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Night Sailing on the C 250

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Alan Therrien
Navigator

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USA
113 Posts

Initially Posted - 08/02/2004 : 10:59:46

We had another "first" experience last weekend on our C 250. We went out in the full moon for a night sail. All the advice we had received from other more experienced night sailors was invaluable. Such as - never enough flashlights, food, and navigation equipment. We were also advised not to forget that some navaids are not lit, and that depth perception at night is very deceiving.

We discovered that our 500,000 candle power light was indispensable. We located one power boat that was disabled - called the harbormaster who eventually showed up and towed them in. And upon our return to port, we found two young guys w/o PFDs and their sunken dinghy about 1/2 mile off shore. That's another story. We pulled them out of the water and took them in to the marina.

The aspect of night sailing I found most interesting was how completely different the harbor and ocean appear at night. I found that it was sometimes difficult to tell which lit buoys were closest, and where the unlit buoys were in relation to the lit buoys. We have many rocks with daymarkers, and other obstructions in the harbor. We know them all by heart from four years of daytime sailing in the area. But things were often obscured in the darkness. We had 15 - 20 mph winds, partial cloud cover and seas around 2-3 feet. All five crew aboard stayed active on watch, reviewing the paper charts, and confirming our proximity to hazzards with GPS. We found our night vision monocular was helpful in locating stranded sailors, but limited in locating unlit buoys.

I would be interested to hear others experience from sailing in moonlight. All advice which leads to safer sailing is appreciated. Humor is good too.

Alan Therrien
"Moonpenny"
C250K # 418

Alan Therrien
"Moonpenny"
C250K #418

Edited by - on

Lightnup
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1016 Posts

Response Posted - 08/02/2004 : 12:04:42

No advice coming from this guy. I can't even get my day sailing right (sailed right into a bridge on Saturday), much less venturing out in the dark.

Steve

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Frank Hopper
Past Commodore

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Pitcairn Island
6776 Posts

Response Posted - 08/02/2004 : 15:22:17

Wait until there is no moon and an overcast! Man its dark! Even on my little lake it gets weird.

Edited by - on

Arlyn Stewart
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
2980 Posts

Response Posted - 08/02/2004 : 17:16:16

Alan... I've done quite a bit of night sailing and with a full moon its really fun. With no moon or stars (pitch dark) it can be a little disconcerting. The gps makes it possible with good discipline and charts. I had to give up on a planned evening anchorage once and went on to the next location arriving at midnight to a strange harbor in pitch dark.

In that instance, I had the lap top integrated to the gps and used plotting software and used it to take me right to each of the channel buoys.

Sounds like your adventure was more than expected. On one 90 mile crossing of Lake Huron which of course requires an all night sail... I saw the most spectacular display of a meteorite explosion, similar to a fireworks burst. I knew that they sometimes do this but had never witnessed it before and it was an amazing sight.

Your right, the night does offer a quite different sailing experience.

Edited by - on

roberoo
Navigator

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USA
182 Posts

Response Posted - 08/02/2004 : 21:28:47

We sailed our boat back form Huron Ohio to Buffalo New York and started out at 9:00 in the evening. It was a really scary but cool start. Spending 3 nights on the water in hazy no moon and full moon nights was a great experience. Since then I have sailed at night in the Buffalo harbor and also in the ICW south of Daytona.

All in all a very cool experience after you get over the nervy part.

Edited by - on

willy
Captain

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USA
422 Posts

Response Posted - 08/02/2004 : 21:34:06

Ok this is going to sound a bit odd but... one night in my sheltered little bay there was no moon and a gazillion stars. While someone else had the tiller I leaned over the boat so that my head was upside down making the world look very strange... a black swirling mass on top and a giant bowl of stars underneath! (remember I was upside down). I made such a big deal out of it that everyone on the boat had to try it. All were in awe. Normally this would be where someone would ask what we were smoking...

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willy
Captain

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USA
422 Posts

Response Posted - 08/02/2004 : 21:48:26

Ok Ok heres another one but its not so odd. It was a full moon and while anchored in the bay, sitting in the cockpit with my booklight, a novel, and a blanket I would regularly look up at the giant silver stripe the moons reflection on the water made running right up to the stern of the boat. I heard a loud gurgling and splashing sound that turned out to be a "boil" of bluefish...essentially a school of young "snapper" blues around ten inches long who had found a school of menhaden to eat. The frenzy passed by the port side of the boat and entered the reflected moonbeam. The shiny silver sides of both the bluefish and the menhaden picked up the light and turned it into something that resembled fireworks. Unbelievable!!!!

