Gulf Crossing St.Petersburg to Gulfport,MS in late September

[DragonflyBob]

Originally Posted by Rockinar

I tried this trip last October and got my butt handed to me by cold fronts once I got to Carrabelle and ended up going to ICW from there which I should have done as Plan A. ICW from Carabelle to Mobile is a pleasant and smooth river ride (much more so than I expected) with tons of anchorages. I rather enjoyed it. I should have just motored it instead of waiting around for good weather. But if you have the weather and cant do ICW due to bridge height, go for it.

Also you should subscribe to Marv's Weather Service. Its a free daily email that will give you some idea of weather conditions from Tampa to Apalachicola area at least.

ICW is limited for us as our mast height is 61’ above the water. Our tentative leave date is October 5 and that time of year the fronts don’t have as much punch as late October/early Nov. The beauty of this boat is that in 20-25 knots with 1st reef in the main, 32’ feet long with 27’ of beam can make what’s really uncomfortable for a similarly sized monohull tolerable (check this link out of the smaller Dragonfly 28 in big wind and seas off of Denmark

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbvsTsaBqoE

).

Coming out of Tampa Bay, our hoped for rhumb line will be a straight shot to Destin Pass (which would take us 25-30 miles off Cape San Blas). We can then get within 2-3 miles offshore (if the wind is offshore) and parallel the beach all the way to mouth of Mobile Bay which can be rough. I’ve sailed that stretch a lot and know what to expect.

Thanks for the tip on Marv’s Weather Service, should be good for longest shot across open water.

Also hoping the storm season continues to be a quiet one!

[Sun and Moon]

If you keep to your plan and don't wander farther offshore, you will stay within 100 miles of land. Get TowBoat's 100-mile tow plan, and if your engine dies just as a hurricane forms, you can call for help without breaking the bank. My experience is that TowBoat comes pretty quick when you call them.

[DragonflyBob]

The crossing is done. Originally we hoped to leave 10/5 but the development of Invest 98L which became Hurricane Ian forced me to move forward and get the boat out of harm’s way. We (me, my wife, and another sailing mate) left Tampa Bay this past Sunday morning and arrived in Gulfport, MS Tuesday morning about 9am, a total distance covered of around 420 nautical miles.

My routing plan was to sail the rhumb line from Tampa Bay towards Destin Pass and then bend left and sail along the coast until we arrived in either Gulfport, MS or if the weather was good and we were not too tired to continue on to the boat’s new home on Lake Pontchartrain.

Well I got cocky and when we were aligned south of Cape San Blas I decided to go straight towards Gulfport. About 100 miles out, we had a cold front passage and the wind came in at 22-28 knots with a really nasty sea state sailing on a beam reach. It made the last 10 hours of the trip pretty miserable but the boat was flawless and handled it well. The sleep deprived crew were happy to see the sun rise with only 20 miles left to sail. If I had kept to my original plan to stay close to the coast, we probably would have seen around 15-20 knots and a lot less severe sea state. Big lesson learned.

Our safety equipment for the crossing included EPIRB, PLB’s, a Garmin InReach satellite communicator that kept our friends and family up to date to where we were, and safety harnesses and jacklines which kept us secure to the boat at night.

Thanks for all the suggestions and feedback on this thread. The boat is currently at Gulfport YC and we will do the final 60 miles to New Orleans this coming weekend.

[carlosproa]

Congratulations, job well done!

[Messing About]

Good job. Thank you for the update here.

[Belize43]

Have you made your trip yet?
We are also sailing from Tampa to Gulfport ms and are looking for a buddy boat or advice.

[DragonflyBob]

Originally Posted by Belize43

Have you made your trip yet?
We are also sailing from Tampa to Gulfport ms and are looking for a buddy boat or advice.

We did the rhumbline option and I believe if you don’t have a cold front passage in your forecast, it can be worth considering.

If you want to play it safer, I would consider open Gulf with rhumbline to Destin which keeps you to the west of the military training zone off Cape San Blas. You can bend to the left as you approach the Panhandle and parallel it to Gulfport. This could give you good access to St. Andrews Bay, Destin, and Pensacola as you sail along the Panhandle and if a cold front comes through, you can tuck closer to reduce sea and wind state. This is what I should have done on my crossing to have made the last 120 miles to Ship Island a lot more comfortable for the boat and the crew.

