Advice for a Solo Sailor?

smokey73 · Apr 26, 2023

Correction: I should have said "personal locating device" not "personal location beacon". Where I sail, a waterproof hand held VHF might even be better since most of the small pleasure boats around here carry VHF radios but few have AIS and most wouldn't know how to use DSC if their life (or in this case mine) depended on it.

I don't disagree with the "consider the edge of your boat a 500 foot cliff" but I don't agree that if you go overboard solo you're dead. I assume you are being drammatic. By that logic I assume when you are solo you don't wear a PFD. Why prolong the misery? Better yet, put some rocks in your pocket to make it quicker. Your sentiment may be true for BC or even San Fransisco Bay but it is not universal and certainly not here in the Bays and offshore in South Carolina

Like Real Estate the key is LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION. Both from a water temperature standpoint and from a presence of of someone to find you. Where I live (Beaufort SC) during most of the time I sail solo the survival time is "reasonable for recovery if you can be found". If you are less than 12 to 15 miles offshore there are boats going by (sometimes too close for comfort) on a frequent basis unless it is the middle of the night.

Below are some links for survival time in water and average temperature for where I live.

Cold Water Survival Time Calculator | Good Calculators

You can use this quick and simple cold-water survival time calculator to approximate how long someone can survive in very cold water. This online calculator computes the anticipated survival time using methods that were presented in the Xu & Giesbrecht and Hayward studies

goodcalculators.com

Ocean water temperature in South Carolina in May

What is the water temperature in South Carolina in May. The average and max/min water temperatures in May over the past few years. Water temperature graph

seatemperature.info

dlochner · Apr 26, 2023

smokey73 said:
but few have AIS and most wouldn't know how to use DSC if their life (or in this case mine) depended on it.

All mounted VHFs have DSC. If the DSC Distress signal goes off, those who don't know how to use will learn quickly. I'm told it is loud enough to wake the dead.

Dil · Apr 26, 2023

jviss said:
I'm looking into float plan apps for Android. Any recommendations? The USCG has an app with a float plan feature, but with mixed reviews.

I don't have any app suggestions, I call family and let them know my route and destination and expected arrival time, you could also mark a chart take a picture and text it to someone

smokey73 · Apr 26, 2023

They might hear it but know what to do about it is another thing. I imagine most would just say "turn that D^%n thing off and hand me a beer, Bubba.

dLj · Apr 26, 2023

jviss said:
Thanks, I should have been more precise. I will be doing day sails, and coastal cruising weekends and at times a week or two at a shot. I won't be going too far, I don't think, and not offshore, pretty much keeping to Rhode Island Sound, Buzzards Bay, Vineyard Sound, and maybe Long Island Sound. Not living on the boat.

I have and AIS transponder, which I love!

I'm looking into a PLB and a small, waterproof VHF with GPS to clip on my vest/harness.

Very useful info. I think others have given you great advice. I especially like @Stu Jackson 's description of looking at the edge of your boat as a cliff. That is so true! Not much more to add from my side.

dj

dLj · Apr 26, 2023

smokey73 said:
They might hear it but know what to do about it is another thing. I imagine most would just say "turn that D^%n thing off and hand me a beer, Bubba.

I'll bear this in mind if I'm sailing down your way...

dj

BarryL · Apr 26, 2023

Hello,

I also do a fair amount of single handing, My home area is the Long Island Sound. Most of my solo sailing is done during the peak sailing season - June-September. Most of my solo sailing is day sailing or the rare overnight trip. So, for ME, the rules I follow are:
-Wear a PFD
-Carry a hand held VHF with GPS / DSC
-THINK before ACTING
-Rig the boat so you rarely have to leave the cockpit
-Have a good autopilot

I don't bother with jacklines and tethers. When solo sailing I don't sail in bad weather (at least not intentionally). I think the chances of falling overboard are pretty small. I think that if I can float and call for help I will likely survive a trip overboard. The water is warm (enough) and there are usually enough boats around.

I have a furling headsail, traditional mainsail with dutchman, and powered winches. I need to leave the cockpit to remove the mainsail cover and put on the halyard. I can raise the main and unroll the headsail from the cockpit. I do like to drop the main from the mast but I can drop it from the cockpit if I have too. My boat stays on a mooring, so departing from and return to the mooring is simple to do by myself.

If I were to solo sail offshore I would run jacklines. I would also buy a PLB / AIS unit.

Have fun and good luck,
Barry

brazenarticle · Apr 26, 2023

Move about consciously and when your head is telling you to hurry up - slow down.
Falling on companion way steps or burning yourself by spilling a pot off the stove are more likely dangers than a rogue wave. A broken ankle, torn up fingers or any of the thousands of small emergencies on land become much bigger hurdles when alone on a boat .
If you find yourself rushing to move, tie a knot, cleat a line or something else - slow down and make sure you are doing it right, there may not be an opportunity to do it over.

