# Too cold to sail?



## dnf777 (Jun 23, 2007)

Hi all,
I'm new here, and to sailing in general. Been boating most my life otherwise.
I'm eagerly awaiting spring to launch my first sailboat, a Precision-15, and learn how to sail, as many have done before me. Unfortunately we're getting more snow, with about two feet piled up outside, with temps barely tickling the freezing, or rather I should say, melting point. 

So, in my despair for warmer weather, I've resigned myself to a couple more months of it being just 'too darn cold' to sail. What better to do than sit back, and read accounts of Shackelton's Antartic expedition, including his 800 mile trans-Antartic ocean voyage in not much more than my dinghy, to save his life and that of his crew.

Yeah, its too darn cold to sail. Where's my Snuggie?


----------



## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

Unless the water is frozen... it isn't too cold to sail...


----------



## St Anna (Mar 15, 2003)

Hey SD,
I'm just rubbing salt into the wound.
I'd better not make a comment.


----------



## CaptainForce (Jan 1, 2006)

Yeah! It's extremely cold for us pansies in Florida, but we'll be out tomorrow even if it only gets up to the sisties. 'take care and joy, aythya crew


----------



## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

GRRR!!



St Anna said:


> Hey SD,
> I'm just rubbing salt into the wound.
> I'd better not make a comment.


----------



## Architeuthis (Mar 3, 2008)

I didn't spend all that money on hydronic heating to not use it! In fact we only go out when it is cold!


----------



## tempest (Feb 12, 2007)

I just took the ferry home from Manhattan and there was a Guy sailing down the hudson on a run with only his Main up...looked like he was having a nice leisurely sail


----------



## ColoGuy (Jan 7, 2010)

Shackleton and his men had a tough time of it I reckon. Imagine watching the ice of the South Pole slowly crush your boat then living there for a very long time before setting off in a dinghy.

I like to think I can handle a bit but that would be a tough row to hoe.


----------



## tager (Nov 21, 2008)

Shackleton was a hardass. None of us would have made it.


----------



## bubb2 (Nov 9, 2002)

Sometimes colder is better!

YouTube - Hudson River Shorts #17 - Ice Sailing


----------



## mikeybgoode (Oct 14, 2009)

thats why god created u-haul. just got back from a beautiful day sail here in socal, sorry.. un no im not .. ehhem yes sorry


----------



## pdqaltair (Nov 14, 2008)

*All kiding a side - there's pleanty - buy a dry suit.*



dnf777 said:


> Hi all,
> I'm new here, and to sailing in general. Been boating most my life otherwise.
> I'm eagerly awaiting spring to launch my first sailboat, a Precision-15, and learn how to sail, as many have done before me. Unfortunately we're getting more snow, with about two feet piled up outside, with temps barely tickling the freezing, or rather I should say, melting point.
> 
> ...


You will extend you sailing season for years to come, and add safety when sailing in cold water in the spring.

I had a beach cat years ago; when other beach cat sailors told me they wanted more wind, I told them to buy a dry suit. t blows harder in the winter. Sailing can actually be pleasant down to about 32F; below that, if there is any spray, it gets a bit grim on the face. Ski goggles help a lot, as do good Gore-tex ski gloves.

I posted a piece about winter sailing:
Sail Delmarva: Search results for winter sailing bubbler


----------



## Jeff_H (Feb 26, 2000)

As a matter of fact, I was out sailing this weekend. I broke my rule about not heading out unless it was above 40F. It was great out there. Of course you need to dress for it, but at least here we had the Bay largely to ourselves and it was gorgeous. Mostly 10-15 knot breeses although we saw some serious gusts into the mid-20 knot range (not so bad running but a bit of pain upwind given that the denser air really gives this stuff some serious wallop power) 

Jeff


----------



## ColoGuy (Jan 7, 2010)

pdqaltair said:


> You will extend you sailing season for years to come, and add safety when sailing in cold water in the spring.
> 
> I had a beach cat years ago; when other beach cat sailors told me they wanted more wind, I told them to buy a dry suit. t blows harder in the winter. Sailing can actually be pleasant down to about 32F; below that, if there is any spray, it gets a bit grim on the face. Ski goggles help a lot, as do good Gore-tex ski gloves.
> 
> ...