Some of the advice presented in this thread also recommended Tampa Bay to Carrabelle and then use the ICW to get across over to St. Joseph’s Bay and then come up along the coast.

Good luck for a safe and enjoyable trip.

[Belize43]

Thanks for your info.
Would you like like to fly to Bradenton and do it again?🤪

[Wolfe10]

Originally Posted by DragonflyBob

If you want to play it safer, I would consider open Gulf with rhumbline to Destin which keeps you to the west of the military training zone off Cape San Blas. You can bend to the left as you approach the Panhandle and parallel it to Gulfport. This could give you good access to St. Andrews Bay, Destin, and Pensacola as you sail along the Panhandle and if a cold front comes through, you can tuck closer to reduce sea and wind state. This is what I should have done on my crossing to have made the last 120 miles to Ship Island a lot more comfortable for the boat and the crew.

Some of the advice presented in this thread also recommended Tampa Bay to Carrabelle and then use the ICW to get across over to St. Joseph’s Bay and then come up along the coast.

We have done both of these routes (Pacific Seacraft Crealock 37'). Weather window dictates our choice.

[Rockinar]

Just did a Gulf crossing from Mobile AL to Galveston TX. I originally started in Tampa, jumped across to Dog Island/Carrabel. Took ICW from there to Mobile (could not get good weather to go outside).

My opinion on Gulf sailing. The ICW from Carabell to Mobile is a pleasant and low stress river ride with lots of anchoring options. Would not hesitate to do it if you have the mast clearance, which most don't. But if you do, id do it. It's not bad at all. I enjoyed it.

There's the Military Training Zone off Cape San Blias you can't go though while they are doing exercises. I was getting conflicting information from locals in Carrabell if I could go through it or not. The local Sea Tow guy said "No not at all, ever". I tried to call the base to get the scoop directly and could not get an answer. Oddly as a last ditch effort I sent the base a message on Facebook and they replied the next day. They gave me a phone number to call that has a recorded message about when they are doing exercises and if you can go through it or not (Local Sea Tow knowledge was wrong).

I went offshore from Mobile to Galveston. I refuse to do that LA/TX ICW. It looks like pure misery and rather dodge oil platforms. I heard all the horror stories about unlit oil platforms and such in the Gulf. I did see anything like that. Maybe there are some. I did not have that experience and did not see many ships at all even though I crossed a couple major shipping lanes and Marine Traffic website makes it look like rushour traffic. My first advice is WEATHER WINDOW...WEATHER WINDOW. Anything but following seas or a beam reach in the Gulf would be 100% NO GO for me unless there was little to no wind. One day I had 20 knot winds with following/quartering seas and I was looking UP at swells coming at me. Not too much of an issue in my case and just a roller coaster ride on a run or quartering seas. If you were beating upwind close haul or close reach, you would be in BIG trouble and vomiting. And 20 knot winds is not that high. Id aim for the flattest and calmest wind conditions possible, then check wind direction.

Also that peninsula off the tip of Lousiana is called the South Pass. It is dangerous as hell. I was 25 miles out and thought that was good and cleared it. I almost grounded and saw 8 FEET on my instruments. It was so shallow I thought my instrument was broken and just ignored it. Later realized it was not broken and I almost grounded. Everything south of Louisiana is really shallow and took me by surprise. Lots of 10-15 foot areas even 25 miles off the coast. I would go WAY WAY out next time and not even come close to the Lousiana coast line so I don't have to worry about it. I see people doing that trip and cutting that corner close. I don't see how they do it without grounding.

When I look at the Windy App. I want to see BLUE. Blue is your friend for pleasant Gulf sailing. If it shows SOME GREEN, it has my attention and I'm looking hard at wind and swell directions. If it ALL GREEN, it's a 100% no go for me in anything but following wind and seas. Any ORANGE is 100% NO GO in any wind direction.

This is all just my opinion based on my one experience.

