Winter Boating Photos/Stories

[MurrayM]

Someone posted this comment on another thread...

Maybe this should be a separate thread, but when does it make sense to winter in the water vs. land?

There must be quite a few of us who think there's no such thing as 'boating season' although there may be a season or two where one might want to pay a bit more attention to what the weather is doing.

We don't have a winter storm worthy anchoring system, so stick to day trips in winter when conditions are good.

How about sharing with our poor 'boating season' limited fellow boaters what's so great about winter boating!

To get this thread started, here are some photos taken on a day romp from Kitimat, on BC's north coast, Canada:

 

[Nomad Willy]

Out and about a few years ago aboard out little Willard.

Upper was in Ketchikan at the Yacht club. We ran down Clearance Strait in the morning. We stayed at the old Pioneer Hotel when the weather wasn’t got to run the boat.
Lower was at Thorne Bay when the city thought the floats might sink. No danger IMO.
Murray your deer are beautiful!

 

[O C Diver]

I'm guessing you're not going to want to see pictures of sandy beaches, palm trees, and people in bathing suits.

Maybe some pictures from a bitter cold February at the TF rendezvous in Fort Pierce.

Ted

 

[Comodave]

Some of a winter boating season for us...

 

[Cyclone]

Winter! We in the PNW may get some slush but winterizing is a joke. These photos are from around the Great Lakes.

 

[MurrayM]

Sometimes, when people keep getting stuck on your street, the snowblower comes around a bit too late:

 

[Lollygag1]

Someone was out on the bay today in their sailboat. I was so jealous would have loved to go for a cruise.

 

[MurrayM]

Someone was out on the bay today in their sailboat. I was so jealous would have loved to go for a cruise.

Sailboating in a snowstorm must be like sea kayaking, in that when you're going with the wind it's like being in snow globe because you're going the same speed as the snowflakes, but turn into the wind and it's a hellacious blizzard.

 

[OldDan1943]

Ice boating?

 

[Greg S]

Sailing with a friend in Maple Bay BC. 12 January 2017. Yes we had some wind, quite good wind for awhile. Photo was during a lull. Temps that day were about minus 7 c in the morning and if I recall correctly, high of about minus 4 c.
-7 c = 19.5 f
-4 c = 25 f

When he and I go sailing it is usually winter and often below freezing. For some reason sailing requires you to remain on deck the whole time.
I really enjoy these sailing outings.

 

[MurrayM]

Sailing with a friend in Maple Bay BC. 12 January 2017. Yes we had some wind, quite good wind for awhile. Photo was during a lull. Temps that day were about minus 7 c in the morning and if I recall correctly, high of about minus 4 c.
-7 c = 19.5 f
-4 c = 25 f

When he and I go sailing it is usually winter and often below freezing. For some reason sailing requires you to remain on deck the whole time.
I really enjoy these sailing outings.

I like them Coaster 23's

 

[Greg S]

A few years ago my wife and I went for a December cruise to Victoria. The wind was howling, rain and snow was almost horizontal. We were cozy with propane fireplace and bus heater but the single fan wasn't able to keep the pilot house forward windows clear. My wife had a full time job with the squeegee keeping the insides wiped clear while we were heading SE through Navy Channel, almost straight into the wind. We decided to stop for lunch at a cafe at the public dock in Hope Bay on North Pender Island.
The docks were empty so we had our choice. I picked the lee side of the inner finger. The 20+ knot wind would hold the boat well off as it bounded in the wind and waves. With bow thruster and rudder I tried repeatedly to get close enough to get a line on the dock. It wasn't going to happen that day without someone on the dock to help. Instead, I eventually tied on the windward side of the finger where we had no problem whatsoever with laying alongside. Extra time and effort went into securing fenders. [emoji846] All of this is in clear view from the windows of the cafe where we were the entertainment. In the cafe and in response to watching our obviously determined efforts to get there, one of the spectators said "Wow, you must have been really hungry."

 

[MurrayM]

We went out four days ago hoping to photograph some humpback whales that are still hanging around. Only got a glimpse of the whales, but we got to see the stuff legends and myths are made of, like this robe wearing wolf-being paddling a rough canoe:

 

[Alisske]

Things are just starting to get crunchy up here in the the nor’east!

