Trans-Atlantic In An Old Boat

by John March 18, 2009
A map showing east to west sailing routes across the North Atlantic: The North Route, The Tough Upwind Route, the Downwind Route Via The Azores, and The Traditional & Best Route.

Question: I have my 36′ Aage Nielsen yawl in Norway and I need to bring her home to Maine. I would appreciate your comments regarding my choice of routes. One idea is down to the Azores and then over to the eastern US; the reverse of how I sailed to Europe. The other option I’m [...]

Rounding Cape Farewell, Greenland

by John May 18, 2009
An iceberg is formed by waves on the southeast coast of Greenland.

Question: We are planning to cross the North Atlantic east to west via the Arctic route in June on the way to an attempt to transit the North West Passage. We plan to leave from Iceland on a passage to the west coast of Greenland and are wondering how close to round Cape Farewell [south [...]

Trans-Ocean Navigation

by John September 18, 2009
The chart shows various great circle (dotted orange) and rhumb line (solid gray lines). Counter intuitively, the curved courses are actually shorter. The difference between the two tracks is almost nonexistent on the Caribbean to US east coast passage; larger on the westbound trans-Atlantic passage; and very large on the eastbound trans-Atlantic passage, to the point that the great circle course takes you over land and the iceberg infested Grand Banks—a good reason to understand which type of course your GPS is using!

Question: We are crossing the Atlantic from the Canary Islands to St. Lucia. I found a large scale chart of the Atlantic (Imray Passage Chart 100). This single chart shows the entire Atlantic Ocean taking the earth’s curvature into account and therefore does NOT have a compass rose to help steer by. I am having [...]

Don’t Get Caught In The Gulfstream

by John October 18, 2009
Jenifer's Clark's Gulfstream chart

It’s the time of year when many cruisers turn their eyes south and start planning a fall passage to Bermuda. I started sailing to and fro between Bermuda and the U.S. East Coast some 35 years ago. Back then we often took lumps and did not even know why.

Watch Out For Whales—Part I

by Colin December 18, 2009
OVNI 435 Pèlerin with a friendly whale swimming close by.

Another race, another whale collision, yet again ending in the loss of a boat and injury to a whale. Thankfully no loss of life, although one day that may not be the case. What is happening out on the oceans? Pirates everywhere, climate change driven hurricanes, and now homicidal whales?

Atlantic Crossing, East To West, Via The Arctic

by John January 18, 2010
Map showing path of east to west Atlantic crossing via the Arctic

Question: We are toying with the idea of sailing the northern route [to North America from Scotland] with stops in Iceland, Greenland and Newfoundland. Is that nuts? I know you have done it at least once if not more times. Our boats are sound, an Alden 48 and a Shannon 43, and we want to [...]

A Novel, But Probably Smart, Way To Cross The Atlantic, East To West

by John February 18, 2010
A map of the northern Atlantic Ocean and surrounding land.

Question: I’m thinking about sailing to Greenland from my home in Germany. My boat is a very sound 33-foot steel sloop, which I have singlehanded often. The natural way to go to Greenland from the German coast seems to be to use the stepping stones: Norway and/or Scotland/Shetlands, thence to Faroe and Iceland and on [...]

A Late West To East Atlantic Crossing

by John May 8, 2010
westtoeast_thumb.jpg

Question: I am a fairly experienced Swedish sailor;  however, I have never “crossed the pond”. We have decided to buy a MacGregor 65. There are several for sale at good prices in the US, but very few in Europe. We will miss the most appropriate season [to cross the Atlantic]. Hence, I want to ask [...]

We Can Cope With This

by Colin October 31, 2011
Dawn off Lanzarote

Leaving Morocco was a bittersweet experience in many ways, as we had really appreciated our stay in the country. Not just the charming, hospitable people, but also the fascinating culture and magnificent scenery that we experienced on our treks inland. But the anticipation of getting back under way was powerful, too, and that gradually got [...]

Watch Out For Whales—Part II

by Colin November 12, 2011
Lunge feeding humpback

Collisions with whales and dolphins are becoming an increasing concern for offshore cruisers, as I outlined in a previous post. But up until recently there has been no serious attempt made to quantify the level of actual collision events, or to plot their geographical distribution. Obviously, having some idea of where and when collisions might [...]

Trans-Atlantic Single-Handed Sanity Check

by John November 13, 2011
QandA_thumb.jpg

Question [Edited for brevity]: I’d like to move my boat, a 50’ Hinckley Yawl, from Mt Desert, Maine to Mallorca, Spain and “do” the Med for 12-18 months. I’ve been thinking about single-handing her across; from Maine direct to Gibraltar. The boat is in good condition but 33 years old, I am in good condition [...]

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