Edited by - on

At Ease
Admiral

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672 Posts

Response Posted - 08/02/2004 : 22:34:45

It would be great to night sail and enjoy the sights and sounds that I have read about in earlier posts. However, on my lake it is not safe at night. Too many powerboaters (some without lights) who have been partaking of adult beverages, roaring around at full throttle.

Edited by - on

sailgal
Captain

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USA
400 Posts

Response Posted - 08/02/2004 : 23:17:09

All stories sound awesome as is the feeling of sailing "successfully" inland at night, BUT the sound stillness of the reality that you are the Captain, and all aboard rely on your perceived navigation intelligence ("Master and Commander")and regard for safety, not to mention the profound $ investment you are floating upon, all comes down to a simple purchase.........your spotlight! I now own two...both 1 million candlepower, one that is a rechargable (learned one night what that means...shall I say no more...

and the other a 12 volt plug in. Thinking of a third

Said my peace.....Let there be light!

Edited by - on

Alan Therrien
Navigator

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USA
113 Posts

Response Posted - 08/03/2004 : 14:18:53

Great to hear that I am not the only one to feel a bit uneasy on my first night sail. Thanks to all for your insights and suggestions. I hope to try it again soon. I like the unjustified self confidence that comes from repeated sorties :-)

Edited by - on

DrDre
1st Mate

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USA
68 Posts

Response Posted - 08/03/2004 : 19:50:02

I was traveling through the ICW in Charleston, SC last fall to a marina where I was having my new boat hauled and trucked up north before Isabel hit. Because of a late afternoon cast off I had to overnight on the hook. An hour or so into the pitch black moonless night I heard what sounded like a person thrashing around in the water. The violent splasing went on for a solid minute or so. My paraniod mind went straight to what I feared was under my bed as a child, aligators! I called my friend, I was solo but luckily my cellphone got reception, asking my local buddy what if aligators live in these waters he asked my to taste the water. If it was fresh or brackish then yes gators could be in that area, it was also part of a protected nature swamp preserve. I leaned over and quickly scooped up a palm full of water and slirped it hoping it was that familar salty water I love so much. Nothing doing, barely salted brackish aligator lovin' water. I hung up and grabbed the bottle of wine I brought along for the trip and proceded to gulp it down.

About an hour or so later the same friend called back and told me of a Charleston phenomenon. It seems that there are dolphins in this area that swim chase fish at an angel to the shore until the fish beach themselves. The dolphins then hoist themselves up the shore as well and feast on the fresh sushi then flip themselves back into the water. Needless to say they make a lot of splashing in doing this. What do they care if some loopy sailor thinks they're an aligator devouring a helpless bird or muskrat awaiting the chance to climb aboard his boat and feast on human flesh.

All this to say it could've been prevented had we had a 1 million candle power light instead of the KMart cheapos that I had. A group of college-students in a power boat got themselves stranded in the dark without a light and came upon my paranoid gator-watch vessel thinking I was a bouy! I gave them my flash light, went down below and sealed myself like a hermit in a cave just in case Death-Gator was lurking looking for his chance to pounce.

Edited by - on

arlingva
Navigator

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USA
116 Posts

Response Posted - 08/03/2004 : 23:34:26

Night sailing is our preference. We usually go out in the early evening and stay out until 10pm. The heat of the day is past. The breeze is gentle. The river empty, and if we are lucky, the kids asleep below.

Bill

Edited by - on

mday
Navigator

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197 Posts

Response Posted - 08/04/2004 : 00:45:35

Anyone ever experience phosphoresence (sp?) while sailing at night? The microorganisms in the water get disturbed and cause a green glow to your wake when sailing or motoring. The first time I saw this, I thought I'd had too much grog! It's a really amazing effect.

Max

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Robert
1st Mate

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USA
75 Posts

Response Posted - 08/05/2004 : 11:40:32

Max, I have had that experience while sailing my H35.5 from S.F. to the Channel Islands. It was a quiet night and we were motoring through an area just north of Pt. Conception when we had this experience. There were great rafts of phosphorescent yellow as we cruised through. It looked like a Greatful Dead back drop.

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Notice: The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ.
The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.