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Sail from Los Angeles to South Korea and back

13K views 33 replies 16 participants last post by  Siamese 
#1 ·
I wonder if I could sail from LA to S.Korea with a small sail boat (22')

I am a beginner and need to take safest and fast route possible.
I would be sailing with 2 kids (15 yo and 18 yo) and another adult. (4 people)

Any suggestions?

including -route depending on the season
-items/equipment I would need
-where to avoid.. etc.

Thank you for your help.
-RJ-:boat :
 
#2 · (Edited)
Just off hand I would say the boat is a bit small. That's a lot of time on the water. Very hard to carry enough provisions for one person let alone four. Not even talking about the lack of personal space nor the dreaded full/fin/spade/skeg/production/bluewater/encapsulated/external/benehuntalina/steel vs glass stuff that is fixen to come about shortly.....wait, did you say "fast"? First class airfare for all would be far cheaper.
 
#3 · (Edited)
~5200 NM theoretical on the great circle route, 54 days if you could average 4 knots, which you couldn't, bring extra drinking water and sunscreen, bon voyage.
There is no safe or fast way for 4 people to cross the Pacific in a 22' sailboat unless you put them on the deck of a freighter.
 
#6 ·
Come now John, negative vibes there, negative vibes. You are trampling on this good man's dreams. Think positively. Look on the bright side .... I for one can see a Darwin award in his future. :laugh
 
#5 ·
Of one thing I think we can be certain ..... "and back" is surplus to requirements.

An acqaintance of mine circumnavigated in a 25'er, part of the way with a wife and new born. That was cramped and they did not do any passage as long as LA - South Korea.

I mean, for heavens sake. Go outside and mark up 22' from bow to stern then have your "children" and wife stand inside the lines. Then add food and water. Now while you are all standing there (or should I say crouching) ponder why it is that this just might be a really really stupid idea.

In short .... Oh FFS.
 
#7 ·
If you do it, there will be a lot of people that would love to take out a life insurance policy on you.
First of all, as said above, there is no way a 22 footer is going to carry 4 adults that far for that period of time. 2nd...there is no way you can carry enough provisions to make the trip.
3rd....you have no sailing experience.

IF you had a couple years sailing experience including blue water (middle of the ocean) sailing.
Maybe IF you had a 35 footer and you make more than a couple stops along the way to re-supply.
AND that 35 footer is a true blue water boat...
You might have a decent change of completing the voyage.

If you don't believe us...buy a 22 footer and the 4 of you go spend a week on it. YOu don't even have to leave the dock...just stay on board and never leave the boat. See how you like it.
 
#11 ·
Yup, I wonder how far this Trollpost will travel.
But it was a pretty good one. I'm in:

You will need a good inverter and an electric chainsaw. Figure consuming the 15 year old by Hawaii, and the 18 year old by Guam. After that, it's up to whomever has current custody of the chainsaw.
Oh, bring along lots of fresh water. Long Pork tends to be salty.

¬Erindipity
 
#16 ·
You might do well to try to do the trip with a tiger on board. Worked on life of pi.
I saw "Life Of Pi" for the first time a few hours ago...
One will need more than a Tiger on board. There's also the Zebra, the Orangutang, and the Spotted Hyena to consider.
One glaring omission in the Movie- that was a very Boat-Trained Tiger. Where's all the Tiger Poop? The Lifeboat didn't even have a Tiger Poop Deck.

And then, there's the assignment of personage. The Zebra and Orangutang are the two kids obviously. (Among the tools aboard, I saw neither Chainsaw nor Swede Saw. Frankly, a Tiger with a Chainsaw Paw is awesome.) To refer to one's Significant Other as a Spotted Hyena may cause trouble on a 22' Boat. Even berthed.

Next, there are Islands populated entirely by Meerkats. Avoid them.

And lastly, Marine Insurance. Get a Policy that covers any and all contingencies.

Tiger, Tiger, burning bright
On the oceans of the night
What is that on your pretty paw
Do I see a chancy Chainsaw?

When one is gifted with Zebra at Sea
Does one consume it with tangy Kimchi?
Orangutang goes rather well
With a decent Zinfandel.

