Why are Great Lakes Sailors the Toughest in the World

[DavidM1600]

Hmn I seem to remember the sandflies at the Nelson Lakes, in New Zealand they sure were pretty horrid, but having just returned from Darwin (Northern Territory - Oz), you really need to watch out for the midges there both on and off the land. My legs and arms looked very much like the picture posted above. But then again, in comparison to the bed bugs that ate me alive in Lisborn, all of the above pale into insignificance. I ended up in Hospital, with that many Drs looking at me, taking photos etc, the inference being they had never seen anyone previously as badly bitten as I had been.

But in terms of open waters and needing a big bunch of brave pills, I reckon Bass Straight is well up there as being one of the most difficult stretches of ocean out there. Remember all too well the 1998 Sydney to Hobart race. In talking with guys who survived that race and listening to their experiences I have great respect for their sailing skills. My experience of Bass Straight was thankfully, much more gentle. So I don't qualify yet for being a tough sailor .

[mrohr]

The author of Blue Water (Bill Griffins? ) spent a few weeks!!!! aground on an uncharted reef in the Red Sea ; the biting flies drove him and crew to distraction.... finally got relief by completely covering their bodies in diesel fuel each morning while waiting for a spring tide to get off.
This ,BTW is a fantastic read if you can find a copy.

.....................luv you all .............................mike................. ..........

[thruska]

Originally Posted by reed1v

Think Carl has had a bit too much sun. Even with storms, we never had 18 foot seas kick up. Of course we never sailed the lake in the middle of winter. We did have a challenging time during the 1975 Mac race with some storms but nothing compared with what you get going through the Gulf Stream off of Florida. Nope, the Great Lakes are great sailing and for the most part calm as can be.

Obviously your experiences onthe great lakes were quite sheltered, if youve never been caught in a "gitchee goomy".

[thruska]

Originally Posted by Pelagic

No argument from me.....How do you sailors keep finding motivation to keep floating around in a cesspool?.

https://www.epa.gov/greatlakes/conta...nt-great-lakes

Sediment. Not cesspool yet. Brazils olimpics have cesspools.
Any other country in the world would love our great lakes water for consumtion..
You can canoe at midnite in north superior shores and see the bottom 30 ft below.
Erie is even making a comeback from pevious EPA looking the other way.
I watched a waterspout dancing in a little marina at chambers island. A bit messy. That near Devils Door in the confluence of Superior and Michigan, gues why its called that.
In a Gumi on Gull island shoal, even the seagulls found some solace under our tarps. We could not get off shaol to the lee side and had to sleep on shoal with the seagulls haha. The next day the gull were back to crapping on ourheads.
You can drink the water in northern regions of Superiot n Michigan rigt overboard , but not inmarinas.
Im not aware of anyone sailing lakes there in winter other than the Mobile Bay ice breaker lol. And the locks are closed then.

[roygee]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

Piffle!!

While biting flies can be annoying, they pale into insignificance when compared to the no-nos of the Marquesas, and their lesser cousins, t he sand flies of Queensland. These nearly invisible bugs are a more subtle kind of antagonist, for most folks don't even feel their bite w hen they happen, and so can acquire a multitude of them... and then later, blisters the size of half-dollar coins erupt at each site, itching relentlessly and often turning septic in the tropics.

My skin quivers at the mere memory of one walk on the beach at Hanna Moe Noe... GAHHHA!

Jim

We have these noseeums, or some call buffalo knets,in southeast Tex.. They do not hurt when they bite, but form a knot under your skin with a surrounding area of red. Had a cuz had her eyes swollen shut for 3 days. They found that vanilla extract {natural or not} will eliminate them from biting you, 100%. Sounds crazy, but its the truth. The biting fly is a very serious problem, I have been kayaking on rough waves with my friend {could not lay our blade down}, the flys were attacking so bad, we both had blood streaming down our backs. I have heard that catnip oil prevented them from biting your skin, I bought some to try, but have not encountered the beast.

[uncle stinkybob]

Originally Posted by roygee

We have these noseeums, or some call buffalo knets,in southeast Tex.. They do not hurt when they bite, but form a knot under your skin with a surrounding area of red. Had a cuz had her eyes swollen shut for 3 days. They found that vanilla extract {natural or not} will eliminate them from biting you, 100%. Sounds crazy, but its the truth. The biting fly is a very serious problem, I have been kayaking on rough waves with my friend {could not lay our blade down}, the flys were attacking so bad, we both had blood streaming down our backs. I have heard that catnip oil prevented them from biting your skin, I bought some to try, but have not encountered the beast.

Also try Avon skin so soft bath oil. rub directly on the skin. and you smell oh so sweet, but it works and is good for the skin.

[30yearslater]

Originally Posted by uncle stinkybob

Also try Avon skin so soft bath oil. rub directly on the skin. and you smell oh so sweet, but it works and is good for the skin.

Why is your name uncle stinkybob if you are using the sweet smelling Skin So Soft. It does actually work for mosquitos. Not the black flies though. Tried it along with Off.

In other news it is time to shave on Lake Ontario. (Not so subtle reference to "All is Lost")
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[reed1v]

Originally Posted by thruska

Obviously your experiences onthe great lakes were quite sheltered, if youve never been caught in a "gitchee goomy".