I boat year round. I have some awesome video of breaking ice, but can't upload

 

[rslifkin]

I'm impressed you've got that much ice! The most I've seen up here is a think skim (less than half of what you show) in the marina basin last weekend. But it's been an unusually warm winter.

 

[Alisske]

I'm impressed you've got that much ice! The most I've seen up here is a think skim (less than half of what you show) in the marina basin last weekend. But it's been an unusually warm winter.

Sorry for the confusion. First pic was from two years ago. The second two are this year! (Hence the “starting” to get crunchy)

When we get bad cold spells, we run a line to the boat from shore to “click in” to.

 

[rslifkin]

Sorry for the confusion. First pic was from two years ago. The second two are this year!

Even those last 2 show more ice than we've got up here. It's to the point where a couple of us are wondering why we take our boats out in the winter (almost nobody does in water storage around here).

 

[Alisske]

Even those last 2 show more ice than we've got up here. It's to the point where a couple of us are wondering why we take our boats out in the winter (almost nobody does in water storage around here).

Hey. Ill catch uo with you soon. I know ive been MiA, but dealing with a lot if work stuff. Always a fire.

https://www.rlsmedia.com/node/40525

 

[rslifkin]

Hey. Ill catch uo with you soon. I know ive been MiA, but dealing with a lot if work stuff. Always a fire.

https://www.rlsmedia.com/node/40525

No worries, I'm still a couple of months from the boat being back in the water and being able to do anything other than work on it. And probably a couple of months past that before any real traveling anyway.

 

[Gabe n Em]

After the last couple of beautiful days we've had here, I'm starting to seriously consider a plan to keep the boat in the water over the winter.

I'm getting envious of the commercial guys

 

[Alisske]

[QUOTEI'm getting envious of the commercial guys[/QUOTE]

Nice pic

 

[Alisske]

This was from new years day. Went over to Fire Island NY. Deer were super friendly (and hungry)

 

[Wild Blue]

January 2008 Cruise to Princess Louisa Inlet BC

Here's a story about Winter cruising in the Pacific Northwest

https://www.seleneowners.org/SO_news.php?newsid=26

Alex on Wild Blue

 

[PM]

I know from experience that wood and fiberglass become VERY slippery with a little snow on them.

pete

 

[Jeff Lebowski]

Sorry, no pics. And to make matters worse, I don't own a trawler....

I typically leave the boat alone most of the winter but I try and get over to it at least monthly and run the engines. I don't have a fresh water hose so I have to hook up the boat and back it down the ramp until the lower units are submerged. Then I hop on and let them run for ten mins or so. Except, this day we had exceptionally warm temps coupled with zero wind. So we pushed it off the trailer for a short run down the creek to the mouth of the inlet.

When we got there I saw a single boat a few miles out. No wake, just sitting there. He's either on the fish, broken down or... Humpbacks.

So off we went.

There were probably no fewer than 30 and perhaps as many as 50-75 humpbacks within a square mile of water. Fluke slaps, full tail flaps, breaches, you name it. You could run right up next to one and they didn't seem to care at all. They'd lay on their side and slap their flukes repeatedly as if they were just happy to be there. It was fantastic. Right next to the boat.

Here's one thing they don't tell you...they STINK. When they exhale they expel hundreds of cubic feet of stink. Think retch mixed with a lot of dead fish.

We hung out with them for two hours.

 

[rgano]

Until the last two weeks, we never boated in weather cooler than the lower sixties, except once for an eight-hour run which began at 32F and ended in the 60s. From 27 Dec to Jan 14 this year, we were in weather with daily highs in the 40s, truly freezing for us, and had to run generator all day and most of any night we anchored, something we never do in the hottest summer days here. Dunno how we would have made it without the genny.

 

[boatpoker]

Sigh !

 

[MurrayM]

From todays jaunt to Emsley Cove, an hour south of Kitimat. Vertical one is of MK Bay Marina from the other side of the channel. Only -1C and hardly any snow on the valley floor...so far.

 

[MurrayM]

Only dropped to -4C last night but there was no wind, so Minette Bay totally froze over. Lots of fresh water creeks and part of the Kitimat River enters the bay, so it freezes easily.

I was wandering along the shore this morning looking for swans or geese to photograph when the tide started to fall and acres of ice tried to squeeze through the narrows. The event lasted about 20 minutes.

 

[MurrayM]

The swans were being stand-offish.