Winter sailing = Hard core


----------



## Ajax_MD (Nov 24, 2009)

Adam-

Yeah, but you have the advantage of having the water to yourself. I snuck out on a 50F degree day, and only saw a few other boats. It was clear, bright and sunny, and the winds were light and variable. It made a great learning environment without having to dodge everyone else. The days are short though, and the sunset can catch you unawares if you aren't paying close attention. It goes from bright to black in a hurry.

PDQ's blog is full of great advice. Had I read it before-hand, I probably would have harnessed up. The part about winter sailing clothing was also enlightening.


----------



## cormeum (Aug 17, 2009)

Anything above 40 is (usually) pretty pleasant. Mid 30's and rain/sleet or just cloudy/high humidity gets pretty old after a couple of weeks. 
Learn to love your heater. We wear Gore-Tex foulies and a few layers of wool underneath- works fine and stays warm when damp.

Here, it looks like the ice is breaking up so we should be heading up to our "summer" slip around the 3rd week of March.


----------



## sailortjk1 (Dec 20, 2005)

Late in the season; November and December are preferable to me.
The water temps at that time of year are often higher than the air temp.
In the early Spring, the water is still so unbearably cold that the cold air blowing over the cold water goes right to your bones.
I have no problem sailing in cold fall conditions, but for some reason, the cold spring conditions get to me.
From last December on a friend's boat.


















Of course sailing in these conditions bring on a whole new set of safety issues and concerns. First concern is not to fall in the water ever. Second concern is how not to fall in the water on an icy deck.


----------



## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

Hey Tim— 

Is that Sway’s little dinghy??


----------



## sailortjk1 (Dec 20, 2005)

Sway who?
LOL, yes it was.


----------



## hellosailor (Apr 11, 2006)

Best part of saiing in wicked cold wx?

NO JET SKIS!

You won't hear a one of them from December to April.


----------



## pdqaltair (Nov 14, 2008)

*Well Said!*



hellosailor said:


> Best part of saiing in wicked cold wx?
> 
> NO JET SKIS!
> 
> You won't hear a one of them from December to April.


And no express cruiser wakes. On a calm day you can ghost on water like glass. You can hear the wild life. Love it.


----------



## mackconsult (Mar 1, 2010)

Winter sailing in a laser teaches you not to capsize :laugher .


----------



## pdqaltair (Nov 14, 2008)

*Once I sailed my beach cat to Mt Vernon National Park in the winter...*



mackconsult said:


> Winter sailing in a laser teaches you not to capsize :laugher .


...wearing a wet suit. Tied up to the excursion boat dock (they don't run in the winter). It was cold, some ice on the water. We were VERY careful about capsize.

Several people asked us if we scuba-dived over. Pretty funny.


----------



## mackconsult (Mar 1, 2010)

One year I did Winter Vashon (around the island race in december) on a Soverel 33. We came down to the boat and there was 4" of snow on it . Not only that but it was blowing 30 .


----------



## zeehag (Nov 16, 2008)

sailingdog said:


> Unless the water is frozen... it isn't too cold to sail...


in areas of hard water-----put skis on the boat and sail on it instead of in it..lol


----------



## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

Might work with my boat, but most boats, specially the leadmines, would have issues with it.


zeehag said:


> in areas of hard water-----put skis on the boat and sail on it instead of in it..lol


----------



## Ramin (Dec 31, 2010)

You guys are hard. I'll have to work my way up to this. 

Did I mention I HATE the cold. UG! Cold bad. UG!

I need heat like this. :hothead


----------



## Bene505 (Jul 31, 2008)

BubbleheadMd said:


> Adam-
> 
> Yeah, but you have the advantage of having the water to yourself. I snuck out on a 50F degree day, and only saw a few other boats...


