Surfed our '72 yesterday

[ShawnL]

We went out in what was supposed to be 7-10 gusting to 19 mph yesterday. Thinking that, since it's just a forecast, it'll probably be wrong, it was 85 degrees in October in the far northern midwest. So, why not. Winds felt around 10 mph, maybe 12 and were on our nose so we decided to motor out into the lake a bit more before putting up the sails. I was thinking reefed main and standard 110 jib. Or maybe no jib, though I've never tried it. We'll see once we get some space and can make a decision. There's a narrow area near our mooring bay that always makes it feel like it's rougher out than it really is. If nothing else, we can motor out and do a down-wind run with just the jib back home. The forecast is usually wrong, and I'm usually too cautious.

Needless to say, conditions went from "I think we can sail reefed, no problem" to "let's just motor for a while and enjoy the fall color, there's only the occasional whitecap" to "wow, there's a small craft advisory now" and we're seeing 3-4 foot waves, breaking whitecaps and some nasty rollers in the space of 30 minutes. Ended up deciding that even being out was silly and turned around. Following waves were no joke on the way back. Got to surf on a bunch of them and hit over 8 mph a couple of times on the GPS. All in all, still a fun outing. No sailing, but definitely fun.

As they say, the boat can handle more than the passengers. And they're probably right. Trying to steer a decent course while coming off a big roller is kind of a pain. Still all in all, a fun time.

 

[shemandr]

You win! You had an enjoyable day on the water and didn't scare the crap out of anyone including yourself.

 

[ShawnL]

Agreed. Admittedly, the waves were only 3-4 feet with big rollers (5' after we got to shelter) and it was only ~ 30 minutes of surfing fun. Nothing like what people experience on the open ocean. But, Lake Superior can be interesting at times.

 

[Gene Neill]

Admittedly, the waves were only 3-4 feet

They all look like six feet to me

 

[shemandr]

I’ve heard some sailors say they’d rather sail off shore in the ocean than on some of the Great Lakes. That makes sense to me. For one thing the upper mid west sees ferocious weather changes. And the lee shores aren’t that far away.

 

[Jacktar]

Try the chesapeake sometime, it will give you new respect for fetch on long water distances with high winds.

 

[LakeShark]

Have sailed on superior a number of times now in a small craft advisory with waves up to 8 foot in my Catalina 22 now. You made the right call as it's not a comfortable sail. However a couple notes on the Catalina in large wind and waves on the Great Lakes that will help.

Remember wind waves and ocean swells are not the same. A6 foot wave on the lakes can be steep and cresting.

The Catalina 22 will not point with a main only if your doing any upwind work. if your not comfortable with the jib up then motor; it will be better overall.

With the Jib only the boat will tend to round up more easily. This can be dangerous in heavy wind and waves so use extreme caution.

Best heavy air configuration in winds north of 20kts I have found is a 105 jib and a single reefed main. It's not flat but it will go to windward.

Also lock your lazaret hatches! I have laid my boat all the way over with sails and spreaders in the water. She will come up but not if the hatches open. They are a direct route for water into the cabin and the cause of most of the sinking for the Catalina I have heard of in heavy air.

If sailing with the waves watch the rudder and be prepared to surf the waves on a 1/4 so you dont stuff the bow. A couple weeks ago I was sailing with friends on a 26 foot trailer sailor around Isle Royal on northern Superior and we had 10+ footers on the nose as we rounded the north of the island. We then had them on the beam and eventually on the stern. Quartering the wave will give better steering than just dead in line with them. Just be careful not to gain too much speed. Anything over 6-7 its is above hull speed and can lead to a loss of control.

Hope this helps and remember there are still some beautiful fall sailing days out there if you just watch the weather!

 

[Leeward Rail]

I’ve heard some sailors say they’d rather sail off shore in the ocean than on some of the Great Lakes. That makes sense to me. For one thing the upper mid west sees ferocious weather changes. And the lee shores aren’t that far away.

Remember wind waves and ocean swells are not the same. A6 foot wave on the lakes can be steep and cresting.

Yes and yes.

Depth can make things "interesting" on a large lake. Here we have 9,500 square miles of lake with an average depth in the south basin, of 30ft. Short wavelength isn't fun.

Someone with an Abbot 22 aborted a trip and had a perfect analogy: "We felt like ping-pong balls in a washing machine."

.

Ocean preferred please and thank you.

 

[morbidfollower]

I'd rather have the sails up in rough weather than try to motor back in depending on the conditions. I've done both, but its always a wetter and rougher ride with the motor only at least here in SF bay. 110 or 75% jib works great with the first reef in. 75% or 50% jib with the second reef in. Obviously it depends on your sail locker. I try to keep the sail area close to the same matching between both sails and the boat feels the same as the wind pipes up at least on my boat. If I don't it usually feels like it's putting too much strain on the rudder and I feel largely in less control. Glad you had a good safe time. It seems like each trip like that helps build confidence in the boat. I remember scaring the crap out of myself when it kicked up to 30knots and I was the only idiot out there. Lost my favorite hat too.

 

[dlochner]

Sailing on the Great Lakes is different from the Ocean. When the waves form they are steep short period waves. Ocean waves come in two basic forms, long period waves that start far off shore in a storm and shorter period waves driven by local conditions. The fetch on the Great Lakes is not long enough for the waves to form swells, they come in hard and fast. They can also be complicated because of a rapid wind shift which causes 2 wave trains coming from different directions, which results in the famous pyramid or square waves that pop up seemingly out of nowhere.

If you see waves breaking just behind the boat while the rest of the waves just have white caps, the breaking wave is caused by your boat. The stern wave and the wake meet a wave and amplify it causing it to break.

The first time is bigger seas is always exciting and memorable.

 

[JRacer]

"The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down..."

 

[ShawnL]

I've considered something like a 75% jib a couple of times, but for the number of times we go out in snotty weather haven't been able to justify it. Just bought a new main for this season and only went with a single reef -- same thought, if it's snotty enough that we want the 2nd reef, we shouldn't be out. Then of course there are the days when you wish you had a 135 jib.... I suppose it's all a trade-off.

 

[morbidfollower]

I've considered something like a 75% jib a couple of times, but for the number of times we go out in snotty weather haven't been able to justify it. Just bought a new main for this season and only went with a single reef -- same thought, if it's snotty enough that we want the 2nd reef, we shouldn't be out. Then of course there are the days when you wish you had a 135 jib.... I suppose it's all a trade-off.

Ya I've never set it before I left the dock. It's usually something I swap out if the wind picks up too much. If it's that windy out to start with I sit at the pub. I have been happy to have it tho. Once I went away from my roller I got a little carried away with Hank on sails.