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Sailing from Europe to NZ. Best route?


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Correction, I google mapped where the factory is, you need to cross Biscay, that November departure was for the Atlantic crossing. Do a few trips along the French coast as a shakedown, then to Oporto? and the Portuguese coast. That should be a couple of days to sort out your night sailing. Then to the Canaries. If you are still in good shape at that point you are ready to kick off for the Caribbean (Nov).

 

The coast of France and Biscay will be way more difficult than a long passage. Perfect. I'm getting jealous.

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oops - just read your last post. Depart the factory about then, but target leaving the Canaries early Nov or thereabouts. You don't want to cross the Atlantic in summer (that's hurricane season). From the canaries dive south till you hit SE trades, turn right and enjoy.

 

Download and study these

 

http://www.offshoreblue.com/navigation/pilot-charts.php

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Thx black panther!

 

Yes I have to decide the stop but will do as many as possible and stop to Belize almost sure as I know that my friend has family there...so would be difficult to not stop there, taking the Western route.

 

And yes, Biscay is notoriously difficult sometimes and will need a very good planning and window.

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Go a Satph, SSB's are old school and on the way out.

 

Satphs cost a motherload less to buy and are cheap to run now and getting cheaper by the day. I can buy minutes for 50% of what I paid 2 years ago and they were cheap then. Now down to about a buck a minute if you shop wisely. So a Satph is already 3-4000 minutes cheaper, maybe more, before you eveb start to install anything.

 

Also if you go ashore for a adventure you can take the satph with you, no idea why but some like to be 24/7 connected. Personally I'm more a BP and don't really worry about having long range comms, but I do like having the ph there 'just in case'.

 

SSB often struggle to get thru the growing mass of radio waves we are filling the world with. Last year the owner of a boat I took to Aussie took 6 days to get anyone in Aussie to even answer a SSB call. It got to the point he rang back to NZ just to make sure Aussie stil existed. The Satph got someone within 60 seconds.

 

Sounds like a fun adventure, I wish you all the best.

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I don't agree with that KM. Sat ph for a short voyage up to a few months. In my experience they are not as reliable as the sales outlets would lead you to believe, and I know boats out there now who pay $300 or more a month in fees, yes, at about $1 a min. Data speeds are not great, and it can take 5 - 10 mins per day to get your email and weather done. $1.00 per min, $10 per day, (either 2 forecasts or one slower connection), $300 per month. Using sailmail is $250 USD per YEAR.

 

So, as BP said, it's cheaper if you plan on a longer voyage, or liveaboard. There is a learning curve with your SSB and Pactor, and it is not instant, and on occasion you have to wait for a connection, but we never found this to be a problem.

However, you are right about the voice comms. We hardly ever used the SSB for voice, although some do. Current cost for SSB setup start at about 3 K with a pactor.....

Everyone must decide what's suitable for them

 

Wish I was doing this trip, Europe to NZ on a Pogo - sounds Brilliant!! :mrgreen: The sea is calling again, but the bank balance ain't yet ready to go again :(

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I know your really old BP :lol: and in your day weather at sea was what you got, but in modern times weather forecasts at sea have made ocean crossings, especially at higher lats, safer, and at all lats faster! It means you have the info to make the best routing decisions and have the nicest sailing! :D I really cannot understand those who don't use it.

Oh, and email - contact with those at home once a week or so keeps them from worrying too much. Fine to do without it when you're young, but it will/did worry your parents - especially in today's world. Once you have kids, most people want contact, and to be contactable...

Again, each to there own!

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the factory will know what kind of fits people have done and so should be full of good info

 

http://www.boat24.com/en/Sail+Boats/Pog ... il/175968/

 

http://www.boat24.com/en/Sail+Boats/Pog ... il/177629/

check out the fully description of this boat

seems to use the nke gyropilot 40 hydraulic selfsteering

http://www.nke-marine-electronics.com/e ... pilot.html

 

http://www.boat24.com/en/Sail+Boats/Pog ... il/104591/

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We had a both Mini M satphone and SSB and pactor

Hardly used the Mini M at all. Once you get a decent SSB signal (put some effort in and do it right) the combo with the newer pactors works really well.

I used the gribs a bit but still liked to look at the faxes where you could get decent ones.

Sounds like an awesome trip and nice ride.

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Thx guys for all your advises!!

 

I guess that having the boat fully equipped and running electronically from the constructor dock will be interesting...

 

A bit off topic but how difficult it is to find a berth (rental) in AKL?

 

Cheers

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Did my first offshore cruise at 60yo, from Dominican Republic, Atlantic side, to NZ. Just me and a never sailed before traveller, had a great time, auto pilot broke a week out of Panama so steered the rest of the way. My navigation was an Ipad with gps and a cheap app that was the most accurate system ever used. An older 40ft cat so had a few issues but all manageable. If you can sail and have some brains just pick which way you want to go and do it. My one and only time and I will never regret it, a dream fulfilled

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Just seen this

I’ve been here and done this.
Go west young man, As BP says you will learn what you need as you go and meet plenty with less experience/expertise along the way.

Must haves in my opinion - Irridium Go, AIS and secondary battery charging System 

Nice to have watermaker

we meet a couple in there fifties that were circumnavigating in a 1250. 
they had picked it up from the factory and where in French Poly when we saw them.

Time wise we left Canaries 20th November, 18 days to Antigua, 6 days Panama to Galapagos, 17 days Galapagos to Marquises all the rest of pacific was 2,3 or 4 day hops then 6 days Fiji to Opua.

If you can get a passage in with a experienced crew before you leave for Europe you will pickup a lot of tips on how to or not to run your boat.

Give me a call if you want to chat

Jon 0274779745

  

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I also have this trip in mind, and with the same experience at 58, however 2 of my companions will have 40yrs experience up their sleeves, I see there is always plenty to consider and a brain in the head is always useful. I have a lot of planning and want to complete a couple of courses first even though I have 35 years of coastal boating knowledge.

I'm guessing the Pogo1250 made it to NZ safely Cabrinha? 

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On 9/11/2014 at 3:57 PM, cabrinha said:

A bit off topic but how difficult it is to find a berth (rental) in AKL?

 

Cheers

Depends on size:

10-12m easy.

12-15m harder.

15-18m very hard.

18m+ easier again

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