Bubble is right, you really get the water to yourself.

I've been sailing more this winter than I did last summer. In the summer everyone likes to go to the beach instead, even though we live on board much of the summer. If you are near Long Island NY, give me a shout and join me for a sail. I have an email invite list that I use to let friends know (slightly) ahead of time.

Regards,
Brad


----------



## Bene505 (Jul 31, 2008)

sailingdog said:


> Might work with my boat, but most boats, specially the leadmines, would have issues with it.


Now that would be interesting, skates that you can mount on your cruising cat (or tri). Kind of like skis on planes that they put under (around?) the tires.

Regards,
Brad


----------



## blt2ski (May 5, 2005)

Jeff_H said:


> ........ Mostly 10-15 knot breeses although we saw some serious gusts into the mid-20 knot range (not so bad running but a bit of pain upwind given that the denser air really gives this stuff some serious wallop power)
> 
> Jeff


This is the only issue with winter sailing. Took a bit to figure out that cold air is abit denser, and need to reef or reduce the job option a bit sooner!

New years day was great here in the puget sound region!

Marty

ps, we brought up a post from last spring because?!?!?!?!

sorry could not resist?:laugher:laugher:laugher:laugher:laugher

along with there is a BIG race this saturday in puget sound too! probably about 100 boats.......


----------



## ShockValue (May 27, 2008)

I'll be in that race come Saturday. I don't mind the cold, but being rained on all day is gonna suck.

My last time out was right before thanksgiving. Nothing like racing in the snow!


----------



## blt2ski (May 5, 2005)

ShockValue said:


> I'll be in that race come Saturday. I don't mind the cold, but being rained on all day is gonna suck.
> 
> My last time out was right before thanksgiving. Nothing like racing in the snow!


Duwamish Head? That race from reading about has all kinds of fun. Really windy, boats over, or a drifter, nothing in the middle.......

I'll be up teaching ski lessons at snocrummy.... if it were sunday......might have a possibility.....

what boat are you on?


----------



## ShockValue (May 27, 2008)

I float between a couple boats, but this time I'll be on Great White.









I'm a total rookie, so I'm happy to have found a few captains that are kind enough to order me around and not make me feel too stupid when I don't know what I'm doing


----------



## blt2ski (May 5, 2005)

ShockValue said:


> I'm a total rookie, so I'm happy to have found a few captains that are kind enough to order me around and not make me feel too stupid when I don't know what I'm doing


LOL

Hopefully he is not reading this too, but I have one of them that comes on my boat.

IIRC GW is out of Tacoma or Gharbor? south of me.

time for bed, way to late right now. We'll race out of edmond in feb for the lcub stuff. May try to do the last SSS race out of GH......about 6 hrs one way motoring.....not sure the rest of the year. BRBR for sure, STYC fall regatta..........CSS is a possibility or the SYC Islands option....


----------



## nolatom (Jun 29, 2005)

What I remember from my frostbite days back in Marblehead (salt water):

If you dress really warm (and dry) and keep moving around (which you do in a dinghy, like our Interclubs), you'll stay warm enough. thermoses of hot tea or whatever a big help.

Keep in mind the water's cold, so never ever capsize, unless you have a crash boat right nearby to take you to a race committee float that happens to have a shack thereon with a pot-belly stove--which we did ;-)

Air temp will wreak havoc with your mainsheet below about 15F (and around 25F for fresh water), because it will or course get wet and will start to freeze, especially where it turns around the sheet blocks, if you don't keep trimming and easing. These "square sheets" are slippery and dangerous if you can't ease out in a hurry. And cam cleats won't work as well. 

This is why the typical 5-race afternoon wouldn't last beyond about 2-3 hours. Then we'd all repair to a nice warm bar to recover, and hear protests.


