Who is a 'bluewater skipper'? What is 'bluewater preparation'?

[sailorladd]

That's what I thought when reading your post lol

[dcreasoner]

See “Sailing Trance” on Facebook or www.SailingTrance.com

[MicHughV]

Selecting food for the evening's dinner was a hit and miss thing....I'd be rummaging around all the various stowage compartments and come across something...."hmmm....forgot I had packed this..." and it would become dinner.

I always trolled a fishing line, but that too was a hit and miss thing, some days good, many, many days....not good. Without a functioning ice box, I couldn't keep fish, so it was a case of eat it now or forgetaboutit.

All in all, it was a fun time. It never occurred to me to be worried about much of anything. The innocence of youth, a beautiful thing !

[capn_billl]

My opinion.

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

If you can sail 100 miles without any major issues, just keep doing it a few dozen times, and you will find yourself on the other side of any ocean I would deem to cross.

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by Chris Cringle

It seems strange to see the words "Blue Water" in the same paragraph as "jennie/bennie/hanse/bavaria".

good Water boats">blue water boats, if well prepared , in the hands of a competent offshore capable crew, 100s cross oceans and sail long distances every year

[goboatingnow]

I grew up thinking that all coastal sailing was way more dangerous than blue water....and it IS!! Juxtaposition of sea and land with the differing specific heat capacity, craggy coastlines with no harbours for100's miles, every man and his ship trying to round the Capes simultaneously....NO, give me an ocean crossing any day for much more relaxed sailing... True story.

quote from an American sailor in Las Palmas, on the final leg of a 7 year circumnavigation , " Everything was fine till I came the Med, nastiest bit of water I've ever sailed in . Nearly lost the boat off the Balearics"

I fully agree with you and him , give me the deep Atlantic any day .

[DMF Sailing]

Originally Posted by goboatingnow

quote from an American sailor in Las Palmas, on the final leg of a 7 year circumnavigation , " Everything was fine till I came the Med, nastiest bit of water I've ever sailed in . Nearly lost the boat off the Balearics"

I fully agree with you and him , give me the deep Atlantic any day .

In New England, anyone who really likes carefree sailing would rather be far enough offshore to avoid the lobster pots and idiots.

I think of all the responses to my original query that I've read, the one that makes the most sense the most succinctly regards weather.

Even 25 miles offshore, where the water is blue, I'm never more than 5 hours from a safe place to duck into.

A 'bluewater' sailor needs to be able to handle any weather up to a hurricane (and to have prepared the boat to do the same), and know how to evade hurricanes.

I raise a Knob Creek Barrel Strength in your general direction.

[MicHughV]

well, folks have crossed oceans in rafts....teeny tiny boats......rowboats....paddle boats, etc.....blue water sailor ???...or adventurer??

I met a family of four....a farmer no less....wife...two kids...sailing around the world.....on a homemade cat...the entire family went " to bed" at night...

probably my biggest surprise was coming across a small 26' fiberglass sloop being sailed by a couple that were easily in their 80's....90's maybe..their sole navigation tool was a schoolboy atlas...nah, I'm not making this up..when I met them, they were several 100 miles from any shore, both buck naked, wrinkled and brown as berries..they asked for " directions" from me....aside from that, they required nothing else....no food...water...zip...

so who is a " bluewater sailor" you ask...???

[DMF Sailing]

Originally Posted by MicHughV

well, folks have crossed oceans in rafts....teeny tiny boats......rowboats....paddle boats, etc.....blue water sailor ???...or adventurer??

I met a family of four....a farmer no less....wife...two kids...sailing around the world.....on a homemade cat...the entire family went " to bed" at night...

probably my biggest surprise was coming across a small 26' fiberglass sloop being sailed by a couple that were easily in their 80's....90's maybe..their sole navigation tool was a schoolboy atlas...nah, I'm not making this up..when I met them, they were several 100 miles from any shore, both buck naked, wrinkled and brown as berries..they asked for " directions" from me....aside from that, they required nothing else....no food...water...zip...

so who is a " bluewater sailor" you ask...???

So... anyone who made it. I'm happy with that answer.

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by capn_billl

My opinion.

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

If you can sail 100 miles without any major issues, just keep doing it a few dozen times, and you will find yourself on the other side of any ocean I would deem to cross.

I heard this one differently:
A passage ofvp a thousand miles starts with a single hundred mile tack.

[carstenb]

Originally Posted by Paul L

I heard this one differently:
A passage ofvp a thousand miles starts with a single hundred mile tack.

Danish saying-
For every 100 persons that have the dream, 1 buys a boat.
For every 100 persons that buy a boat, 1 crosses an ocean.
For every 100 persons that cross an ocean, 1 circumnavigates.

[robertwcass]

A Blue water skipper is whoever is skippering the boat across broad expanses of deep ocean, for better or for worse. Bluewater sailing is a mindset that there is something far away that you would like to get to in your sailboat, preparing to get there, and then fixing all the broken **** you can on your voyage and learning how to deal without the **** you can’t fix. As a good friend told me, “If you’re gonna be dumb, you gotta be tough.”

[s/v Jedi]

My take on a blue water skipper is that you are everything that a coastal sailor should be, i.e. coastal navigation certificate, preferably general VHF license, certificate of competence, first aid certificate etc.

As you get further from shore, navigation becomes easier in this age, but responsibility takes a huge jump: no more police, fire & rescue, cellphones, diesel mechanics, riggers, no Towboat US etc. Nobody is coming, it’s up to you

Add to that the capability and experience for doing watch schedules and maintaining discipline to keep those watches going and staying safe. Very hard for solo sailors.

Skills: all these people who don’t come to help anymore, you need to be able to fix all primary systems aboard so you can make the passage. You can -not- count on Coastguard to come and fix your engine, treat your sick crew member, keep the peace etc.

[MicHughV]

I was inspired by reading a National Geographic magazine series of articles, written about Robin Lee Graham, who set out on a rtw trip when he was a youngster, it seemed like a romantic and adventurous way to see the world, which I wanted to emulate. At the time, I was still in High School, I knew nothing about sailing and couldn't tell a ketch from a stick in the ground, but was captivated by the romance of it all.

I never considered the details involved. I did not have a rich dad willing to buy me a boat, so had to build my own, which required a steep learning curve.

After that, it was a learn as you go theme for me.

[jackdale]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

Nobody is coming, it’s up to you

That is not quite true. AMVER can arrange for someone to come to you.

https://www.amver.com/Content/Docs/P...ss_release.pdf

https://youtu.be/NBn7drXizb0

The Coast Guard can deliver water pumps as well - 200 miles offshore.

https://youtu.be/_NJsE-ztaTM

The blue water sailor should know what is available and how to reach out for assistance.