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When cruisers and sailors are asked why they choose this lifestyle, many answer with the standard and cliché “Because it gives us so much freedom”. True, your sailboat is your floating home and you can drop and pick up anchor in many places worldwide, giving you an immense area to explore or settle for a while. You have your belongings with you wherever you go and to “just be out there”, sailing on a massive ocean or smaller sea, gives you a tremendous feeling of freedom. Wherever you are, once the anchor is down, there are restrictions and rules you have to abide by. You can read up or learn about these places ahead of time and, because you are free, you decide whether to skip them or pay them a visit. Most things you do are entirely up to you, except when (boat) problems arise.

  A grey day for a sail on the ocean                                                                           © Liesbet Collaert

The sense of freedom disappears, however, when you take that one, all important thing into account; the thing that really decides when you leave and how the trip and the schedule turns out. It is called the weather and it is ever-present and not always very predictable. Every prudent sailor checks the weather forecast, via different sources at that, before heading out, especially on a longer trip. We base many decisions on how “it is looking” and pick days that promise to be comfortable enough, wind and swell taken into consideration. These periods are called “weather windows”. The amount of rain is less important, unless they are part of forecasted periods of heavy squalls.

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Perfection in life is hard to come by. Nothing is perfect (most of the time), not even on a catamaran in the Caribbean! Just as with a lot of things on shore, the elements we rely on while sailing, cruising and living on the water rarely come in the right proportions. We strive for the perfect balance of the basics to fill us with enjoyment as well as help us survive, but we are not to decide in most cases.

Wind

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Sailing in the Eastern Caribbean is fun, especially when you can “pick” your weather windows to go where you want. That is easier to do with your own catamaran with less of a time frame than when you charter a catamaran for a week or two week holiday. Nevertheless, the islands in the Eastern Caribbean lay relatively close to each other, maximum a day sail away, offering a multitude of great destinations and options. The size of the catamaran, the skill of the sailors, flexibility, schedule and the weather will decide how fast you go and where you end up.

There are a few things to note when you plan a sailing trip in the Eastern Caribbean. One of them is “the sailing season”. From November until June, it is high season in the Caribbean, on shore and on the water. Many tourists escape the winter in their own country, prices go up, beaches can get crowded and harbors fill with (charter) boats. It is busier everywhere, but the climate is wonderful and the sea refreshing. The trade winds mostly come out of the northeast and are stronger than in the summer (15-20 knots). This can make a longer crossing less comfortable. The seas are consequently bigger and will come out of the north frequently due to cold fronts originating in Canada and the States. The biggest disadvantage of this phenomenon is that a lot of beautiful harbors become very uncomfortable with a swell rolling in from that, unprotected, direction.

The other season is “hurricane season” from June until November, with August and September known to have the most potential. The winds are lighter (10-15 knots), typically out of the southeast with no north swell running anymore. Harbors and shores are less crowded, the most magnificent beaches almost deserted. It is hot, however, and the warm ocean doesn’t always provide the desired coolness. The biggest threat, of course, is the possibility of a hurricane. Many of the Eastern Caribbean islands have “hurricane holes”, where you can tuck your catamaran into the mangroves, attach a bunch of lines and deploy all your anchors. The best solution is to spend your summer months cruising within a day sail of safer environments like Grenada, Trinidad, Venezuela or Luperon in the Dominican Republic. Or, totally get out of the hurricane belt.

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