I plan the navigation (Course to Steer) for the 90 mile solo passage between Cherbourg France and Brighton UK. I also discuss sailing around windfarms.
THE most educational sailing videos on you tube. And professionally delivered, thanks for sharing so freely, you are a pleasure to watch and listen to. Not sure if you’ve ever mentioned your profession (I’ve seen every video of yours) but the world missed out if you weren’t a professor or educator of some kind.
Hi Patrick welcome home another enjoyable video. On the AIS front, its well worth having for a channel crossing as ships can be on you before you know it, wrt the big ships being able to filter out the smaller ones this is not the case, ships over 300gt will have to be fitted with a Class A AIS whilst most smaller craft will have Class B. The ships with Class A can filter out Class B if there is a lot of AIS targets around, this does not remove you from their screen but can remove your boats name and other info from their screen so it may be difficult for them to identify you by name, your MMSI number will still be seen by them so worth having that displayed by your VHF for if this situation arises. One thing to be wary of though is that on a Class B AIS your position is transmitted every 30 seconds but this only happens if there is a slot on the AIS system if not then it is held in a queue then so your position displayed on the ships or others will be somewhat historical. Not too dramatic for a sail boat but be way of any fast moving Class B targets. Enjoy your Fish and Chips and Chicken Tikka Masala
Hi Patrick, After watching all your other stuff, I have been looking forward for another voyage. Lets just say I was not disappointed. Great info and keep them coming. Thanks
Hi Patrick, welcome back to Blighty! Enjoyed this episode very much. I’ve sailed across the Channel many times, but there’s always something for me to learn. Thank you for an excellent summary of your approach to planning. Two additional points about the plan, that you’re no doubt across, but I offer here in case of interest to others. You addressed the impact of tidal streams beautifully for the predicted average SOG of 5.5. But - as you have been musing in the video and in your comments here - the SOG varies. So the plan ought to consider, respectively, what happens if you arrive early or late. Either way, it’s efficient to try to aim to arrive uptide ... so as to avoid a flog against the stream near your destination. The second point is to check the forecast wind speed and direction near your destination at about your supposed ETA and to take account of that too. Often, taking those two aspects into account, it can be the case that a strategic adjustment of the “ideal” course to steer - a deliberate bias one way or the other - can save you arriving downtide and/or downwind. After 15 or 16 hours it can be rather disappointing to face a beat with a foul tide! Been there, done that ... Anyhow, fair winds for the next leg. You’ll be passing (maybe you’ve already passed) my ‘hood ... the beautiful waters of coastal Essex. Wave! Or let me know if planning on arriving in Tollesbury. There’s hospitality here. Roy
Excellent points Roy. I'll add a third. I was VERY concerned that my changed SOG would make me arrive outside the tide window at Brighton, and that I would have to sit around somewhere for 4 hours waiting for the tide to come back in! All worked out well in the end: faster than planned SOG in some places, and slower in others. Swings and round abouts. Fair winds.
Great episode. Learned a lot. I don’t want view going hiking on an island with sailors. I want to learn about how their boat works, and what they are working through as sailors. Great discussion of the tides in this episode.
An excellent video on a real world course to steer. Another viewer mentioned the world missed out that you were not a professor, but doing the math you have a greater affect here: (24758 (video views) / 30 (an average student class size) = 825 / 2 (semesters per year) = 412 years of teaching! More important, no administration and you have interested students. Thank you again for making these videos.
Yeow, that sounds like those calculus problems I've since forgotten how to do. You need to find the extremal of the integral of your velocity, which is the vector sum of heading/boat speed and current, integrated over time (subject to constraint of arriving at destination) This would yield overall distance traveled through water, minimizing this would minimize travel time. Probably easiest to do numerically on a computer .. thanks for stimulating my nerd brain, Good to see you underway again.
Ha! I was thinking after I wrote that--and you mentioned the course kinda looks like a sine wave--that the path function would be a Taylor series of harmonic (sines cosines) functions ... it's fun tickling a part of my brain I haven't used in a while. Anyway, enjoy Brighton, looking forward to your next series of vids.
It's just fascinating to me that one can see the world on a sail boat, I dont think there is any other way of travel that can do this besides flight which dint give one such a organic way to see the world..wish I could do this that's forsure..I enjoy your vids thank you...
I did my skipper's ticket in the Solent....it's all about the tides. I now live in Thailand. Thai Netflix has none of the modern classic movies....Thai TV is pretty grim. You are currently my No 1 evening entertainment. However, I never see you prepare a meal or take a coffee.... Do you have a secret au pair hidden in the focsle? :)
You had your answer: your speed over ground is the vectorial sum of speed on water+tide: it can be superior or inferior to your speed on water. Your calculations were correct. Nothing to add or change.
