shen says, "Don't believe it if you want to know where the Gulf Stream is", but
"don't believe it is you need to know where the Gulf Stream is".

anyone know what the heck shen is trying to say _really_ say?

Sherwin, you might just wanna take a look at a temp chart of the waters
between
Florida and Newfoundland to see just how much of a well-defined "river" the
Gulf Stream is. On the average, it "gets there", but there is not much
"average" about it.


There are areas of the "Gulf Stream", and then there are areas of the Gulf
stream.
Since it's been awhile since I've seen charts and pilot charts of the East
Coast, things may have changed.
However, when I first started running with and against the stream, the charts
at that time showed a course which approximated the main axis of the stream,
generally to some point NE of Hatteras.
At that time, it was a given that the "stream" moved inshore at some points
of
the year, and offshore at others (can't remember which and only remember that
it was a winter summer thingy).
Having said all this, we noticed the strongest current when running the Fla.
coast, which diminished slightly when north of the Bahamas, and diminished
again, North of Hatteras (where it tended to spread out).
Most of the information used as a basis for this information, was based on
experience from those who had gone before.
Surprisingly, once we started getting more modern up to date info on the main
axis of the stream, and tried to follow it, it was frequently surprising how
often we found ourselves out of the stream in areas that with the old
methods,
we would be in the "stream", and if heading South, vice versa.
For those who are racing, I would definitely suggest paying close attention
to
daily predictions, but for those cruising, I'd say watch the "old" main axis
you can find on various charts and if possible, compare and make a "big
picture" use of the more up to date predictions ..... i.e. don't ignore the
old, whether you are just trying to use it, avoid it, or cross it.

Shen

On 17 Mar 2004 11:39:32 -0800, (anchorlt)
wrote:

I agree with anchorlt insofar as he speaks of crossing from Ft.
Lauderdale, Miami or the upper Keys to Bimini. In the 60s when RDFs
with their little loop antennae were state of the art in navigation
and few sailors had them I used to go to Bimini frequently (The
Bahamanians were not charging a visitor tax back then). I probably
made 20 or more trips across, every single one without incident other
than occasional mechanical problems, i.e. dead starting battery when
needed for getting back into Port Everglades). My little sloop was a
medium displacement 30 footer. Always left Ft. Lauderdale around
midnight in order to get a daylight landfall as these islands are low
lying.

Now, as for the Gulf Stream itself. Yes. It can be unbelievable.
When I was 16 (a very long time ago) I spent one summer working on a
Standard Oil tanker. On my last trip of the summer from Venezuela to
the refineries of New Jersey we were caught in a hurricane off Cape
Hatteras. Back in those days we did not have satellites and the
advance forecasting that exists today. The barometer began to drop
and the bosun ordered us to begin securing everything. The older guys
were kidding me, telling me what a blow we were in for, and how I was
going to see some real weather. I thought it was going to be a great
adventure and actually looked forward to it.

When it started ripping off our life boats and when I began to observe
real fear in the old salts I knew we were in trouble. At first I was
really seasick but in a short time the fear became so great I forgot
all about the seasickness and have never experienced it since. I was
an ordinary seaman (lowest possible rating) and because of the
building weather I started my watch on the flying bridge rather than
ont he bow (ships were required to keep lookouts in those days)which
in a tanker is midships where the officers are quartered and where the
wheel house is and the midships house is connected to the officers'
mess and crews quarters by an exposed catwalk running from midships
to the stern house.

Hurricanes didn't have names in those days and I don't believe they
were categorized as 1 through 5 either. I do know the waves,
according to the captain who spent the entire time in the wheelhouse
(They took me off the flying bridge and into the wheelhouse when the
waves began to crash over it) were 100 ft. high. The particular ship
I was on had been torpedoed just out of New York harbor(I was not
aboard when that happened_. It had broken in two and the bow and
stern sections had actually drifted apart. Tugs were sent out to
recover each section and the separated sections were welded back
together and had heavy straps riveted to the hull. There was fear of
it breaking apart in the beating we were taking. There was no food as
there was no way of moving to the after section where the mess was
located. Two of the giant lids that cover the wells were ripped off.
Fellows, it was real scary and when I think that people have been
through storms like that on small boats I am absolutely in awe.

Hope I haven't bored anyone with my story but my point is this: There
is little to fear in a crossing from So. Florida to Bimini and back in
a well found sail boat outside of hurricane season or a severe norther
(which are pretty well forecast today and are cyclical in Florida in
the winter). But, there is a hell of a lot to fear in the Gulf Stream
if you are more than an 18-hour or so run to safe harbor. There are
not a lot of all-weather inlets on Florida's east coast with some of
them being incredibly treacherous in any sort of blow. Just listen to
your weather reports and use a little judgement and you'll do fine.
There are no sea monsters and the Devil's Triangle thing is just a
myth to keep the advertising dollars rolling into the Discovery
Channel.

Just remember this only applies to a So. Fla.-Bimini trip and does not
apply to anyone leaving the NE or N. Carolina sailing to any of the
Windward islands or to Bermuda. We all know of the disasters that
occur regularly to small-boat sailors