\\
Oh, we were caught in some mighty thunderstorms, gale force winds, and steep seas. Guy we were racing with finally said the lakes were not pussycats as he said beforehand to the press. We agree with Ted but still the lakes are no where near as treacherous as many parts of the major oceans on this planet.

[30yearslater]

I really don't want to get into a debate over which is worse, ocean or lakes but here is what is currently occurring: National Weather Service Watch Warning Advisory Summary
Hurricane force winds whether 5 minutes or five hours or five days are just as deadly. Thought you would like to know.SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NYC063-073-110015-
/O.NEW.KBUF.SV.W.0066.160910T2324Z-160911T0015Z/

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BUFFALO NY
724 PM EDT SAT SEP 10 2016

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BUFFALO HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
NORTHEASTERN NIAGARA COUNTY IN WESTERN NEW YORK...
ORLEANS COUNTY IN WESTERN NEW YORK...

* UNTIL 815 PM EDT.

* AT 724 PM EDT...SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WERE LOCATED ALONG A LINE
EXTENDING FROM 14 MILES NORTHEAST OF NEWFANE TO NEAR LOCKPORT...
MOVING EAST AT 50 MPH.

HAZARD...70 MPH WIND GUSTS.

SOURCE...RADAR INDICATED.

IMPACT...EXPECT CONSIDERABLE TREE DAMAGE. DAMAGE IS LIKELY TO
MOBILE HOMES...ROOFS...AND OUTBUILDINGS.

* LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
MEDINA...ALBION...HAMLIN BEACH STATE PARK...MIDDLEPORT...HOLLEY...
LAKESIDE BEACH STATE PARK...WATERPORT AND POINT BREEZE.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

FOR YOUR PROTECTION MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF A
BUILDING.

&&

LAT...LON 4342 7840 4341 7796 4337 7796 4336 7799
4314 7800 4312 7861 4340 7863
TIME...MOT...LOC 2324Z 248DEG 41KT 4346 7854 4316 7859

HAIL...<.75IN
WIND...70MPH

$$

HIBBERT

[Jim Cate]

Sounds like a nasty TS for sure, but gusts to 70 mph are not really hurricane force winds. Those by definition are sustained 64 knots or greater. When one has sustained 64 knots, one can expect gusts up to around 90 knots, or around 100 mph.

And if one is at sea, it really does matter whether the winds blow for 5 minutes, 5 hours, or 5 days. Actually, it matters if one is ashore if in a coastal area, for in both cases, much of the harm is from the sea state, not the wind directly.

But that TS is one that I'd sure try to avoid!

Jim

[Delancey]

A hurricane or typhoon (sometimes simply referred to as a tropical cyclone, as opposed to a depression or storm) is a system with sustained winds of at least 34 metres per second (66 kn) or 74 miles per hour (119 km/h).[114] A cyclone of this intensity tends to develop an eye, an area of relative calm (and lowest atmospheric pressure) at the center of circulation. The eye is often visible in satellite images as a small, circular, cloud-free spot. Surrounding the eye is the eyewall, an area about 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) to 80 kilometres (50 mi) wide in which the strongest thunderstorms and winds circulate around the storm's center. Maximum sustained winds in the strongest tropical cyclones have been estimated at about 95 metres per second (185 kn) or 346 kilometres per hour (215 mph)

Hope everyone stays safe out there. Gusts to 70 knots are not a hurricane.

[30yearslater]

Good technical points Jim. Thanks for the contribution. Those hurrycames as Zeehag calls them are definitely nasty. Glad I'm sitting at home with YOT safe and sound in the slip. I did want to get the word out on another medium for anyone at the east end that is unaware. This is the same crap I got caught in a few weeks ago along with tetepare and a few others.

On the plus side it will blow the damn flies away.

[uncle stinkybob]

Originally Posted by 30yearslater

Why is your name uncle stinkybob if you are using the sweet smelling Skin So Soft. It does actually work for mosquitos. Not the black flies though. Tried it along with Off.

In other news it is time to shave on Lake Ontario. (Not so subtle reference to "All is Lost")
Rochester Interactive Radar | News, Weather, Sports, Breaking News | WHAM

HA, ya the name, many years ago I had 7 young stepkids. The nickname has stuck ever since. My name is actually Herb. Love those little snots to this day, ha ha ha. Avon, ya I used it everyday in S.E. Alaska, timber faller and then later as a fishing guide up north. It worked well for the B-52s and the whitesock flies but not the no seeums, and not black or deer files. But it's the whitesock that is the worse, nasty bite that fester's and heals slowly. Another trick was to tuck a bounce dryer sheet into your hard hat, that works very well also.

[sailorchic34]

I should mention that the coldest I've ever been aboard a boat was sailing on Superior over memorial weekend many years ago, from Deluth to the Apostle Islands and back. Burrr I was freezing. Though too earily for the flys, or too cold.

[Sea Dreaming]

Since we have really reduced our carb intake, my BF and I are seldom bothered by mosquitos. It's a very superior feeling to stand and watch others being "eaten alive" while we are not bothered at all.
I just hope we get to keep our smugness where there are biting flies, no-no and the like!