Another great video, thanks for your time Patrick! You're making it all too easy to accumulate a wealth of sailing knowledge. You easily have the best channel for those interested in actually sailing. Now, I find nothing wrong with the nautical nomadic bohemias like Delos, which are also great fun to watch, but your videos are so much more informative and of substantial technical value. Stellar stuff....
Very kind of you Bill. I too enjoy watching some of the travel/sailing videos. RAN is a favorite of mine, as Johan is a terrific sailor. Some of the others are just bikini flash vids, and I don't enjoy them as much.
Hallo Patrick, Thank you for your excellent videos, which I recently discovered on youtube. With regard to crossing the Channel I like to write the following story. A couple of years ago I was standing on the bridge of a 200 meters long bulkcarrier and we were on our way to Canada. It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon and we saw several sailing yachts on their way to France. They were clearly visible with the naked eye. I decided to take a look on the radar and there was nothing to be seen! We just got a reflection on our radar when the were about 1,5 nautical miles away! The crossed our vessel in front of us and they disappeared behind the mighty bow of the ship! Now just imagine there are a lot of high waves, what does the officer of the watch probably do in such a situation? They switch on the clutter to eliminate the influence of the waves. Now most polyester yacht have a white hull and white sails and than it will be very difficult to see them in those waves. There is also an other aspect to this story. Many cargo vessels have a minimum rate of crew members and it can be very likely that the officer of the watch, after he took a look on the radar goes to the back of the bridge and write down his position on the chart And logbook, or just go simply to the toilet which is also on the bridge.
This brings back good memories to me. As a flight crew member (now retired) we often did layovers in Brighton (15-20 years ago). We were staying at the Royal Albion Hotel which had a wonderful view of the Palace Pier. I remember the neighborhood shops "The Lanes", the Fish & Chips. There was also this place called The Mongolian an "All you can eat" spot, for a reasonable price. Very nice in the summer.
I know that area very well also. I used to keep my private airplane at Shoreham, and took my young daughters to all of the cities/piers along that coast to eat greasy fish and chips! Great memories. ;-)
Thank you for uploading your informative and interesting videos. I have only recently begun to sail keel boats on Windermere, UK and I'm currently working towards my RYA level 3, with the hope that, in time I can gain sufficient knowledge to feel confident enough to take on some of the journeys that your enjoying. Your an inspiration to me and I'm full of admiration for the way you live your days. I look forward to watching all of your videos over the course of the next few weeks as I'm sure I can learn a lot from you. Many thanks.
Super Paul. The RYA qualifications are a great way to build confidence. Ensure you insist with your instructor to practice maneuvers (at sea and in port) as if you were solo. Best wishes to you on your future 'round Britain' tour!
A bit late discovering you on RU-vid, but enjoyed what you do so much, that I am currently binge watching everthing you filmed. As for the rugby songs, there are issues with both you mentioned, and I believe that they have banned the Welsh one now! Anyway back to catching up, great sailing.
That's really not a factor Joe (though the vis is quite good below decks, except for directly ahead). When I make a call like that, I always point the boat in a direction away from other traffic and have the boat in idle, or slow tick-over. My concern is not other traffic, but rather, will the current carry me into a jetty. In other videos where I do this, you will see me glancing out the portholes. I'm looking at the shoreline, not for other traffic. Fair winds.
Hi again Patrick, just reviewing videos again as it's rainy here at Cascais so I can't work outside. Interesting how you used assumptions to "plan away" some of the complexity of this, much as I did when I last sailed from Guernsey to Gosport. The hard part for me was being sure I was clear of the Alderney Race before the tide turned and the rest was one big exercise in rationalisation. I reckoned that Ventnor, on the Isle of Wight, was close enough to being the far side of the channel and that abeam St Anne was close enough to be the near side. On that basis, the distance between them accounted for about 13 hours of tide - a complete cycle - assuming things to be pretty similar on both sides. Also my direct course was nearly perpendicular to the Channel so I didn't bother going into as much detail as you did, I just drew a line straight across and steered that heading throughout - dodging ships of course. It was interesting to see my satellite track afterwards where I was washed back and forth but ended up in the right place. Then Ventor appeared at about the right time and in the right place and I just navigated by marks and beacons into Gosport from there and largely just took tide as it came. Looking at Duncan Wells's videos, he explained something that you didn't mention - you rationalised drift as being simply being east and west, just as I did, but he also takes set into account due to two factors - that there's land nearby and the tides also bend around that land instead of being largely parallel as they are across the channel. I think he teaches things so that, where land intervenes, you break things into segments and plan for them separately. All the examples I've seen seem to be like that, where you plan hour-by-hour, deriving CTS for each of them and, in practice, you actually achieve that direct, crabbing track. Away from land - different deal entirely. I've also seen smartphone apps that do the calculations but they also seem to be aimed at coastal sailing on short legs; you type in a handful of factors and end up with a course that will, hopefully, not take you aground. All sorts of things are possible with software I suppose, but the risk of running aground of "crashing" a TSS would prevent me from using them - can't appear in court blaming someone's software for a stuff up! About the AIS aspect, because I can't get an MMSI until I get back to Australia (saga as long as "Coronaton Street" - not now), I can see the ships coming on my VHF/AIS but they can't see me. So, not wanting to engage in a series radio discussions, I simply steer clear of everybody so I don't have to worry about ships sometimes filtering me out. Advantage, too, that it also keeps my mind entertained with constant reassessment of collision risks. Only time I did actually radio for cooperation was sailing NNE just beyond Brest, when a big Biscay wave top detached and smashed in two of my port lights (poorly designed hinges no longer available). I blocked the holes and chose my course carefully to put the seas at a different quarter but that limited how I could manoeuvre - and I headed to St Peter Port instead of Plymouth to do that. That time I did radio other vessels, explaining my position and difficulty and they steered clear of me without problem.
