Best Guess Schedule

Where are you going to be...?

A few people have been asking where are we going to be on such and such a date.  I've put together a little spreadsheet that has our probable stops and when we MIGHT be there.  Obviously I've made a lot of assumptions and we all know what that means.  But one has to have a plan no matter how flexible it has to be, so here is our PLAN A. (I have PLAN B, C, D,...in case things go south)

Leg	Distance nm	Days Sailing (120nm/day)	Start Date	End Date	Layover	Information on Port
Cherbourg - Lymington	70	0.58	3/12/2015	3/13/2015	21	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lymington
Lymington - Cowes	10	0.08	4/3/2015	4/4/2015	2	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cowes
Cowes - Bembridge	15	0.13	4/6/2015	4/7/2015	2	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bembridge
Bembridge - Poole	45	0.38	4/9/2015	4/10/2015	3	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poole
Poole - Plymouth	105	0.88	4/13/2015	4/14/2015	3	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plymouth
Plymouth - Falmouth	42	0.35	4/17/2015	4/18/2015	3	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falmouth,_Cornwall
Falmouth - Scilly Isles	65	0.54	4/21/2015	4/22/2015	3	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isles_of_Scilly
Scilly Isles - Dale, Wales	125	1.04	4/25/2015	4/27/2015	3	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dale,_Pembrokeshire
Dale - Dublin, Ireland	120	1.00	4/30/2015	5/1/2015	2	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dublin
Dublin - Holyhead	62	0.52	5/3/2015	5/4/2015	3	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holyhead
Holyhead - Douglas, Isle of Man	54	0.45	5/7/2015	5/8/2015	2	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas,_Isle_of_Man
Douglas - Ardrishaig, Scotland	142	1.18	5/10/2015	5/12/2015	3	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ardrishaig
Ardrishaig/Crinan Canal - Crinan	8	0.07	5/15/2015	5/16/2015	2	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crinan,_Argyll_and_Bute
Crinan - Oban	25	0.21	5/18/2015	5/19/2015	3	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oban
Oban - Fort Williams	29	0.24	5/22/2015	5/23/2015	2	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_William,_Scotland
Fort Williams - Inverness	52	0.43	5/25/2015	5/26/2015	3	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inverness
Inverness - Stromness	106	0.88	5/29/2015	5/30/2015	3	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stromness
Stromness - Torshavn	219	1.83	6/2/2015	6/4/2015	3	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T%C3%B3rshavn
Torshavn - Vestmannaeyjabaer	400	3.33	6/7/2015	6/11/2015	2	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vestmannaeyjar
Vestmannaeyjabaer - Reykjavik	127	1.06	6/13/2015	6/15/2015	5	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reykjav%C3%ADk
Reykjavik - Nuuk	1260	10.50	6/20/2015	7/1/2015	7	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuuk
Nuuk - Disko Bay	340	2.83	7/8/2015	7/11/2015	5	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disko_Bay
Disko Bay - Upernavik	244	2.03	7/16/2015	7/19/2015	4	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upernavik
Upernavik - Pond Inlet/Dundas Harbour	398	3.32	7/23/2015	7/27/2015	5	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pond_Inlet
Dundas Harbour - Resolute	200	1.67	8/1/2015	8/3/2015	3	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resolute,_Nunavut
Resolute - Gjoa Haven	522	4.35	8/6/2015	8/11/2015	3	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gjoa_Haven
Gjoa Haven - Cambridge Bay	260	2.17	8/14/2015	8/17/2015	3	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambridge_Bay
Cambridge Bay - Barrow	1090	9.08	8/20/2015	8/30/2015	3	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barrow,_Alaska
Barrow - Dutch Harbor	1163	9.69	9/2/2015	9/12/2015	3	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_Harbor
Dutch Harbor - Oahu	2034	16.95	9/15/2015	10/2/2015	2	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oahu
FINISH	9332	78		204

The only really semi firm dates are Nuuk by the first week in July and Dundas Harbour by the last week in July.  We need to be ready for the Northwest Passage when/if it opens, usually by the first week in August.  We'll be watching the ice charts and adjust accordingly.

Our friends Paul and Sheryl Shard recommend the Crinan and Caledonian Canals in Scotland and this is high on our list of places to visit.  Suggestions welcome...

Stelluca

Boots and Bags

Our friends at Stelluca, Melissa and Olli, have been making and supplying awesome upcycled bags and gear for ages.  These quality handmade items are great for the beach, sailing trips, iPads, wallets, you name it, they've built it.

They recently picked up the Zhik line of sailing gear designed in Australia.  We've read great things about the seaboots so we decided to buy two pair for Zetty and I.  I've found them to be very comfortable and warm, they seem to have a great grip, we'll see once we get aboard.

