i know there has been a lot of dialogue lately about the sailability of a weekender or vacationer in open water and my opinion is that they belong inland. with that said..... i was looking at some maps of the west coast today and got looking at the channel islands just off of oxnard ca. looks like about a 20 mile sail to the first island..... mmm...... am i going too far on this one? what if our esteemed comedore escorted me to the islands with her new chlorox bottle?
For me, never having sailed a Vacationer, that seems a bit far for my likeing unless you could see a really good window on the weather and sea state. I'm certain the boat could easily do it if all went well. Others maybe more comfortable.
it apears that the wind is fairly consistant and that distance could be covered in about 4 or 5 hours. i am not sure, but i think you can see the islands from the mainland which helps navigation a bit. i think i would only try it if there were no clouds forcasted for a week. and i would need an adequate escort in case of the worst. as long as i make it out alive..... i can build another boat. :twisted:
Good plan!
It would be wise to go in company with another boat. A constant weather watch on a VHF marine radio would be my minimum recommendation. I have ventured 5-10 miles off shore on excellent days, and always stayed watchful for changing conditions. I always had the option of lowering sails, and flashing up my "iron jib", to get be back. The vacationer will take some pretty fair waves while motoring.
Greg
If you are an accomplished sailor, rather then the novice most of the Weekender/Vacationer owner/builders seem to be, then take the measures you've always taken for coastal passages. If you're like many and relatively new to this, it is a bit ambitious and possibly dangerous.
Keep in mind she's not going to recover from a severe knock down, she's not self bailing, can be swamped by a following sea or broach and in deep water with longer distances between wave trains, the motion will be uncomfortable in all but a slight sea.
This said, Slocum took "Spray" around the would without GPS and it was a boat had all the same attributes Vacationer does. Of course the old skipper was a master ship handler and navigator, of several decades experience, openly admitting he had help from Neptune himself on the south Atlantic run, while crossing back over to Brazil to avoid pirates on the west cost of Africa.
A seasoned and prepared skipper and crew can manage a poor vessel at sea. A poorly prepared crew and skipper can easy end up talking to Davie Jones in the most found of vessels.
Understand you limitations and set yourself up for success.