Westward Gulf Stream Crossing – May 18 to 20, 2010

At 6:30 AM on May 17 we made contact with Chris Parker, our weather advisor who we can communicate with via SSB radio in the absence of the internet or VHF weather networks. He indicated that we could expect sustained squalls and thunderstorms with winds between 30 and 40 knots later in the day and into the evening. With that in mind we decided to delay our departure.

A spectacular final Bahamian sunset

The next morning’s three day forecast called for light winds with some isolated squalls. We had a good weather window to head for Fernandina Beach. Ft. Pierce and Cape Canaveral were possible bail out points if things turned nasty. Fernandina Beach was far enough north that we could take advantage of the Gulf Stream to carry us there. We would take turns being on watch for three hours at a time and hoped we would be able to sleep in between watches. Passages (NH) would make the crossing with us. It was good to be able to call them and compare notes when all we could see was the sea and the stars. A little bit of conversation makes the night watches go that much quicker.

We pulled up the anchor and left Great Sale Cay on schedule. The wind was mostly on our nose so we had to motor in order to maintain a speed of 6 knots. Our initial course took us NNW to Matanilla Shoal where we turned to the NW for entering the Gulf Stream. The sky was partly cloudy and we used the radar to watch for squalls. We only saw two in our vicinity. The closest one was 3 nautical miles away.

One of two squalls we saw.

We reached the Gulf Stream late in the evening of day one. The farther west we went, the stronger the current got. By sunrise our boat speed had increased to 10 knots although we had kept slowing the engine down. The current was faster and wider than we had expected. The waves were small We had to slow down even more or we would arrive at Fernandina in the dark which we did not want to do as St. Mary’s Inlet can be busy with outbound fishing boats and submarines from the nearby naval base. To kill some time we put up the sails and turned the motor off. We were still travelling at 6 knots in very light wind.

Flat water in the Gulf Stream

During the evening of day two we started the motor again when we needed to leave the Gulf Stream and turn west towards land. At that point we were counteracting the effect of the northerly current. We reached the red and white buoy marking the entrance to St Mary’s Inlet at 7:00 AM on day three. There had been very little traffic on the water .Fishing boats were just starting to come out and there had not been any announcements for submarine traffic.

Early morning fishing trip.

A pilot boat heading out from Fernandina Beach to make a crew change.

Historic Fort Clinch guarding the entrance to St Mary’s Inlet

We picked up a mooring ball at Fernandina Harbor Marina, went ashore and walked the few blocks to the Customs and Border Patrol office to check in. The crossing and return to the US was uneventful, just as it should be.

As of now our plan is to return to the Bahamas next winter. Then again, our plans are often drawn in the sand at low tide and get washed away with the next tidal cycle which at most is about six hours away.

In the meantime we are making our way up the US coast to find a boatyard where we will be safe from any hurricanes and can do some improvements to Polar Pacer. After living aboard for almost a year we have some ideas to make her just a littler more comfortable and user friendly.