Noonsite Ocean Outlook - Caribbean, Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea

Noonsite Ocean Outlook - Caribbean, Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea © Noonsite

Caribbean Sea:

This Friday, Sept. 30, at 17:00, the SSCA (Seven Seas Cruising Association) have a Meet & Greet GAM at the Wheel House Restaurant in Chaguaramas, Trinidad. Open to all cruisers in the area, the idea is to share ideas for the winter season. SSCA and OCC port host Jesse James will be there to talk about the great opportunities in Trinidad for cruisers, as well as guest speakers and door prizes!

Aruba harbor authorities warn caution when entering Barracadera harbor, the port of entry. With the departure of the blue freighter that was used as a mark to go around it has now become very important to stay in the ship channel until abeam of the customs dock. Yachts have run into the shoal already.

A worrying assault on a yacht first-time cruising in St. Lucia at the end of last month emphasises the importance of always locking up at night (including all hatches). The Caribbean may look like paradise, but do your research for when you stop over, be prepared and know the safety rules. Every country on Noonsite has a security section outlining the latest situation, recommendations and recent incident reports and the Caribbean Safety and Security Net works hard to collect and disseminate accurate information about crimes against yachts in the Caribbean.

Chris Parker's (Marine Weather Center) SSB Net for the Caribbean was off air last week due to urgent antenna repairs. Unfortunately, anticipated hurricane force winds have meant that the antenna tower remains lowered and out of action. Webcasts and recorded forecasts will continue as usual, but there will be no SSB radio transmissions until at least Monday, October 3.

Atlantic:

The first named hurricane of the Atlantic season was Danielle which formed on September 1st. While Danielle churned in the North Atlantic well offshore from any land mass, hurricane Earl was forming east of the Leeward Islands, passing less than 100 miles ESE of Bermuda. But it was Fiona - a category 4 hurricane by September 22 - that had the longest and most destructive journey so far through the Caribbean devastating the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico and even going north into Canada hitting Nova Scotia at hurricane strength. Currently we are seeing the impact of hurricane Ian, the 4th of the season, which knocked out all power in Cuba and is currently ploughing across SW Florida.

Havoc of a different kind is still on-going off the western Iberian Peninsula, with juvenile orcas playing with and breaking sailboats as they transit the coastline. The Cruising Association's orca project in collaboration with GTOA has now been running for three months and they have 71 interaction reports and 139 uneventful passage reports. Every anonymised report can be viewed (including skippers' comments) as well as comparative data at theca.org.uk/orcas/reports. There are interesting observations also on the Orca Attack Reporting Facebook page. GTOA's mid-September prediction is that the orcas are moving north of Galicia with several interactions north of A Coruna.

Over the last few weeks, one or two yachts have arrived at Ascension Island in the South Atlantic without having the relevant E-visa in place. Arriving without the E-visa is not permitted by the Ascension island government. St Helena Port Control advise all yachts intent on heading towards Ascension, that the E-visa must be in place before departing St. Helena shores.

Mediterranean:

As the weather starts to deteriorate in the Med this month, many cruisers are heading to their winter cruising grounds and others are wondering exactly where might be best. Review our round up of recommendations from fellow cruisers, and let us know where you are safely moored for the northern hemisphere winter.

Roditis Yachting Agency in Rhodes, Greece, report that there have been some problems this summer with British boats that have had EU crew on board being issued with just a one-month transit log (even when the skipper was British). As with many multi-island nations, entry procedures and regulations can vary greatly from one port of entry to another. The correct rules can be found at the AADE website.

Some interesting feedback this month from Swiss cruiser Hans Lehman on the good, the bad and the ugly of cruising the Spanish coast.

This article has been provided by the courtesy of noonsite.com