----------



## luck66 (Jul 4, 2011)

Sailing on the Columbia River year round and love it all. Rain, snow, sun and mostley the wind


----------



## WDS123 (Apr 2, 2011)

Ah yes, frostbiting in ICs, my most fond dinghy sailing days were in ICs on a winter Sunday afternoon - wondering what that bump was during a race in Feb and realizing it was a chunk of ice, then trying to recall how cold Salt Water needs to be before it freezes. 

Dress warm and keep moving,


----------



## rgscpat (Aug 1, 2010)

Frozen water is fantastic, wonderful, great stuff -- in the blender.


----------



## QuickMick (Oct 15, 2009)

Now this is _cold!!_

Around the North Pole in less than three months - BarentsObserver


----------



## WDS123 (Apr 2, 2011)

Winter sailing at it's best

‪Yard Sail‬‏ - YouTube


----------



## veprjack (Jun 10, 2011)

My shrink wrap blows off when the wind tops 15knts in the winter.

I could skip sailing for 6 months? NAW - I'll just use more bungee cords! lol...

YES - I'm kidding, but... Enjoying the banter, posts and pics - great stuff for a newbie like moi!


----------



## EJO (Jan 10, 2010)

*never to cold*

hey as long as there is wind and the sun is shinning and the H2O is not solid you can sail or actually if the water is solid you just sail an ice boat. 33 degrees F (1 C) with a windchill below freezing is still nice when you're prepared.
Layer up, wear PFD at all times (you don't have much time for survival if you get dunked and enjoy. See pic below Michigan sailing season is too short to not take advantage of every oportunity.


----------



## SloopJonB (Jun 6, 2011)

EJO said:


> hey as long as there is wind and the sun is shinning and the H2O is not solid you can sail or actually if the water is solid you just sail an ice boat. 33 degrees F (1 C) with a windchill below freezing is still nice when you're prepared.
> Layer up, wear PFD at all times (you don't have much time for survival if you get dunked and enjoy. See pic below Michigan sailing season is too short to not take advantage of every oportunity.


Agreed but a long dodger and good cabin heater make it much nicer still.


----------



## blt2ski (May 5, 2005)

I think there are some pics somewhere online of the winter Vashion, blowing 20-30, snowing. boats planing in the mid teens.......yeee hawwwwwwwwww!

That should get a BFS point or two or three from the smacky! now to go look for the pics!


----------



## cahow (Aug 27, 2011)

did some mid 40 degree sailin last spring, that was cold enough for me!


----------



## veprjack (Jun 10, 2011)

Not winter yet, but I'll put a reef or two in the old girl today and go...

WATER SKIING! lol... OK, I'll be satisfied if my boat isn't in Portugal by the end of the week! Last I heard, sustained 55mpg with gusts up to 80mph. My boat is secure, but wouldn't you know it - there are around 200 boats moored in my harbor, and the ONLY big steel hull boat is right in "front" of me! I was tempted to sneak aboard this morning and add MORE lines to her...

I'd have no problem sailing in winter, as our weather is FUNKY up here and we sometimes get 40+ degrees in January - but then there's that pesky shrinkwrap - AGAIN! You look comfy EJO!


----------



## zeehag (Nov 16, 2008)

i understand the weather here is PERFECT for winter sailing in heavenly warmth...i plan on testing that this year.....no jackets needed.....we will see...


----------



## ulferlingsson (Jun 10, 2010)

I sailed my old Havsfidra over the Baltic in a gale, arriving at night in below freezing conditions, but I was dressed in a survival suit, and I had a GeHå kerosene heater with radiator under all the berths running the whole time, keeping the temperature inside pleasant and dry. When its below freezing one should use "polyester silk" for sheet rather than "polyester wool" to avoid too much ice on the ropes.


----------



## downeast450 (Jan 16, 2008)

Hate to haul Tundra Down but Christmas is a couple of weeks away. With 6 adult children and theirs, there is too much holiday stuff to find time for sailing this time of year. Sailing the Maine coast in the fall is beautiful. December has become our end of season month. The water is warmer than the air even in the Gulf of Maine. We will be on the hard December 4th. Another month would be nice but frozen ground and snow removal at our storage yard becomes a problem.