Yeah, there are several techniques for applying the CTS technique. As a solo sailor, I don't think I'll ever adopt the 'recalculate every hour' method, but I might due the 'recalculate at mid channel' method. Another variation that I saw someone use to compensate for the fact that the current is not directly at 90° is to use an estimated coefficient. Thus, if the current is really going to be at 45° rather than 90°, instead of using (say) 3 NM/hr as the current impact that hour, they use .7*3 =~ 2 NM drift correction instead of 3. The important thing is to use a method one is comfortable with --- even crabbing all the way against the current, if that works for you. :-)
Didn't realise you were a fellow (honorary) Brit Patrick. But as such it is customary to be sailing with some lemon/limes - wouldn't want to get scurvy now.
Very kind of you Kalmi. I don't pretend to be a professional instructor --- I just want to demonstrate (my often flawed) solo techniques that work for me. Many thanks for coming back again this season. Much appreciated.
Someone should write an app where you input starting time, location, expected transit speed (in some time increment), the destination, and it pulls down the tide information and computes a constant heading that you maintain irrespective of the tides or your position (letting the tide push you or pull you as it will.) Easy to modify to use pathfinding algorithms to perform course to steer over a specific map granularity (possibly constant) if you wished for efficiency's sake as well. Hmmm... Need to find tide inputs online.
I have since learned this does exist. The hard part is actually having a 'polar' for your boat ---- that is a diagram that says, for example, when the wind is 45° off the bow at 12 kts, your boat speed will be 6 kts, etc. Various software programs can then upload the tides and weather (wind) from various public sources, and make the calculation of course to steer based on your specific polar.
Patrick, you mentioned "course to steer" and a Duncan Wells video. Found this one ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-LcIX6rIgnAA.html . Seems to provide the method for calculating a course that crabs to the destination, rather than going with the various tides to shorten the duration of the passage. Where could I find out more about the method you used?
I am not in a place where I can look Jonathan. I believe the video of Duncan Wells that shows a similar process to what I used is one where he crosses the Channel. The 'crabbing' method is course to steer (or Set and Draft' in America), when the tide or current only has one direction. You really don't have much choice there and must crab to reach destination (though I have heard some people crossing the Gulf Stream prefer to be carried Northward by the current (rather than crabbing), in order to catch more favorable winds after crossing). Best regards
Hi Patrick. I was very excited to see that you have posted your latest trip and so jumped ahead to watch it before watching your other episodes from your previous trips. The Course to Steer explanation was very interesting. When we sailed from Miami to Bimini across the Gulfstream, my preparation on the internet had suggested a similar process. The advise was to go with the strong current, rather than fight it. The author suggested to track a zigzag to Bimini, so that the time within the Gulfstream had the least detriment to SOG, and therefore average SOG for the trip. With respect to the 10 knots you were pondering, I take it that you were referring to SOG. I would think that would make sense, and that if you had steered the rhumbline, your SOG would have been boat speed-current instead of boat speed+current. I guess it is similar to the fact that when calculating an Equal Time Point when flying, a headwind hurts you for longer than a tailwind helps you. It does raise another question for me to ponder. With respect to the PredictWind Offshore app which I intend to use for our Atlantic crossing in June, does the ‘Weather Routing’ and ‘Departure Planning’ components utilise this process in the Standard package? Or, do you need to pay extra for the Professional package which includes currents? Or, doesn’t it really matter because once offshore in the deep blue the currents have less effect?