[tamicatana]

Onya Bob, and congratulations on the new boat. Just curious, was yer sailing bud the recent ex proprietor of the Alabama Boat Spa? Please pass along hellos and best wishes from the AVIGHNA, and thanks again for a beautiful bow

PS we have taken our 61’ in the ditch from Pt St Joe to Apalachicola, and the Sound to Carrabelle. It’s a pretty trip.

[DragonflyBob]

Originally Posted by Rockinar

Just did a Gulf crossing from Mobile AL to Galveston TX. I originally started in Tampa, jumped across to Dog Island/Carrabel. Took ICW from there to Mobile (could not get good weather to go outside).

My opinion on Gulf sailing. The ICW from Carabell to Mobile is a pleasant and low stress river ride with lots of anchoring options. Would not hesitate to do it if you have the mast clearance, which most don't. But if you do, id do it. It's not bad at all. I enjoyed it.

There's the Military Training Zone off Cape San Blias you can't go though while they are doing exercises. I was getting conflicting information from locals in Carrabell if I could go through it or not. The local Sea Tow guy said "No not at all, ever". I tried to call the base to get the scoop directly and could not get an answer. Oddly as a last ditch effort I sent the base a message on Facebook and they replied the next day. They gave me a phone number to call that has a recorded message about when they are doing exercises and if you can go through it or not (Local Sea Tow knowledge was wrong).

I went offshore from Mobile to Galveston. I refuse to do that LA/TX ICW. It looks like pure misery and rather dodge oil platforms. I heard all the horror stories about unlit oil platforms and such in the Gulf. I did see anything like that. Maybe there are some. I did not have that experience and did not see many ships at all even though I crossed a couple major shipping lanes and Marine Traffic website makes it look like rushour traffic. My first advice is WEATHER WINDOW...WEATHER WINDOW. Anything but following seas or a beam reach in the Gulf would be 100% NO GO for me unless there was little to no wind. One day I had 20 knot winds with following/quartering seas and I was looking UP at swells coming at me. Not too much of an issue in my case and just a roller coaster ride on a run or quartering seas. If you were beating upwind close haul or close reach, you would be in BIG trouble and vomiting. And 20 knot winds is not that high. Id aim for the flattest and calmest wind conditions possible, then check wind direction.

Also that peninsula off the tip of Lousiana is called the South Pass. It is dangerous as hell. I was 25 miles out and thought that was good and cleared it. I almost grounded and saw 8 FEET on my instruments. It was so shallow I thought my instrument was broken and just ignored it. Later realized it was not broken and I almost grounded. Everything south of Louisiana is really shallow and took me by surprise. Lots of 10-15 foot areas even 25 miles off the coast. I would go WAY WAY out next time and not even come close to the Lousiana coast line so I don't have to worry about it. I see people doing that trip and cutting that corner close. I don't see how they do it without grounding.

When I look at the Windy App. I want to see BLUE. Blue is your friend for pleasant Gulf sailing. If it shows SOME GREEN, it has my attention and I'm looking hard at wind and swell directions. If it ALL GREEN, it's a 100% no go for me in anything but following wind and seas. Any ORANGE is 100% NO GO in any wind direction.

This is all just my opinion based on my one experience.

Great info here, thanks for posting. I agree about the upper Gulf, it’s a very hostile environment in any wind strength over 25 knots sustained and still pretty rough at 15-20 knots. On the second day of our crossing during the daylight hours, we were in 8-10 knots max and still surprised by how choppy and lumpy it was. Glad we were on a tri to smooth it out a bit.

Originally Posted by tamicatana

Onya Bob, and congratulations on the new boat. Just curious, was yer sailing bud the recent ex proprietor of the Alabama Boat Spa? Please pass along hellos and best wishes from the AVIGHNA, and thanks again for a beautiful bow

PS we have taken our 61’ in the ditch from Pt St Joe to Apalachicola, and the Sound to Carrabelle. It’s a pretty trip.

We are limited by our 62’ overall mast height for ICW cruising but some parts we can check out. My sailing buds were from here in Louisiana unless my wife is not being honest with me about her recent past!