Making ice on deck is what we try to avoid. Working on deck gets tricky and the boat gets heavy very quickly. It is warmer on the boat than on the slopes some days.

Time to find the skis!

Down


----------



## Rozz (Jun 30, 2011)

i personally havent found it to cold to sail here, i love the winter months actually. for some reason when it gets below 60*, no one is on the water... so i dont have to deal with all the idiots!


----------



## EliotR (Oct 23, 2011)

*Frostbite sailing*

Today was the first day that I actually sailed in Cold Weather. We sailed on the Hudson River in a Soling 27....froze my arse off but it was a great time. Next time I will dress a little better.


----------



## EJO (Jan 10, 2010)

Hey a member of my YC just had their last sail last weekend and finally took the boat out. It is stange to see somebody sailing in mid winter here in the Mid-West with snow on shore in the back ground. So 2011 season finally ended for them in 2012 or was it just the first sail of the 2012 season here in snow country?


----------



## sailortjk1 (Dec 20, 2005)

EJO said:


> Hey a member of my YC just had their last sail last weekend and finally took the boat out. It is stange to see somebody sailing in mid winter here in the Mid-West with snow on shore in the back ground. So 2011 season finally ended for them in 2012 or was it just the first sail of the 2012 season here in snow country?


Hey, I think I know that guy. 
Actually the air temperatures this last weekend were in the 40's. About 10 degrees warmer than the last time we went out. The problem this weekend was that the shore line had plenty of ice in it. We thought it was thin and would break right away, but it wasn't. We had to launch the dinghy from the farthest point away from land that we could. 
On the row out to the mooring can was more ice after the brief period of open water, but this ice was very thin and the dinghy went right through it. 
Once on board it was a very nice January sail. My first ever in the midwest.
I kept on wondering, "Hey where is everybody? It's a nice day for a sail!"
I know; Crazy Bastard.


----------



## WDS123 (Apr 2, 2011)

It is never too cold to sail.

Just ask those who Frostbite Interclubs

Interclub Dinghy Class - www.interclub.org


----------



## ACapri (Nov 2, 2011)

agreed ^^^, it is never too cold.


----------



## SloopJonB (Jun 6, 2011)

Rozz said:


> i personally havent found it to cold to sail here, i love the winter months actually. for some reason when it gets below 60*, no one is on the water... so i dont have to deal with all the idiots!


Boy, you SoCal types are a bunch of pussies.  Come up here and we can go out when it's zero (C) and blowing 30 - the sailing is great if you have a dodger and good cabin heat.


----------



## smurphny (Feb 20, 2009)

Temperature on Lake Champlain tonight: -10 F. The water is becoming much too hard to sail without an ice boat. Have been looking at plans for one of those. With little snow this year there may be some good ice boating. IDNIYRA Class Plans


----------



## Brent Swain (Jan 16, 2012)

Love my woodstove and my wheelhouse.Lets me cruise in a T shirt in January.


----------



## SloopJonB (Jun 6, 2011)

EliotR said:


> Today was the first day that I actually sailed in Cold Weather. We sailed on the Hudson River in a Soling 27....froze my arse off but it was a great time. Next time I will dress a little better.


Dress for skiing, other than footwear and get some of those fingerless gloves that have a "swing away" mitten fingertip cover.


----------



## mdi (Jan 15, 2009)

CaptainForce said:


> Yeah! It's extremely cold for us pansies in Florida


I am adding a pilothouse enclosure on my center cockpit boat so I can go year round anywhere


----------



## EJO (Jan 10, 2010)

Do I only wish I had a dodger and a cabin heater then I could have her in 2 more months besides the 6 to 7 now.
I'm not sure about this dinghy sailing in <35 degree F water your survival time when wet is to short in my opinion.


----------