Thanks much (again) Sailing Adventurous. You are right -- I was referring to 10 Kts SOG. I like your aviation analogy (headwind hurts more than a tailwind helps). Makes sense. I'm going to give this some more consideration. Re Predict Wind Offshore: I used their planning and departure module for this (English Channel) passage. I did not have the impression that it took into account the tidal current at all. It just seemed to make a recommendation based on the wind (but perhaps I am mistaken). So, I just chose a day with a fairly favorable wind, and then calculated my heading as shown in the video and held that fixed heading for 75% of the way there.
Yes Vincent ---but the devil is in the detail. Knowing set and drift across three tidal shifts requires some tedious calculation, and then vector addition to find the resultant course requires knowing how to plot it on a chart. So, yes, I agree with you in principle, but in practice it is a bit more complex.
Love the video Patrick! I had to show Elena your little Don Quixote interlude, she loved it :) As fun as the technical challenge was working our way through the tides and currents of Western Europe, I'm quite excited to get into the Med and not worry about it!
Yep, you have to admire these English who deal with these ripping currents and often rude weather day in and day out. Enjoy your time in the Med with its 6 inches of tide. :-) You deserve a break.
mot d'humour => il y a quelques situations où la réalité résiste à notre raison, à notre intuition; on peu en citer facilement deux : 1/ la mécanique quantique et 2/ le calcul de son cap pour traverser la manche et voulant tenir compte des courants de marée :-) Et pourtant, les faits sont têtus !
... et moi qui ai toujours cru que la meilleure manière de connecter deux points est une ligne droite! Maintenant, concernant le Boson de Higgs....... ;-)
Well Jason, that's exactly the idea in theory, but in practice it is a bit more complex in execution. That said, many people cross just by pointing at the other coast and adjusting their aim point every hour or so. Not very efficient, but it will get you there.
Gedday Patrick how are things down at La Rocelle? Something you might be able to help me find. I remember seeing a video of yours discussing a journey I think you made. I think you sailed south through the Channel Islands, dealing with the very strong tidal influences. Reason why is I'm planning to travel from Gosport or Yarmouth to Guernsey, or possibly Jersey, to see the winter out. I would like to review your video if I can. Can you help me there.
Hi Patrick. Thank you for posting this. Very interesting and beautifully produced. How did you organise your watch system? I assume that you had assistance from your AIS and radar but did you manage to sleep across those very busy waters?
Great question enigma. When I am offshore in blue water, I do sleep ---- however, in coastal water, and especially insomething as busy as the English Channel, I just tough it out and stay awake. (On this trip, for the first time ever, I drank lots of Red Bull. :-) I have done 24 hour coastal trips using this method (no sleep), but can't imagine going any further than that, and I really try to avoid coastal passages longer than 18 hours. Best regards
Excellent video - thank you. As you were coming into Brighton Marina to tie up I noticed plenty of space and given the absence of signs on the water, no wind. I was thinking, why didn't he turn around and berth pointing outwards ready for the exit? Then being starboard to on that same pontoon, if the prevailing winds had filled in, you would have been blowing off for an even easier singlehanded exit. Having seen your previous videos, I suspect there was a good reason why you didn't do that, and I am curious what that might have been. Please share.
Now there is an excellent comment from someone who thinks like a singlehanded sailor! What you did not see in the video was that 30 meters behind me was another sailboat following me in. Within an hour, both sides of the pontoons 10 and 11 were filled. Just for info, today (waiting for calm conditions), I went to the refueling station to top up, and when I returned, I took a different berthing spot that will make departure a piece of cake. We think alike Greg.
Hi Patrick, I recently finished watching all your videos and very much enjoyed them. As a novice sailor, I appreciate your thorough explanations. I look forward to your next one and thanks for your generosity in sharing them.
Patrick I think one of the Pilot books I have covers from Isle of Mann up to Scotland as well as my part of the world in N Ireland. I will find out which one and let you know
@@patricklaine6958 Unfortunately, Sting was already unpalatable in his smoothness during my lifetime, but Copeland? That guy has become stronger with time. But, The Police...Sting in those eras I would agree. As an aside, I just wanted to thank you from the bottom of my heart for putting your videos up. Your common sense approach to sailing has been such a great resource for me...I'm now preparing my first boat (Hans Christian 38 MKII) for a voyage around the world, and certainly some of the information you've disseminated will be part of the forces that carry her. Again, thank you.
I don't recall exactly ----- UK ports are generally about 10% more expensive than their French counterparts on the Atlantic and Channel coasts. For my 12 meter boat, it was probably about 32 GBP per night.
Wrong way to navigate. You could be pushed on to an island by the tide. Learn the course to steer properly. You could put your life and others in danger the why you did it.