Why wait for the nearest Marina
To partake of Spotted Hyena?
After that, no need for abstaining
When one still has three paws, remaining.

¬Erindipity
 
#19 ·
Hahaha...
Thanks you all for delightful feedbacks.
I knew it was absurd question but asked away anyway hoping there would be a way.
I am in a process of buying 22´ sail boat and wondered if it could be possible.

For the sake of argument, If I do take lot of stops on the way and take about 6 month or more, could it be possible?
(Stopping every 4~5 days or so)

If it is, what would be a possible rout?
So sorry for dumb question but can't help my self dreaming.

Again, sorry for my ignorance.
Thanks.
 
#23 ·
Hahaha...
, If I do take lot of stops on the way and take about 6 month or more, could it be possible?
(Stopping every 4~5 days or so)

.
What stops? Have a look at a map and us where you could stop.

Its not rocket science to open an Atlas and draw a line. There aint nothin out there except Hawaii.
The trip over the top via the Aleutians is up wind in the Screaming 50's and then you hit Russias Siberian coast.

Have you looked at a map????

Go watch that TV show about crab fishermen in Alaska and then imagine not having thier 100 foot boats but some flimsy sail boat 1/5th of the size. And sail INTO all those storms not away from them.
 
#20 ·
I'm sensing that you're not really interested in sailing a boat to Korea, you're interested in getting to Korea and you wonder if a small boat might be the way to do it. If this is the case, then I think one way to look at it is that it's possible in the same way that it's possible to get from Florida to Alaska on a unicycle.
 
#22 ·
Mate, see my first reply. Even for a freaking weekend at anchor 22' is probably too small for two teenagers and their parents. Then you have questions of seaworthiness. Now I know that John Guzzwell sailed the 22' Trekka around the world but he was solo and the boat was purpose built. There are only two possible outcomes you will achieve by stuffing four people into a 22'er . One is murder/suicide and the other is drowning.

Now ... have butchers at a map. In a 22'er you could maybe, just maybe do 120nms per day. Now draw an arc showing all possible destinations 120nms from LA. Get back to me in due course with all the places you intend stopping at.

btw .... why South Korea ?
 
#27 ·
Have you ever looked at a chart of the Pacific Ocean? I don't see many places to stop....Ignorance is one thing, stupidity is another.
 
#33 ·
I'm thinking simply dreamer. I reckon if people couched their initial question in terms of e.g. "I'm a dreamer and was wondering if small boat voyaging from the US to the Far East is feasible" they'd get a better response but hey, this is the internet after all and people sit doodling (guilty as charged m'lud) far more than they should.
 
#30 ·
Well.. Thanks for all replies.

I had this question because I wan planning to buy 22'.
Then, the deal didn't go through, and I am searching for another sail boat.

Of course the purpose of bying sail is to sail near LA (to Catalina Island or even down to Baja Mexico)
But wondered if it would be possible to travel to Asia even if it takes 1 year or so.

What size would be the smallest for long (distance and time regardless many stops on the way) sailing.
I guess 35' should be ok. Am I right?

The reason why I said Korea was because I found some sailing route maps to Europe across the Atlantic, but I could not find anything beyond to Asia (China, Japan, Korea).
This made me curious if there would be possible route; avoiding storm, pirates and all.

Once again, thanks for your kind replies.
Cheers!
 
#31 ·
What size would be the smallest for long (distance and time regardless many stops on the way) sailing.
I guess 35' should be ok. Am I right?

The reason why I said Korea was because I found some sailing route maps to Europe across the Atlantic, but I could not find anything beyond to Asia (China, Japan, Korea).
This made me curious if there would be possible route; avoiding storm, pirates and all.
You need to have sufficient training and / or experience to answer those questions yourself before you stake your life, and those of your passengers, on the answers. You can't put four inexperienced people on any size of (suitable) boat and hope it to get anywhere safely.
 
#34 ·
Just make sure you account for the sex on board. You haven't mentioned the genders of your crew or whether you're related to each other. Don't forget to consider all the possibilities for both solo and partner situations and whether any of you will require privacy. A small inflatable dinghy with a screen could be useful. And don't forget the birth control, as childbirth is tricky at sea in a small boat and infants tend to be demanding.
 
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