Bad weather: what we did and didn’t do
The calm before the storm.
There are a few subjects that I feel pretty confident sharing advice about. Tying knots, either in rope or in people (jiu-jitsu), are among them. On the list of subjects that I don’t feel particularly comfortable expounding on is storm preparation, primarily because, either by planning or by luck, we have managed to avoid any significant bad weather. That being said, I was asked to share what we did to prepare for this recently-passed tropical storm (now strong hurricane!), so as lacking as that info may be, I’ll do my best to accommodate the request.
What we did:
- We used various internet sources (NOAA, Windguru, Passage Weather, WindyTV, etc.) to check the weather, and did so at frequent intervals (no less than 3 times per day, but as the storm approached, every two hours).
- The remainder of what we did or didn’t do was based upon the info garnered from that weather analysis.
- We decided to re-locate our boat* from Secret Harbor to one of Grenada’s best hurricane holes. We also did so relatively early so that we would have a good choice of spots. Note that this is an anchorage that we had been to a number of times before, so we knew what to expect.
- Prior to moving around to the other bay, we visited the fuel dock to top up on diesel, gasoline, and water.
- Even though several boats in the hurricane hole that we moved to had decided to tie themselves into the mangroves, based upon our interpretation of the weather forecast, we felt that we would be safe anchoring as usual. Because we arrived early, we were able to pick a good spot with plenty of swinging room. We let out 7:1 scope, and made sure that our 85 lb. Mantus anchor was well set.
- We arranged our never-before-used secondary anchor, normally stored in the aft locker, on the foredeck, just in case.
- We rolled our genoa up a bit tighter, placing several additional wraps of the sheets around the furled sail. We also took a length of line and criss-crossed it around the mizzen sail, to help contain it, just in case (the zipper on the sail bag is damaged so it doesn’t close properly).
- We placed all of our important papers and cash in a dry bag, just in case we needed to leave the boat quickly.
- We continued to check the weather on a regular basis while the storm was ongoing to determine if we would need to make additional preparations.
The largest gust that we recorded, 37.7 knots.
What we did not do:
- We did not stock up on extra provisions.
- We did not remove any of our sails.
- We did not remove our small soft bimini/rain catcher.
- We did not deploy our secondary anchor.
- We did not tie our boat into the mangroves. We have never done this before, but if we did, I suspect we’d do similar to what our friends on Distant Shored did.
If we had determined from our weather analysis that we’d have been facing a stronger storm, our preparations would no doubt have been different.
*Some people, like our friends on Brilliant, decided to sail south to Trinidad, further away from the storm’s projected track. Others opted to stay anchored where they were, or to check in to a marina. We all make desicions, or fail to make them, based upon our experience, comfort level, and circumstances. Sometimes those decisions work out, and sometimes they don’t.
As usual you two were well prepared and cautious.
Sailing to Trini waters IMO is trading Mother Nature’s dangerous side for Human Nature’s dangerous side…a.k.a. nefarious people on fast boats
Here on Lake Ontario, with wild winds from the east for the 3rd day in a row, the lake is just nuts. Yesterday I planned to go check our dock lines and this was reinforced shortly before 5PM when our marina sent out an email blast that marina employees had re-tied a few boats.
Mother Nature is amazing.
The risk of being attacked by pirates while sailing to Trinidad is less than the risk of walking alongside a major road here.
As for Lake Ontario, I remember how bumpy our marina could get when the wind swung around.
Super glad to hear that you and Rebecca are safe and had no undue excitement! Sure hope the rest of the cruisers out there bode as well as you guys did!
I think almost everyone made out OK here. Let’s hope those in Hurricane Matthew’s path will be able to say the same.
Glad you were fine as the storm went further north! Good thing it hadn’t strengthened as it now has!!
Cheers,
Paul & Sheryl
Distant Shores
Very good thing!
A simple genoa precaution I like is to wrap the spin halyard around the sail Takes only a minute, and I know from accidental experience (anchoring the halyard too close tot he forestay) that it makes it impossible to unfurl the sail!
That is a good idea. Easy to do. Thanks.
Thanks for this post. I appreciate the entire thing – especially your thought process.
You’re welcome, Dave!
Saying prayers this morning for the people of Jamaica, Haiti, Cuba, and DR. They certainly need it this at this time. The power of mother nature is awe inspiring. Those of us on the US East Coast are keeping a close watch on the projected path of this storm.
The storm does look extremely bad!