pretty quick. Old saying on the Azores: "If you do not like the weather on the Azores, just wait two hours". We landed at Lajes anyhow and very lucky without any incident on all 4 aircraft. but non of was was really amused. After receiving our mission report, when comming home, the Azores were scratched from our list of possible destinations by our headquarters. Later Lajes was only allowed for planned landings with air refuelling. But at this time, I had already left active duty.

    The Azores as an intermediate stop and safe harbour for passagemakers are great. Several islands to choose from, depending on weather, swell and wind direction and a lot of safe harbours during storms. But Ponta Delgada on Sao Miguel and Horta on the island of Faial are the best. And among them, Horta is my favorite. The Cafe Sport in Horta is THE meeting point for sailors and circumnavigators/passagemakers per se in the Atlantic. In the days before satcom, the cafe sport was the post office for all sailors crossing the pond. Horta is a must, when crossing the Atlantic either way. Only sailors wanting to enter the trade winds, depending on season, go more to the south via the Canaric Islands. But this is not important for power boaters.
  9. Norseman

    Norseman Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2005
    Messages:
    2,904
    Location:
    Ft. Lauderdale
    Good info, Horta it is, thx.
  10. K1W1

    K1W1 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 30, 2005
    Messages:
    7,388
    Location:
    My Office
    I could put you in touch with a guy who does relief work and deliveries as a part time job if you like. He is ex commercial and has driven a lot of sail boats and big motor yachts in his time.
  11. Norseman

    Norseman Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2005
    Messages:
    2,904
    Location:
    Ft. Lauderdale
    That could be helpful but a tad too early.
    No money has changed hands yet, decisions to go full speed ahead, or not, in a day or two.
    Will keep everybody posted and will forward this thread to the buyer if he goes ahead.
  12. Ken Bracewell

    Ken Bracewell Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 9, 2006
    Messages:
    1,721
    Location:
    Somewhere Sunny
    You won't have any problems at that speed if you have a good weather router. PM if you need a recommendation.
  13. olderboater

    olderboater Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 2, 2013
    Messages:
    7,132
    Location:
    Fort Lauderdale
    You're right. The only boats that really have any excuse for getting caught in a hurricane while crossing are the 6 or 7 knot boats. At 10 knots, you're never more than about 4 days from land. Hurricanes don't just pop up overnight in that area. By then they've been tracked quite a while.
  14. Norseman

    Norseman Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2005
    Messages:
    2,904
    Location:
    Ft. Lauderdale

    Thx, will keep that in mind.
  15. Ken Bracewell

    Ken Bracewell Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 9, 2006
    Messages:
    1,721
    Location:
    Somewhere Sunny
    I'm not saying that you shouldn't pay attention, and focus on safety. But, whence you've finished your first Atlantic crossing, you'll laugh at yourself for how worried you were before-hand.
    The key difference to ocean crossing vs. something like a trip up the coast, or down to the Caribbean, is that you have lots of sea room to go around the weather. A diversion of a couple of hundred miles is no big deal in the scheme of things. Make sure you have your comms sorted out to get weather routing reports, and it'll be a piece of cake.
  16. Norseman

    Norseman Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2005
    Messages:
    2,904
    Location:
    Ft. Lauderdale
    Yeah, will have all comes up and running for sure.
    Actually I have crossed the pond before, but as a crew and not as a Captain: On a 700' chemical tanker and we did find a hurricane in the middle of nowhere. As we were loaded down and the waves were not breaking monsters, we only felt the wind at 90-100 knots and spray flying with some pitching and rolling.)
    Also it was weird to see the flag on the stern get smaller and smaller every minute and after 1/2 hour it was gone. (I watched it through a window from the crew's mess)

    My concerns are that this boat has been sitting idle for a couple of years and when things get shaken up, stuff could happen. (Steering, sediments in tanks, electrical power, etc. Yes, good idea to bring an engineer, who wants to go, no charge for room and board:))
  17. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 11, 2005
    Messages:
    14,432
    Location:
    Fort Lauderdale
    The problem is, this type of trip that you're planning. You DO NOT cut corners. It's not the type of trip you do on a shore string budget, and it sounds like that is precisely what the buyer is trying to do. I would bring an engineer or at least someone that is very mechanically minded. Also, does the boat even have the proper transformer for when it gets to Europe and 50 cycle electricity?
  18. Chasm

    Chasm Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 30, 2013
    Messages:
    137
    Location:
    Germany
    Sounds like a shake up trip is in the future, before crossing the pond.
  19. JWY

    JWY Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 22, 2004
    Messages:
    1,507
    Location:
    Ft. Lauderdale
    I'm joining this party a little late as the thread title was one that didn't compel my immediate attention.

    I have a 49' No Limit Ships coming over for FLIBS and taking the northern route cautioned above. If of interest, I can start a new thread when she departs Holland shortly.

    As to Farmont, the original builder started Peer Gynt yachts built in steel, designed by Steve Seaton, in Louisiana in th elate 90's and completed 2, maybe 3, of them. Then he started building Farmont in Turkey in fiberglass. He died a few years ago and his widow was trying to sell the yard and brand. I have pictures of the last 2 hulls, incomplete, in the yard in Antalya. I have no current history from the last 2 years. I tried contacting the broker about the vessel in the thread but he never returned any of my several calls. Guess he wasn't what we call "broker friendly" or perhaps this yacht would have sold long before Dag's buyer came along.

    Judy
  20. olderboater

    olderboater Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 2, 2013
    Messages:
    7,132
    Location:
    Fort Lauderdale
    I also know someone who took the Northern Route in a 42' KK.