{"id":136288,"date":"2022-01-17T10:18:35","date_gmt":"2022-01-17T10:18:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/?p=136288"},"modified":"2023-02-15T15:15:33","modified_gmt":"2023-02-15T15:15:33","slug":"caribbean-sailing-2022-the-rules-and-where-to-go","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/cruising\/caribbean-sailing-2022-the-rules-and-where-to-go-136288","title":{"rendered":"Caribbean sailing 2022: the rules and where to go"},"content":"Tweet<\/a> \n \n \n

Friday 17th February<\/strong><\/p>

John Burnie has been racing and cruising \nthe Caribbean for decades. A long-standing RORC member, John was on board ORMA \n60 Region Guadeloupe, which flew around the course in 40 hours 11 mins 5 secs \nin 2009 to set the multihull course record, which has stood to this day. There \nare few people who know the course as well as John especially as he was one of \nthe creators of the first and only Caribbean 600-mile offshore race. <\/p> \n \n \n \n

This year, John will be competing on Sir \nPeter Harrison's Sojana. However John is so enthusiastic about the race that he \ncould not resist offering up some precious tips and tricks about the course:<\/p> \n \n \n \n

\"An early look at the weather and it looks \nlike we are going to get normal trade wind conditions with a wind direction \njust slightly north of east, classic \u2018600 conditions provided the weather \npattern holds as it is.\"<\/p> \n \n \n \n

\"This year, the start line will need to be \nsignificantly longer because of the size of the superyachts that have entered. \nIt will be a magnificent sight from Shirley Heights. The yachts will tend to \ntack as close into the cliffs as they can to get a huge lift off the headland \nand there is a lot of current inshore. The yachts will want to get out of that \nadverse current. Once around Shirley Heights a close-fetching yacht can almost \nlay Green Island in one tack.<\/p> \n \n \n \n

The leg up to Barbuda could well be a \npowerful reach but a good tip is that many yachts tend to over-stand the North \nSails mark at Barbuda. After Codrington Point the wind can free off enormously \nas you run down the side of the island. The wind also tends to accelerate there \nand it is usually a monster reach-to-reach gybe.<\/p> \n \n \n \n

The downwind leg to Nevis is usually not \ntoo tactical but it is especially worth looking out for squalls. I remember on \nRegion Guadeloupe we overtook ICAP Leopard there because we got the right side \nof a squall and they didn't. Significant gains and losses can be made in \nsqualls. Look at the cloud formations as you approach Nevis. If the clouds are \nmoving briskly that is a good sign of breeze, but if they are static the signs \nare there is a big wind shadow and it is probably best to head further west before \nturning the corner. In general, the best policy is to stay a bit offshore \naround the back of Nevis and St.Kitts, then try and lay Saba in one tack.<\/p> \n \n \n \n

Although Saba is a small island it does \nhave a fairly large wind shadow but it is usually a tough beat afterwards and \nyou would tend to try to keep as much height as possible. The sea state can \nreally pick up there due to a significant current. It is the first real taste \nof harsh ocean sailing for the crew and yachts. After making St.Maartin there \nare still 18 miles of short tacking. It is a hard-hitting part of the course, \nespecially at night for the smaller yachts. What's more, there are a lot of \nrocks that the fleet will need to be especially careful of.<\/p> \n \n \n \n

The reach down to Guadeloupe is the first \nreal chance for crews to get their heads down in the race but the start is a \nsignificant point tactically, getting the right angle after St.Barths can be \ncrucial. In my opinion, you should stay slightly high on your course, as if the \nwind does go south of east, you could end up beating. Montserrat is on the \nlayline and there is talk of leaving Montserrat to port, but in my opinion when \nthere are normal trade wind conditions you shouldn't benefit from going west of \nMontserrat, especially as in doing so you would have to sail a lot more miles \nand in foul current.<\/p> \n \n \n \n

The approach to Guadeloupe is a key area of \nthe race. There is typically a \nsignificant wind shadow on the north west corner of Guadeloupe, especially at \nnight. Having said that, during the day you can actually experience a westerly \nsea breeze there. It is so variable that it is best to look at the clouds over \nthe island and also keep a watchful eye. I always get my binoculars out before \napproaching Guadeloupe to see how other yachts are sailing up ahead. I have \nbeen trapped in an area of no wind, north west of Guadeloupe and watched as 30 \nknots was blowing through the channel, just two miles away. Many yachts may \nchoose to put someone aloft to take a good look, but a good overall strategy is \nto stay well off, keep your distance maybe five miles offshore, sail a quarter \nof the way to Dominica so that you can lay Les Saintes.<\/p> \n \n \n \n

