Crossing the Gulf in a 23

[gmerrill]

Upon taking ownership of my new 23 I?m wanting to sail her across the gulf from Tampa to Pensacola.
If my weather outlook is good I could make it in 3 to 4 days sailing 24 hours a day or motoring if needed. I would have a friend a long to help stand the night watches. Are there anyone out there who?s undertaken a trip of this nature.

[BobK]

I have made that trip 4 times years ago when I owned an Allied Seawind.  Figure 5 days and 4 nights.  This (hurricane season) is not the best time.  Look at the "windy" app for wind and wave information.  This time  of year the winds are primarily out of the west.   With the right weather window it can be done in a 23.
BobK 

[curtisv]

With two tropical storm in the area this week is obviously not the time.

Weather forcasts are accurate to about 2 days out.  Beyound that you risk short term high winds from short lived thuderstorms but generally not a sustained storm.  This is why coastal hopping (very light coastal cruising) is quite safe but multiday (light coastal) is a bit more chancy.  This is generic sailing and weather advice.  I'll defer to others on seasonal timing and worst case conditions in Florida Gulf Coast waters.

As to the CP23, its fairly seaworthy but its the word "fairly" that you need to be concerned about.  As equiped new therre is only one reef in the main.  If you want to do this sort of sailing have a sailmaker add a second reef.  You need to add proper reefing hardware to the boom as well.  The hook on the backstay in place of a topping lift is a terrible idea and if Com-pac is still doing that rig a real topping lift or buy a boomkicker.  If you have a 150% genoa that sail will be useless when reefed that deeply.  I carry a 110% jib and 60% jib.  The 60% jib is for when the 110% would be too deeply reefed to keep a good shape and where I'd be sailing long enough in those conditions to make changing headsails worthwhile.  For smaller jibs than a big genoa the stock sheet position is way too far aft.  Sailimakers can cut a headsail for that but adding a sail track further forward allows them to cut a much better sail.  You need a boom vang.  Its helpful in lower winds but its necessary in stronger conditions.

If you are thinking that if its rough out there you'll just drop the sails and motor, then you are not enough of a sailor to be out there IMNSHO.  Statistically a high percentage of deaths, loss or boat, or rescues of sailboat are those who were operating under power.  A lot of that is just putting the sail covers on and then having the engine fail in a channel (rather than keeping the sails ready) and focusing entirely on try to get the engine to restart which is not your situation.  The other common situation is taking the sails down when things get rough in hope of completing a passage under power and having the engine fail and either boat or crew is not prepared to handle the boat under sail.  Diesels are only as reliable as the fuel source and any condensation or algea in the tank gets churned up by the boats motion and quickly clogs the fuel filters or overwhelms their ability to remove water without being bled.  The result is 3-4 hours of smooth operation followed by a need to drain the water, maybe change filters, and maiybe bleed the fuel lines, all on a pitching and rolling boat.  Hopefully this is not your plan and so it will not be you.

btw Cases of the former type are numerous, some famous, and some have resulted in loss of life.  One example is the vessel Trashman was one.  The severe incompetance of the captain and friend and the significant incompetence of the other crew was whitewashed when one survivor (2 of 5 survived) wrote a book and capitalized on the story casting the survivors as victums of bad luck more than too timid to come out of their bunks in foul weather and too incompetent to just put deeply reefed sails up and sail when the engine failed.

What i'm saying is that a 3-4 day passage which turns to 5-6 if wind doesn't cooperate is really pushing it a bit in a CP23.  If you are not entirely sure you know what you are doing and what you might be getting into then just stick with coastal hopping and work up to it.

Curtis

[bruce]

Excellent advice. Karma +1!

[brackish]

I'm going to jump in here and make some intuitive assumptions that could be altogether wrong.

You are planning to pick up this 23IV brand new, fresh launch at the Hutchins yard and this trip you have envisioned is for the purpose of bringing it home to its permanent location or at least close to the location you will keep it on the upper gulf coast?  So the destination is the goal not the act of making an open crossing.

Your friend, who will be the other crew, is no more experienced than you are at making open crossings?

Considering the above: 

Why?  Shorten the extended 24 hour sailing cycle and make the trip a more enjoyable cruise.  Run Tarpon Springs to Carrabelle, St George, Appalach or possibly duck west of Cape San Blas and anchor in St Joe Bay for a night or two, well worth the stop. Then follow the coast past PC, to your final destination.  There are other options and If you're retired you have time to make it fun. Once up there you will have quite a few opportunities to hit the ICW in the event the weather turns sour on you and you can give that diesel a proper break in. 

I would allow at least a week in Tampa for shakedown, initially in the bay to make sure you have confidence in both your own, the crew and the boats ability.

If you've specified roller furling make sure they also put the jib halyard hardware with a clutch position.  That will clean up your topping lift option.  No, as Curtis mentioned you do no want to drop the boom in the cockpit nor do you want to be straddling the cockpit seats in a pitching rolling sea trying to hook that boom.

[gmerrill]

Sorry for the delay in responding back. I?ve got 16 years sailing but none in open water, so all advice is heeded. I?ve been in some bad weather without some stout weathers causing loss of engine. Was experienced to have left some sail out to power the boat. I like the idea of hugging the coast and making some stops along the way. That might the way I go. My first mate is not retired but gets off 2 weeks off at a time.  But even then the weather window might not cooperate and I may have to go it along or find someone retired.



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