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Caribbean Cruiser

3K views 15 replies 7 participants last post by  camaraderie 
#1 ·
I understand the limitations of the Catalina 36 as an offshore boat as they have been beaten to death here and even as an owner of one, I tend to agree. However, I'm curious about the rigors of Bahamas/BVI/Caribbean island hopping and whether this kind of sailing would work with a Cat 36 or if a stout "offshore" boat is still advised. Thanks for your thoughts, flame suit on.

Mike
 
#2 ·
Go For It

Ahoy Mike,

The Catalina will do just fine Island hopping, as we call it over on the right coast, . You can jump from one island to the other all the way to South America.
What is meant by a blue water boat is the day in day out, for weeks on end, movement and pounding a boat encounters on a long passage. This constant movement wears on things, then just about when an item is weakened by all the movement, at three A.M. Mother Nature decides to have a little fun with you and throws a squall into your path. You think shoot I have been in worse conditions than this, BANG something breaks, it's dark,raining, the wind is blowing 40 knotts. My friend that is a pucker factor of 8.5

Fair Winds

Cap'n Dave
 
#3 ·
As long as you time your hops based on the weather forecast and not the calendar ;-) Being out of sight of land isn't necessarily tough; its being beyond the weather predictions (you can receive them but your range of options is more limited - island hopping, your options include "staying in harbor until the storm passes")

How are you planning to get your boat from LA to the Caribbean?
 
#4 ·
We have friends that winter in the Caribbean, have for the last 4 years, on a Beneteau 36.7. They spend their time between Antigua and Grenada for the most part, island hopping as you discuss.

Some will argue that the Bene is a better boat than the Cat 36, certainly it's higher performance, but I think it falls into the same category as a coastal cruiser/racer.

They have had no problems. The boat is hauled each summer and carefully supported during the hurricane threats.

In some ways, sailing down there is probably easier on the boat than other areas. The UV exposure is, of course, heightened, but passages are usually beam to close reaching, little or no tacking, long swells so little pounding. All in all I think its easier on the gear. Even the 20 - 25 knot trades are "softer" due to the air temperature, and passages are quick and straightforward.

That said, there are periods of strong squalls and large seas and you'd have to be prepared for that. Regardless of the boat there are certain requirements to keep it and its gear in good condition. It's not "Day-in-and-day-out", but you are on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean much of the time.
 
#5 ·
Thanks for all the input folks, your words are very inspiring. I have owned one or another Cat 36 since 1986 and I know the boat like the back of my hand. I have repaired or replaced every system over 20 years and can singlehand it as easily as my Miata. It is the absolute perfect boat for me ( as long as it's a pre 1992 before they destroyed the great nav station in place of an "aft cabin"....yuch!) I figured that knowing the boat so well would inspire more confidence when attempting new sailing grounds. My retirement idea is to find and buy a second 36 (this one would be shoal draft) in the northeast in the Spring, spend the summer upgrading her rigging and installing needed equipment and then head south down the ICW with the snowbirds. Looking at a few years of sailing the islands and then who knows. Would probably keep my current 36 in LA. Might have to rename them Tweedledie and Tweedledum. My first question was "will the boat handle it?" and you've answered that for me, thanks. I thought it might work as my prior owner took my boat to Acapulco & back. Yeah, I know I could find a better boat for the trip, but true love is a funny thing.

Thanks, Mike
 
#6 ·
Mike..nothing wrong with a Cat36 in good shape for what you are proposing. I assume you would plan on taking her down the thorny path rather than the ocean route. The main advantage of this route is the lack of anything more than 24 hours at sea before you can duck in to a harbor. The disadvantage is that you face about 700 miles of motoring into trade winds and seas between the Turks & Caicos and the Virgins. We can talk about that another time...but I'd encourage you to think about expanding your fuel capacity and rigging a fuel system that can be easily attended to at sea (dual racors). The other thing that is best done in the states is rigging an SSB which is really a necessity as you head south of the Bahamas. I will assume you'll prepare the boat for heavy duty anchoring tasks and appropriate safety precautions (jacklines, liferaft,Epirb) but there are lots of boats of "coastal" construction that have made that trip safely. The only other thing I would add is that you CANNOT be on any kind of timetable for the passage or the boat will get killed! We had to wait for 30 days straight in the DR for anything LESS than 20 knots on the nose and 6-8' seas....and several times for a week or more in other spots.
Go for it Mike!
 