\u00celes des Saintes marks the most southerly \npoint of the course but I would really advocate turning back towards Guadeloupe \nafter rounding Les Saintes, if the wind is in the northeast. Beat back towards \nCappisterre but watch out, there are thousands of fishing floats. I wouldn't go \nin any further than a depth of 50-100 metres. However, there is a massive lift \ninshore because the wind cascades down to the `north of Soufriere with the wind \ngoing to the south. Once inshore, stay there is my advice, don't go out towards \nMarie-Galante or you will lose out.<\/p> \n \n \n \n

Les Desirade is the most easterly part of \nthe course and that is always a place with a rough sea state. Very confused \nseas with a lot of current, smaller yachts need to be mindful of the conditions \nthat can be expected. After rounding, the yachts will come off the breeze, a \nbig bare away and another time when crews can get there heads down, as it is 90 \nmiles to Barbuda and there are no real tactics coming into play there, other \nthan avoiding over standing the North Sails mark, which we have already \ncovered.\u00a0 \n \n<\/p>

Barbuda to Redonda is normally a very fast \nreach with yachts belting along going for line speed. It is worth keeping an \neye out for squalls. Redonda is only a small island but it can throw out a \nsignificant wind shadow. I have seen races won and lost there so avoiding \ngetting too close to Redonda. After rounding the last island of the course, no \nmessing about, get right on the wind and head for Cades Reef on the north west \ncoast of Antigua. There is a shelf extending out from Antigua some 16 miles and \ntaking this route will be an advantage for less foul current, then work down \nthe west coast of Antigua along the edge of the reef until the finish.<\/p> \n \n \n \n

The RORC Caribbean 600 starts 1100 local \ntime - Monday 20th<\/sup> February 2012.<\/p>\u00a0","excerpt":{"rendered":"

These days it\u2019s hard to predict what the world may look like in a few weeks, let alone a few months, but many in the Caribbean sailing industry are cautiously optimistic for the upcoming 2022 cruising and racing season. Although the days of spontaneous island hopping might be over (for now, at least), there is value to be found in slowing down, and being a little more intentional with your time. The challenges presented by the fact that most islands are separate nations with individual entry protocols are not insurmountable. Tourism, both land-based and yachting, has long been a mainstay of the Caribbean\u2019s economy. Sailing and related services have fared well compared to the traditional tourism industry, and technical and general yacht services, marinas, and nearby restaurants are largely open and fully operational. Most islands now have well-established and easy-to-follow protocols, though there are still some quarantine requirements and restrictions on freedom of movement. These are generally greatly decreased if you are fully vaccinated (many islands require proof of vaccination for dine-in restaurant service, for example). General safety protocols like social distancing, masks, and hand sanitising remain in place throughout, though compliance and enforcement vary. Some islands require visitors to have Covid-19 health insurance. You can choose to see these regulations in one of two ways; as a cumbersome hindrance to the freedom to roam that may have attracted you to cruising in the first place, or as a necessary regimen to keeping both the local population and guests safe, allowing us to continue to be visitors to this glorious part of the world. Many cruisers, especially charter guests with limited time, are opting to stay on a single island or set of islands rather than spend additional time in quarantine. This often requires some planning, research, and a willingness to go off the beaten path and visit anchorages you might normally have passed by. It has also helped develop even closer-knit yachting communities, especially for liveaboard cruisers who have been riding out lockdowns and hurricane seasons on their boats instead of flying home. As a result, special interest groups are more popular than ever; weekly domino games, group fitness sessions, and volunteer initiatives are a great way to connect with cruising and local communities. Most islands have a cruisers\u2019 Facebook page where you can stay up to date on events and regulations while planning your trip, and a regular VHF morning net so you can stay in the loop once you’ve arrived. Article continues below… How busy destinations are likely to be will depend on historical and current local government regulations. Martinique, for example, had been closed to non-European visitors since the beginning of the pandemic, and although they have recently re-opened, word has been slow to get out. Many charter guests will once again be opting for the untouched beauty of St Vincent and the Grenadines, where visitors can easily spend every night of a 10- or 14-day charter in a different anchorage of shallow, turquoise water. Many …Continue reading »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4428,"featured_media":136299,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[139,68,972,980],"tags":[146,336,162,1633],"review_manufacturer":[],"acf":[],"introduction":null,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/136288"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4428"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=136288"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/136288\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":143689,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/136288\/revisions\/143689"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/136299"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=136288"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=136288"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=136288"},{"taxonomy":"review_manufacturer","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review_manufacturer?post=136288"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}