That's a bit of an aggressive assumption you make there Felix. Firstly, I know how to calculate CTS perfectly. I even voluntarily took the French state exam (the equivalent of the RYA Offshore) and scored 100% on it. Secondly, 'wrong' as you state, seems to be a relative concept because I have used this method to cross at least 30 bodies of strong tidal currents, and just as in this filmed example, ended up just where I wanted to be. Thirdly, I can only assume you mean 'wrong' because I did not add the vectors precisely, but instead used a proxy of 'east flow' and 'west flow'. I know how to add vectors, but it is very difficult to find a source of information that says, for example, at 1030, the flow will be 038° at 2.3 knots; at 1130 the flow will be 047° at 2.6 knots…….The information is never presented in that format. That said, I have seen people who say, well, I'll sail across that flow at about 60° so I'll put a coefficient of about 0.8 on it, and I'll across that other flow at 30°, so I'll put a coefficient of about 0.5 on it. Yeah, that's probably slightly more precise than my method, but still seems to be chasing electrons when finding the boulder is more than adequate. Finally, rather than just saying, 'you're wrong', a few words of explanation/clarification would add great value to your contributions to a forum. Thanks for watching anyway.
How could a Frenchman speak English so fluently with practically no accent at all? There must be a reason. You said you'd lived in the UK for 11 years, and that's what made the trick, I suppose. I also know that there are people (in fact I'd say most of those I personally have met) who could not drop their foreign accent even after living abroad for 20 or 30 years. I also thought that you could be an Englishman who lived in France for a while and mastered the French quite well. So which one are you?
Many thanks Alain. In fact, it works (theoretically), in all circumstances when crossing a current. Example: imagine crossing a body of water for 3 hours with a constant current of 5 knots. If you just point the nose at the target (and block the heading) when you leave, you will hit the other shore 15 miles downstream. If you continually alter course to keep the nose pointed at the target, you will do a huge banana shape --- with many extra miles and much extra time to arrive at the target. If you use the method I describe (course to steer --- also called 'set and drift' in some places), it will tell you the heading you need to maintain into the current to cross with the shortest distance in the least amount of time. In practice, for short crossings, most people just point at the opposite shore aiming a bit upstream and adjusting using the eye, rather than doing the mathematical calculation. :-)
Thanks@@patricklaine6958 for the explanation. I have mostly sailed in Med so without tides and rather unpredictable currents as you go. So your experience is very valuable to those who like you aim at navigating all sorts of waters. Now I understand better the way you calculate the amount of drift and steer accordingly. Anyway congratulations for your channel and your didactic approach which I find very useful. Sailing, I find, has to be experienced first hand but frankly second hand is also great when it is through your videos. ;-)
Hi Patrick, Great video as always. Not sure I go with your approach in the TSS of applying col reg rules (ie being the stand-on vessel). I apply my own rule "Might is Right" and plan my course to ensure good clearance of their bow or preferably to their stern. If close I tend to alter course and run with them and then when they catch up and are directly to my port or starboard get back on course which gives good clearance from their stern. Mike
I get it Mike. Just for clarity (because there was some confusion), I was not in a TSS. There are TSSs at each end of the English Channel, but not in the middle. The more important point is, 'In a busy area, should sailboats stand-on or give way?' I get your point --- someone else called that the 'rule of gross tonnage'. :-) Seriously, my concern with doing that (sailboat always avoids) is that when you 'zig' for one ship, you have 'zagged' for another and are now in its path. My preference is to make myself as predictable as possible. I apply the Colregs exactly as written and stand-on (obviously until it starts to become uncomfortable -- at which time I may make a courtesy call on the radio saying 'My intentions are to maintain course and speed', or maneuver like you do). There is no right or wrong to this -- and common sense prevails when the 'rule' is no longer adequate. Best regards
Bravo Patrick, ce serait super d’avoir les explications en Français, not all the video, just the technical things. J’adore tes vidéos j’aimerai tellement être avec toi.
Je me suis fait gronder par des gens quand j'ai mélangé les langues dans la début de la série........ La personne qui fait ça bien c'est 'The Sailing Frenchman' qui parle en anglais, mais tout est traduit sous-titiré. Bien fait.
Dear Patrick, merci mille fois for your informative videos and letting us participate in your adventures. A practical way to visualize how the speedvectors work when crossing the Channel the way you did is to imagine that the Channel would be a big conveyor belt changing direction every 6h. To simplify even further suppose the belt has a constant speed of 5kn. If the max speed of your boat is also 5kn and you use that speed to compensate the movement of the belt (to crab) , you can easily understand you're never going to cross the Channel. You'll just stay where you are making a U-turn every six hours. When you start using your 5kn boatspeed perpendicular to the direction of the belt you you will effectively be able to move to the other side. SOA (speed of advance) over the track will be constant = 5kn; your SOG (speed over ground) will be sqrt (5 squared+5 squared) = 7.07kn.(pythagoras) Hence in the case of a real crossing he variation in SOG doesn't affect the endresult as long as the SOA remains constant. The SOG is the sum of SOA and Current speed) Corrections to be made are for the timing of the direction (tidal) changes (normally you can maximally be one tide of course) and your leeway. Happy dockings,
Wow Patrick!!!Episode after episode I'm just more and more appreciative of what you are sharing here.I've long been a fan of primitive engineering and new tech. Sailing seems to be the perfect place for these to mix.Recently retired and decided to set my water spirit free.Purchased a small sailboat, just 26', and starting out in the lakes of Ohio, but before me, she had been to Erie and the Florida Keys. Hope to get her back to all those places very soon.Thanks for all your efforts in producing such thoughtful and genuine communications.Fair winds Good Sir!