JBP-PA · Apr 26, 2023

All the above safety advice is good. On more mundane topics:
Solo sailing requires more advance preparation. You need to prepare to dock before you go into a crowded harbor or marina. Take sails down early. Put fenders out on both sides, you can't ask a crew member to move the fenders to the other side at the last minute. Prepare dock lines, also both sides. Learn how to dock and undock by yourself. The book Stress Free Sailing by Duncan Wells has a bunch of tricks for this.
Get comfortable with heaving to, it's great when you need some time to prep food or whatever and can't drop everything when the autopilot alarm goes off.
@brazenarticle makes an excellent point, it's often hard for me to accept that I must slow down.
Just one more tip about jack lines, make them a convenient as possible. Not only should jack lines be tight and inboard to keep you onboard, you should be able to easily switch from cockpit to on deck. You should be able to be clipped into a hard point in the cockpit and connect your other tether to your jack line while sitting in the cockpit. No monkeying around while half out of the cockpit.

kappykaplan · Apr 26, 2023

JBP-PA said:
Get comfortable with heaving to

Stu Jackson · Apr 26, 2023

smokey73 said:
I don't disagree with the "consider the edge of your boat a 500 foot cliff" but I don't agree that if you go overboard solo you're dead. I assume you are being dramatic.

Not at all.
I am sure there are places where the water is warm and the land is not too far off.
Good, go sail there, then.
When I learned to sail singlehanded on Beetle catboats on a lake in western Massachusetts in 1955, the camp was on one side and "Elephant Rock" was on the other side, maybe a mile away. A "rite of passage" for those of us who desired to become real "waterfront staff" was to swim to The Rock and back (accompanied by a small motorboat, like swimming across the English Channel). Not an issue when I was fifteen, but I'll betcha every penny of your inheritance that almost NONE of the people on this forum, NONE of you, could do that swim today.
I was NOT kidding.

capta · Apr 26, 2023

If I was headed offshore alone, most likely the last thing I would want to do is get slowly bashed to death by the boat if I was on a tether. The same for a life jacket; 4 to 5 days slowly dying, doesn't appeal to me.
I've always used the one hand for me and one for the boat and have yet to go over the side, and as you know, I have a bit of sea time. Situational awareness, and an honest assessment of how tired you are, if you are leaving the cockpit, are the key to single handing, to me.
I always slept during the day and done watches at night. I figured I'd be more visible in daylight than at night, to other traffic.
If I found myself overly tired, if practical, I'd heave-to some distance offshore, if I thought myself too tired to make landfall.

Hollyberry · Apr 26, 2023

Its very labourious to raise a mainsail, esp in your size range, cranking from the cockpit. When doublehanded one of us 'jumps' the halyard at the mast - it takes a fraction of the time to get to 80% or more but when singlehanding you don't have someone to tail the winch.

On our last two boats I've added an open camcleat on the side of the mast below the halyard exit slot. This way (solo in reasonable conditions) you can jump the halyard as far as you can, slip it into the cleat, then go aft and pull the slack through.. generally when you grind the last couple of feet the halyard will pop out of the camcleat on its own, ready to drop when it's time. This saves a considerable workout (unless you already have an electric winch). It also reduces the time you need to keep the boat 'head to wind' untended, esp with lazyjacks rigged.

Re: jacklines... if they are webbing, some like to put quite a bit of twist in them so they don't lay flat on deck, making it easier snag with the carabiner on your harness..

Calif. Ted · Apr 26, 2023

It is a great suggestion, I have a jam cleat which requires TWO trips to the mast when jumping solo. Yesterday I was solo because it was too cold and cloudy to get anyone else interested. I raised it most of the way from cockpit by hand before putting the Milwaukee drill to it.

capta · Apr 26, 2023

Hollyberry said:
Its very labourious to raise a mainsail, esp in your size range, cranking from the cockpit. When doublehanded one of us 'jumps' the halyard at the mast - it takes a fraction of the time to get to 80% or more but when singlehanding you don't have someone to tail the winch.

On our last two boats I've added an open camcleat on the side of the mast below the halyard exit slot. This way (solo in reasonable conditions) you can jump the halyard as far as you can, slip it into the cleat, then go aft and pull the slack through.. generally when you grind the last couple of feet the halyard will pop out of the camcleat on its own, ready to drop when it's time. This saves a considerable workout (unless you already have an electric winch). It also reduces the time you need to keep the boat 'head to wind' untended, esp with lazyjacks rigged.

Re: jacklines... if they are webbing, some like to put quite a bit of twist in them so they don't lay flat on deck, making it easier snag with the carabiner on your harness..

Isn't it standard practice to "clip in" before leaving the cockpit. I can't think of too many things that could lead to real trouble on deck than twisted strapping.
Sailing single handed is laborious all the time, not just when raising the main from the cockpit. However, with a good autopilot and/or vane gear, going forward to raise a main or jib isn't that dangerous, if you do not have the boat headed directly into the wind.
I did my circumnavigation before RF jibs and halyards leading to the cockpit. However, I did have a cutter which had the mast in the cockpit, and that was great. I still had to go forward to furl or unfurl to change jibs on my double headstay rig.

Captain Larry-DH · Apr 26, 2023

dLj said:
Do you have an AIS transponder?

This

In addition to staying tethered short enough so you can’t go over the side. Handheld VHF too.

Stu Jackson · Apr 26, 2023

Singlehanded Sailing by Andrew Evans
This book is only available as a free download from
The Singlehanded Sailing Society at
www.sfbaysss.org/tipsbook

jviss, this book has been touted on boating forums for decades. Where ya been?