T&T: Let the Weather be Your Friend

[Robin Brueckner]

Larry's post about getting slapped around by weather is a good lesson.

This year I'm not traveling for six months straight, but for the last
nine years I traveled between NY and Maine, even Canada and Nova Scotia
never staying in marina.

A few lessons I learned:

Even when weather forecasts are apparently favorable, beware!

For example, NE NOAA forecasts (for the same day!!) at 10 knots have
blasted me on several occassions in Nantucket Sound off southern Cape
Cod, and Martha's Vineyard, and also heading east from the Cape Cod Canal
into Cape Cod Bay...when the wind was more like 20 knots...I know it was
nasty because my Yorkie puked on both occassions!!

Similarly, NOAA forecasts for seas are notoriously understated for
Eastern Long Island Sound, off the CT River, because when wind and tidal
currents of about three knots are in opposite directions, seas are double
the foecast...and STEEP.

So when you are "fooled" make a mental note of the conditions and avoid
that situation in the future. I do NOT travel those areas in ANY NE
winds.

Who hasn't had some sleepless nights aboard in unpleasant conditions? One
way to gain some securityand peace of mind  is to utilize an anchor
alarm.. I have a small GPS alongside my bunk...I can set it for 50 or 100
feet when winds are steady in direction and be assured I'm in place.
Someone here posted in the past they set up a baby monitor...so they
could use their helm GPS with a sender to pick up it's audio alarm and
the receiver alongside their bunk...a good option.

Finally, get advice from locals on good anchorages and storm refuges. And
scan your charts as you traverse areas for safe stops. Even if you don't
need them on that stay, knowing where to go relieves a lot of anxiety.
For example, along the south shore of Cape Cod in Lewis Bay (near
Hyannis) is Uncle Roberts Cove and a small spot inside Pine Island right
next door. Both landlocked and small. I stayed in the latter spot during
a forecasted Hurricane that stayed offshore...And in Buzzards Bay, in the
same vicinity, a good Hurricane stop is New Bedford, inside the hurricane
Barrier.  And Lake Tashmoo on Martha's Vineyard (across Vineyard Sound
from Woods Hole) is a great storm layover.

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