Thanks for the kind feedback Jeff --- and congrats on the new boat. The size of the boat does not determine the amount of fun you have on one. !! When I finally finish my long distance passages, I'll probably down-size to something in the 26-30 foot range, and have a great time enjoying local/coastal sailing. Enjoy your retirement.
In aviation we have similar issues Maxboon, but often the relative speeds are so different (air mass and jet) that we just ignore them. On the other hand, being unaware of the wind in an airplane can be an unforgiving error. Thanks for commenting again.
Hi Patrick. Wow. Another excellent video. You could start up a sailing school! I notice in this and an earlier video that you never seem to say "over" when talking on VHF. It's an awful long time since I did my VHF course. Does it matter? Philip
That is technically the correct way to speak on the radio Philip. You are absolutely correct. That said, pilots never say 'over', 'out', etc. (I used to fly.) It is useful to use those keywords in a maritime context where the quality of the reception is not clear --- but I think it just clutters the airwaves when the context is for good, immediate reception. (Personal preference, but not correct). :-)
Hi Patric ; I’ve just discovered your channel and must say I’m enjoying it, especially the navigation and technical sailing content . Glad to hear you have lived and enjoyed Cardiff! It’s my home town! Looking forward to seeing your future adventures!
So you point the boat on the calculated compass point. Maintain the boat pointing in the same direction, then the actual direction for much of the journey is way off to port, but still with no change of bearing the tides bring the boat back to more or less where you wanted to be. That is amazing. Now you have explained it I understand the principle. However, I doubt I would ever have worked that out for myself in a month of Sundays! Really great teaching Patrick. Thank you.
Ha! If you explore various forums Neale, there is still a lively debate (from a very small minority) as to whether or not this is the best way to cross reversing tides. Some people swear that crabbing in a straight line is still the best way --- even though it can be shown decisively with advanced maths that the way I did it is the 'right' way. Lots of fun! Thanks for watching.
So good to see another video from you - I do hope this is the start of your passage to Norway via Scotland. It would be good to see you and any help you need with the Caledonian Canal/provisioning, just ask. [lifts for provisioning available at Wick or Inverness!]
Hello again Fiona. I am indeed Northbound. I crossed the Thames Estuary this morning. I'll be sure to shout if the Caledonian Canal comes into play. Much appreciated.
Patrick, thanks for this video as it is the first I've seen on this subject. Course to Steer was probably easy for you to grasp due to your experience as an airplane pilot (I'm assuming the prevailing winds affect a plane in the same way tides affect sailboats?) As for crabbing, been there, done that; crossing the Indian River against the tidal race that sweeps through the Fort Pierce inlet here in Florida; I think I traveled farther sideways than I did in a forward direction. Also, I love your boat! Ken from USS Lexington.
Hello to the Lex! When I learned to navigate a lifetime a go, we did a simple vector addition (called "set and drift"). That is basically what this --- with the unusual case of the tide/current reversing a couple of times, and the long period of time making a simple vector addition complicated (due to 18 little vectors in my case). The Course To Steer method simplifies this a bit --- but hey, it got me home (and for the first time, I understand why 'crabbing' is not the most efficient way to get across the channel. Thanks again for watching Ken. Roger Ball.
Patrick, So good to see your new video , and I did enjoy it as I have enjoyed all your thoughts on the Navigation planning and video's.... I also spent many of my Layovers in Brighten after landing in Gatwick airport and have always enjoyed that town... and how was the Fish and Chips. Robert North Star
Welcome back to the British Isles - I enjoy your channel a lot - love the style and clarity of your stories. Watched Episode 12 several times! Done the Biscay bit in a blow with a crew and so your stories and techniques of serious passages solo are quite inspirational. Currently in Sicily but turning around and heading back to Blighty this season. Geoff Rogers
You sound like you've a bit of salt in your hair Geoff. Many thanks for the kind remark, and may your return to the UK be slow --- enjoy that sunshine as much as you can.