If you get a chance, please visit their website and check out the great gear!!  They also have a trailer that takes most of your sailing equipment and gear to the major regattas in the Midwest during the summer in case you forget something, break something or just want to upgrade the old duds!

Lou

Test Packing

The Test Pack - Part 1

I did the first test pack of the "hard" suitcases this morning.  I did manage to get all of the needed things into the first case.

Suitcase Number 1

In order to save a lot of space, I put most of the small things into ziploc bags.  You may ask why would we/I bring all this small stuff, easy because we can.  We get a total of 10 checked bags weighing 50lbs each which is a 1/4 ton of clothes and parts!  It should cut down on trying to find the hard stuff like laptop battery, Iridium battery, medical equipment, sail repair kit all of which were pinched off our old boat, Monkey's Orphan.  41 more days until we leave...

The Dinghy ate my baby...

Ah, the great dinghy debate, hard vs soft.  We currently own a great Zodiac 280 with an Evinrude 9hp outboard for Monkey's Orphan.  This was a good choice at the time as we had room to place it on deck.  Deflated we stored it just behind the main mast, inflated it fit nicely on the foredeck.  The motor was brought aboard easily using the mizzen boom as the hoist to a bracket on the stern rail.  The Exploration 45 provided a little more challenging, as the 270 degree view from the navstation would be obstructed with a dinghy on deck.  So again we debated the pros and cons of a ridged dinghy vs an inflatable.  Without going through the whole argument again, two things tilted us in favor of a hybrid ridged inflatable.

1. The kids are having a great time sailing their Opti, so ideally we'd like a sail-able dinghy.  
2. We have room under the arch for hoisting and storing a hard dinghy.  

The product we finally settled on is the Walker Bay 10.  We'll probably use the performance sail kit.  This looks to be the best of all worlds, for us.  Sailing, inflatable and able to handle a Lehr 5.0hp propane motor.  We decided on the Lehr engines because of the fuel,  After looking at the various electric options and going with conventional gas, I went with the propane powered Lehr.  While the electric options are getting much better, a couple of things still bother me. The battery capacity/run time is still pretty light, I don't want to get caught in a big wind/waves with a flat battery.  Charging is also an issue without a generator on board.  We might have enough solar and wind to charge but would probably have to run the main engine to charge which doesn't make economical sense.  The other thing that's always bothered me is having gasoline aboard, 'nuff said.  I talked to the engineers at Lehr and they have blessed the Arctic conditions we'll be in.  Propane is plentiful in most ports and the Exploration 45 has a great place to store it, in the aft outside lockers, without being able to leak into the main cabins.  Propane is also a lot more environmentally friendly.

Here's a video of how the Lehr outboard works.

Lehr Video

Predict Wind

Weather

As for my selection for weather, I've gone with the Predict Wind / Iridium GO! / Expedition solution.  This seems like the best combination of data, communications and software for our setup.  The standard package from Predict Wind will get us the first step of the way for data.  This package should be upgraded to the Professional package as soon as we start sailing as it contains higher resolution gribs and the tides and currents data.  Predict wind also offers the option of having the data emailed to you so that it can be picked up via SSB/Pactor.  The Iridium GO! package we went for includes unlimited data and SMS for $125/month.  In my opinion, that's a real game changer for safety at sea as a lot more people will be able to afford to get timely weather and routing information.  As I start to play with the Predict Wind web application, their iOS app and their Windows PC Application, I'll report here on the results.  So far I'm impressed with the functionality of the Windows PC application.  It allows a direct connection to the GO! unit to download the gribs, satellite images and other data,  The data can then be viewed with the PredictWind app or imported into Expedition for additional what if scenarios.  Here are the links to the various pieces:

Predict Wind
Expedition Marine
Iridium GO!


Notes:
You can order the Iridium GO! through Predict Wind or purchase separately.
If you purchase the Expedition software through NorthU, you get to watch Peter Islers webinar class on how to use the software for FREE.
The Iridium GO! package looks like it winds its way to this company for service.  Atlantic Radio Telephone, SatPhoneStore.com

P.S. I did purchase an extra battery for the Iridium GO! unit, just in case...

We're back...

I haven't been keeping up with my blog posting for a long time.  Sorry about that but...

The latest scoop, our boat is finished and currently on display at the Paris Boat Show.  The Garcia Yachts Exploration 45 won Cruising World 2015 Best Boat Full-Size Cruisers Under 50 Feet.  We're obviously thrilled and having sailed 1,200 miles on her sister ship Aventura IV, I can attest to the judges conclusion!

Garcia Exploration 45

Here are some shots of the interior.

and one last shot of the cockpit area.

Garcia Exploration 45 AVENTURA IV, Newfoundland to Newport

I had the exceptional opportunity to sail with Ryan Helling and Jimmy Cornell aboard his yacht Aventura IV from Newfoundland to Newport in early September.  Here's a great video by Ryan of Swiftsure Yachts documenting the trip down.