While it’s essential to monitor the conditions when choosing the best weather window for departure, equally important is being well-versed in obtaining and interpreting weather data while offshore – keeping…
Weather
How to find the right weather window
How do you pick the right departure date? One of the most critical aspects of planning for an offshore passage is choosing the right weather window for departure. A weather…
How climate change is affecting weather patterns: and what it means for sailors
For bluewater cruisers one of the most significant impacts of climate change is the increased unpredictability of weather and disruption of established patterns. The Ocean Cruising Club commissioned a report…
Everything you need to know about Southern Ocean storms
Any colour you want as long as it’s grey! That’s my overriding memory of life in the Southern Ocean – we tend to forget the sun reflecting off icebergs and…
All about the doldrums or Inter Tropical Convergence Zone
Doldrums’: a state of stagnation or depression, or an equatorial region of the Atlantic Ocean with calms, sudden storms, and light unpredictable winds. Or so my dictionary puts it. For…
Wave forecasting: software to help your routing
Many years ago on a dark March in the Atlantic we were hit by a large wave on the beam – all went quiet as the yacht was rolled; luckily,…
Weather forecasting in a heatwave
Situated to the north-west of Europe, the UK is blessed with mild weather with few extreme weather events, and our temperature is moderated by the seawater around the shores. Thanks…
Weather forecast accuracy – how much can you really trust a forecast?
Weather forecast accuracy will always be a hot topic of debate. As a forecaster I’ve seen the accuracy of models improve greatly over the last couple of decades, but so…
Atlantic crossing: When’s the best time to go?
An Atlantic crossing or Atlantic circuit has often been seen as a year-long adventure, crossing the ocean in late November or December to the Caribbean, with a return to Europe…
Mediterranean sailing: Weather tips from Gibraltar to Turkey
Distances in the Mediterranean can be deceptive, with the distance from Gibraltar to Turkey being close to double that of Ushant to Gibraltar, yet we usually spend more time worrying…
North Sea weather: Chris Tibbs give his advice
Dogger, Fisher, German Bight. Even the names of the North Sea weather forecasts are evocative, conjuring up a vision of faraway places frequented by Viking adventurers and epic seafarers. The…
Why cruising sailors should consider using a professional weather router
Should you consider support from a professional weather router on your next ocean crossing? With costs lower than you might realise, maybe it’s time you should. Employing the services of an…
Wind chill explained – how exactly does the wind make you feel colder?
Meteorologically spring is an interesting time of year as the weather can be quite volatile, particularly the sunshine and showers we associate with April and the squalls they bring (although…
Summer sailing in high latitudes is no guarantee of good weather – sometimes winter is better
Although we are in the business of providing uncertainty as one of the mainstays of the Pelagic experience, there are times when you do feel your head banging against a…
How the North Atlantic Oscillation affects European and Atlantic weather
Although we often hear about the expected changes to the weather from the El Niño/La Niña Southern Oscillation (ENSO) it does not have a large effect on the weather in…
How to get past a cut-off low pressure system – a true weather router’s dilemma
How many times do skippers – racers and cruisers – report that some of the worst Atlantic conditions are to be found between mainland Europe and the Canary Islands? Many…
What is a Spanish Plume? Thunderstorms, lightning and downdrafts explained
Earlier this summer we saw considerable thunderstorm activity over the UK and Europe, resulting in flooding and some serious injuries. In the UK and North West Europe the occurrence of…
Weather briefing: Chris Tibbs explains the formation of a secondary low
Some years ago while racing somewhere south of the Kerguelen Islands in the Southern Ocean, an area well known for cyclogenesis (where lows are born or develop), we went from…
Chris Tibbs weather briefing: the dangers of cold fronts or ‘squall lines’
Outside the tropics much of our sailing takes place in the disturbed westerly airflow that generates depressions, and within the depressions (or lows) the most active feature is usually the…
36ft Zest is hit by a ‘14m’ rogue wave and dismasted off Spain. Skipper’s story
You know when you’ve been hit by a rogue wave. The energy within it is of a different order of magnitude from an inconvenient, but ultimately harmless, wave crest that…