After tonns of crap on You Tube, we have a chance to see useful things. This one is really good one. Innitial idea is to draw a line on the map (as you said), this little plan saves hours of sailing, making it efficient and pleasurable. Could be more explainable (on the map) with arrows of current and visable for understanding for thoseones who are not that much experienced, but anyway gives the idea for further search and learning curve! Good onya Patrick, regards from Bass Strait
Had been looking forward to you next instalment and I was not disappointed. Another great vid. Can’t recommend this channel enough. Pure sailing pleasure 👍
Hello Patrick, loved that session. Good to see you get some nice weather for a change. I’m going out on my 39’ beneteau in a couple days and will use the course to steer as part of my planning. My very first sail a few months back was very similar to your video 12. l lost the engine in bad weather, only for me it was the primary filter. Fortunately there where 3 of us on board and we managed to change the filter and get power back and home safely. Thanks for your video’s, they are most informative and enjoyable, cheers John
I take fuel management very seriously now John. I installed a Racor filter (transparent with a water separator), I do a chemical treatment every six months, I keep the tank full, and polish the tank every season now. It may happen to me again, but at least I have taken every reasonable measure to prevent it. Changing fuel filters in the middle of a storm is an absolutely miserable experience! :-)
Great Alex. I hope you have the wonderful weather conditions I had. Absolutely perfect --- and, I did not have to call a single ship on the radio. I made myself as predictable as possible (as the stand-on vessel), and they adjusted course 10-15 degrees far in advance. No stress for anyone. Almost too easy. Fair winds.
I’m clearly aware that your schedule may well have taken you further East from Brighton by now. However had I have known your projected route I would have tried to RV with you, as I live near the coast not far from Exeter and would have happily driven up coast and welcomed you to UK at Brighton. I would have been delighted to have met you and personally wish you well on your continued sailing adventures with Isabelle. No worries and extend my best wishes for your voyage up into the North Sea towards the Shetlands.
Hearing you talk about school children's blazer and tie brings back memories. I spent many years at boarding school here in the US. And following the English standard, we all were dressed in coat-and-tie. Only Catholic schools here still adhere to that standard. In my view, it is beneficial to set standards early.
Very interesting. When crossing the Gulf stream from Florida to Bimini its typically about a 60 mile sail at say 5 knots, so theoretically should take 12 hours but in reality it almost never does. I have seen some sailors calculate the offset for the gulf stream (pushing you north at up to 3 knots), then use that to calculate the course to steer by simply measuring say 36 miles to south of intended destination to arrive at destination (for example West End in Bimini) rather than get pushed too far north of it and yes it generally is apparently best to aim a bit south until midway through regardless. Any comments from folks who has done this appreciated.
Yes --- that is a classic 'set and drift' problem. I have read of people who let the Gulf Stream carry them North (rather than crabbing against it), in order to catch more favorable winds/currents on the other side. One should do one's homework, but does not sound like a bad plan. The alternative is the 36 mile offset heading like you mentioned.
Wow I learned something today ...thanks. it would also appear that if you input time and speed into this. Your time traveled would be much better from point A to B Fair winds
That's for sure Jim. Your distance covered over ground is greater, but 'nature' is carrying you along that path free of charge. That explains my high speed over ground --- but I wasn't fighting anything all that time --- so I'm sure it is also the fastest way to do this as you say.
Well, you're being a little hard on me there John. If you listen at 6:15 you will hear a proper call -- 3 times his name, three times my name……. I didn't say 'out' at the end --- and used 'See you in a short while' instead. I'm sure he understood. Your are correct though, the proper protocol is "over", or "out". A bit formal, and frankly if you listen to the professional mariners, they substitue other expressions for those terms very, very often. Just this morning I listened to a coastal controller and cargo bridge watch: "How many crew members aboard?" "Eleven crew members aboard." "And what is your destination?" "Our destination Hamburg." "OK, copy 11 crew members and destination Hamburg. Thank you very much and switching back to 16." "Tsch, Tsch" (two mic clicks). I would use the more formal wording if the radio connection were dodgy, or if I were making a cold call to a ship that was not expecting my call. I winced last week when one of the most popular RU-vid sailing couples (whom I like a great deal) ended a call with "Over and Out." Wouldn't that have been better with, "Have a good day." (I was a pilot for 40 years, and we never use over, or out, but 'Good day' is as common as bread and butter except in busy airport traffic control zones.) Thanks for commenting.
The lovely thing about Patrick Laine's videos is that he offers information and a bit of teaching to sailors, unlike so many of the current 'sailing' video blogs that are little more than 'Neighbours' afloat!
Great video again, felicitations! If you are running out of ideas, please do a short one on your fuel cell: beyond solar and wind turbines, this is the future! Cordialement, R.
course to steer really is as simple as you have explained. I remember doing that seeing a bouy go sideways across my bow at 6 knots off alderney. I had to trust my math!!!
