Lake Erie Coast Guard Rescue(s)
- Thread starter Windtherapy
- Start date
Erie is more shallow and waves are close and steep. Not like swells on the ocean.
True of all the Great Lakes.
get broadside off a wave in 6-8 ft seas on Erie, and you can end up with yourself in the h 2 0 and the boat knocked down. it was blowing 28 knots last week end as i singlehanded to my home port. it was no fun .
I waived off my launch last Saturday because it was so nasty. I've been out in stuff like that, but I've never chose to go out in stuff like that.
JerryA
JerryA
If you are an ocean sailor, you have no idea what a 6 ft Great Lake's wave is.
Ted Turner said a very disparaging thing about Great Lakes sailors until he actually sailed in a race on Lake Michigan then he reversed his comment.
Wow, ok thanks. I bought a 26' but yet to launch it. Still working on it and will launch next spring. I bought a slip on Lake Huron and I am always interested in knowing the hazards of the Great Lakes. I here Erie is the worst due to shallowness but I know all 5 lakes can be bad.
Fun place to sail. I saw it coming and checked my phone radar. Looked ugly, so I anchored on the back side of Bay Point for some shelter. That was good for the waves, but I still got wind. Anchor did a good job holding. Monday was a wonderful day of sailing.
JerryA
JerryA
Like the Pardys say: it's not the wind that will get you, it's the waves. The waves in the Great Lakes come fast and steep. Especially in western Erie because it's so shallow. Great Lake sailors barely know what swells are. But we know what waves can do.
I headed up next month on my 24' and you guys have me scared to launch. How is the Sandusky bay, does it get as bad
Don't be afraid be prepared.
Check the weather forecast, prepare yourself and your boat, make sure you have charts and navigational aids and use good judgement. And always allow extra time for the trip because they always take longer than you expect. Do not be in a hurry because that may force you to compromise good sense to make an arbitrary schedule. If you aren't experienced get someone who is to go with you.
There are many great weather tools that can help you. I use one called Storm which gives you an excellent video view of the current and future forecasts. There is another on I use called WeatherTrac and that gives you get GRIB charts that show wind forecasts in 2 hour intervals. It will help you see speeds and direction and the changes that are predicted. With these you should be able to make a go / no go plans.
And above all if you look at it and you have this pit in your gut questioning IF you should go out then you probably shouldn't go.
Are you scared after last weekend?
That special anchorage is exactly where the storm took out trees and power poles. Folks say it only lasted about 10 minutes.JerryA