#7 ·
Trust me, she'll be the most ruggedly rigged and thoroughly equipped 36 you've ever seen. That's the bonus of a used Catalina, plenty of cash left over for equipment. I already have some ideas on extra fuel & water capacity and I know where to mount the watermaker. Yet another bonus with taking the same boat, I can "what if" on my boat and figure everything out ahead of time. As for being "stuck" in some Caribbean anchorage for a month, sounds like heaven to me.

Mike
 
#8 · (Edited)
Mike...

As for being "stuck" in some Caribbean anchorage for a month, sounds like heaven to me.

You won't say that after Luperon!

As to the watermaker...do you plan to have a generator? Without one, I wouldn't add a watermaker and even with one, you can live without a watermaker down island. We simply bought jug water for drinking needs and filled the tanks for showers and cooking wherever we went. Given the expense of a watermaker and the fact that you can't use them in most harbors...you might want to consider that.
 
#9 ·
I see what you mean about power. I mentioned the watermaker because the PO had one installed for the Mexico trip and though he took it with him, all the plumbing is there. Nice to know you don't think it's necessary. I'm a big fan of simplicity and I can't remember the last time I had a jerry jug break down when I needed it. ;-)

Mike
 
#12 ·
Just remember, any book written about sailing in an area is really specific to the author's boat, weather encountered and time period, and may have very little to do with you, your boat and the weather you encounter or how the area may have changed in the time between when the passages in the book occurred and when you go through the area.

As someone posted previously, sailing on a set schedule can be pretty suicidal.
 
#14 ·
MikeinLA said:
Thanks for all the input folks, your words are very inspiring. I have owned one or another Cat 36 since 1986 and I know the boat like the back of my hand. I have repaired or replaced every system over 20 years and can singlehand it as easily as my Miata. It is the absolute perfect boat for me ( as long as it's a pre 1992 before they destroyed the great nav station in place of an "aft cabin"....yuch!) I figured that knowing the boat so well would inspire more confidence when attempting new sailing grounds. My retirement idea is to find and buy a second 36 (this one would be shoal draft) in the northeast in the Spring, spend the summer upgrading her rigging and installing needed equipment and then head south down the ICW with the snowbirds. Looking at a few years of sailing the islands and then who knows. Would probably keep my current 36 in LA. Might have to rename them Tweedledie and Tweedledum. My first question was "will the boat handle it?" and you've answered that for me, thanks. I thought it might work as my prior owner took my boat to Acapulco & back. Yeah, I know I could find a better boat for the trip, but true love is a funny thing.

Thanks, Mike
Talk about 'thinking outside the box' the two-boat thing sounds intriguing! Your comment about the nav station is so right (where else would you put your laptop to keep in touch with all of us?)

Cam - 30 DAYS waiting for a weather break? I got restless after waiting only a week on Culebra. We finally decided to beat the 20 miles to Saint Thomas (20 kts, 10-12 foot seas, on the nose). But I was bored! I had always wondered what kind of loonies would want to anchor in John Brewer bay, at the west end of St Thomas, right under the airport. After 5 hours that bay, the first available place to chill out, looked just lovely to me. Moral: ...something about sailing with a schedule...:eek:
 
#15 ·
Mike read the book and you won't worry about farting let alone belching.
Bruce VanSant made the trip down through the islands many many times in more than one boat before writing his book. He has far more knowledge of the trip than anyone on this forum, in fact is probably the number one expert in the world. You can take his advice with a grain of salt, if you wish, but he'll be the first to tell you, you're a fool, if you don't follow his advice. Read the preface first which states that this book is not for people on a schedule or with limited time. I also might add that many women find it offensive and he is as arrogant as the book suggests but people I have talked to who have followed his advice have stated it is bang on.
 
#16 ·
Eryka...as it happens I was in Luperon WITH VanSant when I waited for 30 days! His book is worthwhile reading but he is not just offensive to women...he is an equal opportunity offender! Leaving Luperon, we took Chris Parkers' weather advice and went well offshore and had an EASY 300+ mile non-stop passage through the Mona passage and to the south shore or PR (Ponce is a WONDERFUL town). The boats that followed his book's advice on the SAME DAY and stayed in-shore had a rough passage, were several days behind us and one member here was even hit by lightning in one of the evening thunderstorms that WE MISSED DUE TO BEING OFFSHORE.
The point is not that I am a wonderful source of knowledge on this. VanSant has done it many more times than I have and is still alive so he must have done something right. The point is...don't rely on one source for your decision making. Listen to all the advice and check the conditions and know what you and your boat can do...then make your own decision.
 
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