I have to admit that I was wondering exactly the same thing as I watched myself heading MILES to the West, when I wanted to be going East. I forced myself to hold the fixed heading, and magically, it all worked out well at the end of the day. :-) Thanks for commenting.
Another really interesting video, I'm in the midst of my Day Skipper theory so the course to steer piece was fascinating. I'm surprised that modern chart plotters don't have a feature to calculate this, also allowing for magnetic variations, lee and actual speed. (Maybe they do.)
There is a software package that does much of it Geoff. Someone mentions its name in the comments below. As far as 'speed' goes, I now realise that my 10 knots SOG was normal, and not anything to be concerned about ---- I was simply getting a free ride downstream (and later in the other direction) by the tide. My planning speed of 5.5 kts 'straight line across' was good, and no need to worry about the much faster SOG enroute. Thanks for commenting.
Thank you very much for bringing us along with your course planning and your thought process behind it. I find this stuff superinteresting, and even though Colin Bailey's link automates this its nice to know the mechanics behind it. Looking forward to your next leg in the journey!
Great video and some smooth sailing - plus, you know you're doing it right when Kevin B gives it a 'thumbs up' :-)). Comment on CTS for a sailboat is that there is no input for sailing polars - as a racer, though I use it equally when cruising, Expedition software (Nick White is the guy behind it) provides great modelling that works forward from a departure time using boat polars within predicted wind fields (predictwind or saildocs or direct input) as well as ocean currents and tidal streams (tidetech or others) to provide optimums that you can update from current position etc. BnG have a similar product and predictwind themselves provide some route planning using 'clunkier' algorithms. Passing it on for what its worth and continue to enjoy the sail vids irrespective. FWAFS. BB
Very pertinent comment Bill. As you suggest, CTS does not take into account the wind for a sailboat. I was lucky and had favorable broad/beam reach for 75% of the passage, but the wind backed on me, and the last 25% I was not able to follow the fixed CTS heading I had since departure because I would have been close-hauled. Moreover, when I plugged in Predict Wind Offshore for the Cherbourg to Brighton passage, it just suggested (more or less) a straight line (no apparent account of tides). Another viewer also suggested a software program to do these calculations that takes into account the boat polar, and the tide. I'll have to check them out. Many thanks for the useful suggestion. Much appreciated.
I have thoroughly enjoyed all your videos Patrick. Thank you so much. I am just returning to cruising after a thirty year break(!) and watching your videos has not only rekindled the passion, but has helped refresh my skills/knowledge & brought memories flooding back.
Excellent. I visited Brighton Marina about this time last year. Wonderful friendly place. I was raised on doing course to steer calculations. We were given exercises to navigate to a given buoy a few miles off. - If I ever got to where I thought the buoy should be (using just compass and time) and I could actually see it with the naked eye (usually several hundred metres off), I would consider that a success. I have now become very lazy and follow waypoints - but I do plot a few vectors just to check what the water is doing.
Brighton has to be one of the poshest marinas I have visited. In the back area, people park their yachts in front of their classy apartments. Cool. After my military flying, I took up private flying, and check flight instructors used to do exactly what you describe --- turn everything off, and say, 'OK, fly me to the intersection of two roads and the railroad by just looking at the map and compass." You had to know where you were, where you wanted to go, and what the winds would do to your intended track. It was exactly the same scoring process you describe --- if you see the intersection: success; if you were in the general area --- 'well, OK'; if you are completely lost, 'Well, we'll take another look at this one next time." :-)
No template Anthony --- just basic calcs of time, distance, heading and current if relevant. I only do 'formal' passage plans on complex passages. Most trips I just identify waypoints on the Navionics/iPad, and then double check the paper chart for a sanity check. Nothing too fancy.
Amicales salutations, monsieur Laine. Votre approche de la navigation en ces eaux est sans aucun doute celle qu'il faut adopter. En tous les cas, c'est celle que personnellement j'adopte dans le Fleuve, le Golfe et l’Estuaire du Saint-Laurent en raison même de ses nombreux courants et de ses fortes marées. Nous n'avons pas le choix. Toujours un plaisir de vous entendre. Bon vent!
Just binge watched almost all the content in this channel. One of the best and most authentic sailing channels on RU-vid. The way this gentleman takes the time to explains things.... its almost as if you experience the voyage yourself. Great stuff. Subed.
Fantastic Video Patrick. Seeing someone putting Course to Steer into practice is so informative. Please keep the Videos coming if possible. Fare Winds have a great sail.
Another great video Patrick, I really enjoy your adventures. Thank you for explaining in layman’s terms some of the more technical stuff, as a budding sailor, they really do help. Looking forward to your Shetland adventure, cheers....Si.
