Comparison Tables & Planning Guide for Cruising on Small Boats

By:
Anne J. Westlund
Box 129
475 N. Division St.
DeTour Village., MI 49725

March 4, 2003

HOW MUCH DO DUCKS COST?

Trip planning for a cruise of more than a day is often the stopping block for new cruisers. They tend to stay in their home waters and don't go for extended trips as a result of not knowing quite how to make a trip plan. A trip plan is needed for any kind of trip, canoeing, sea kayaking, backpacking, driving to Colorado or New York, small boat cruising. This is what DUCKS COST, the acronyms for planning.

D stands for distance. How far can you go in the time you have and reasonable speed to do it either motoring or sailing? The chart will help you plan this. Consult the chart first to figure how far you might go in the days given, then add one day per week you will be out cruising as a lay-over day for rest, recreation, weather or what have you. Add driving time to-and-from your launch site. That last total figure will be your total days, distance and cruising at your sailboat speed.

U stands for the unusual. Prepare the boat, trailer, car and self for the trip. Avoid the unusual or un-thought of event, happenstance, occurrence, accident, illness, etc. Work hard to avoid the unusual due to failure of equipment, fatigue, fitness. Be sure to pack your insurance and registration papers, maybe a photo ID plus a passport if going to Baja or Canada. Do you have the proper visas if needed? Be sure to have the right papers for all aboard. Children under eighteen need a birth certificate. Maybe you do too. If they are not your children along on the trip you will need a release for medical treatment from the parents or guardians plus original birth certificates and other identification.

C stands for climate. How much do you know about where you are going? How can you pack for cold or heat? How does that impact your distance per day? I hate heat; it wilts me. I can't tolerate very long hot, humid days. I stop to swim and that slows progress. I plan for that in the summer cruises. Along with daily weather related climate issues you might want to get on the web or phone to find out the average weather plus getting local knowledge. Sporting goods shops and commercial fisherfolks are good sources of information. C also stands for cultural issues. Consider your destination, the safety of the area, language, common customs and costs, visas, exchange rates, availability of goods you might need for repairs, foods, etc.

K stands for knowledge. You need to know about the traffic, highways, launch sites, costs, car and trailer storage while you are out cruising, safety of your vehicle and trailer, anchorage's, chandlers, charts and guides. In other words, do your homework. Winter is the best time for these mental cruises. Beats shoveling snow!

S stands for safety. Do you know first aid? Do you have a comprehensive kit? Do you have a float plan to leave at the launch site or with the local police (Coast Guard stations do not want this float plan.) Be sure to leave a float plan with a good friend or relative too. Check the dates on your rescue flares and any battery operated gizmos. Consider weather protection, a safety harness, jack lines and tethers, and be honest with your state of health. Be safe, not sorry.

That's DUCKS.

In COST, C stands for overall cost. Can you afford this cruise? Consider fuel on the road and in the boat, food and housing underway from home to home again, launch and storage fees if any, emergency money for blown tires, car repairs, medical help, etc. Trip insurance including air ambulance and getting flown home is available. In Canada if you need to be rescued you will be charged for it. Ask your independent insurance underwriter. I don't know about current regulations in Mexico or the Bahamas.

O stands for operations. Consider your motor, plugs, shear pins, manual, spare prop, spare parts, spare starter rope. Consider your rigging and sails - repair parts and sewing kit. Consider your charts. They must be up-to-date to be legal. And, don't forget to check over your car and trailer. Check all fittings and be sure the bearings are greased. You might want to take along a spare set of bearings and grease. What's in your toolbox?

S stands for sustenance. Consider your normal diet and try to take what you normally eat along with you. Produce kept under a wet, white, terry towel will remain cool and extend the life of the onions, potatoes, bananas, apples, carrots, cabbage even without any icebox or refrigeration. Fluids are critical. Carry enough water, juices, dry mixes like Tang or Gator Ade, and avoid dehydration. I avoid all alcoholic beverages on my boat since I sail solo and I have to be able to rely on myself at all times. I don't believe in using mind-altering drugs of any kind and won't do it.

T stands for toys. You need to have along your personal preferences for toys. I like having my CD player and an AM/FM radio, books, field guides, binoculars, a journal, writing paper and envelopes, pens, flags and pennants, snacks and goodies. After all it is a vacation you are on while cruising, not a marathon. For some this means money for a marina overnight, eating out, renting a car or taking an airplane ride over the cruising grounds, snorkel, fins, mask, etc.

That's COST.

Using the acronyms DUCKS COST will help you plan your trip in an organized way and make for an easier mind while on the cruise. I consider the cruise to start when I lock the house behind me and not end until I unlock the door when I return. The whole trip needs to be thought about, planned and "built in your mind." As my brother says, "If you can build it in your mind, you can make it."

Comparison Tables for Planning Cruises on Small Boats

Compare Average	300 miles	Total Traveling
Mph..		Hours
2		150
3		100
4		75
5		60
Compare	Total	Hours	Total days	Hours	Ten days
Hours underway	Days for trip	Total hours	Days for trip	Total hours	Total hours
12	30	360	20	240	120
8	30	240	20	160	80
6	30	180	20	120	60
5	30	150	20	100	50
4	30	120	20	80	40
3	30	90	20	60	30
2	30	60	20	40	20
MPH Speed	Time under way	Distance made	OR	Time under way	Distance made
2 mph	6 hours	12 miles	Or	8 hours	16 miles
3	6	18	Or	8	24
4	6	24	Or	8	32
5	6	30	Or	8	40
6	6	36	Or	8	48
2 mph	4 hours	8 miles	Or	2 hours	4 miles
3	4	12	Or	2	6
4	4	16	Or	2	8
5	4	20	Or	2	10
6	4	24	Or	2	12

COMMENTS:

These tables explain how little boats traveling 3-mph average over time can make distance - by putting in time underway at a consistent speed! Kind of like the turtle, keep on moving.

Miles statute or nautical, just be consistent.

Planning: given the time you have plus one day a week to not move at all (lay-over days), then you can plan your trip. For instance: I have 12 days = 10 days to travel. My overall speed average will be, say, 4 mph. I plan to motor or sail a total of 8 hours a day when underway. Therefore the total distance I can travel in 10 days is 32 miles per day or 320 miles for entire trip. If speed slows down, distance per hour does too. Always allow for slower conditions such as weather systems, days of rain or high wind, wave action against your direction of travel, and currents, tides, etc. How you are feeling affects your time at the helm also.

With this planning aide, you can figure, say 6 hours of travel per day, take a two hour break for lunch or to swim or nap or beach comb and you can still put in an 8 hour day with 6 hours of travel. Depending on overall speed your distance is figured for you.

With the aide of a GPS helping to give you speed over the ground or other instrumentation, regardless of your sailing or motoring speed, wave action or current, you can get a good average every hour and know where you are in the length of the day planned. Don't forget that the distances figured are for straight line distances, not tacking or wobbling down the irregular coastal area.

I hope this helps you think about your cruise in the planning stages and I suggest you go less distance and look deeper, wider, higher, longer, broader and slow down to enjoy your cruise.

The author assumes no responsibility for anyone's planning, cruise or outcomes except her own. She believes we are all on our own. Cruise responsibly, with caution and care plus enjoyment.

Anne Westlund sailing her P-15 #2319 "Peapod".

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