sailing season in the gorge

farabi · Posted: Fri Aug 01, 2008 10:27 am Post subject: sailing season in the gorge

How long is the sailing season in the Gorge?

I don't really care about the temperature much i.e 40 degrees is fine, as long as it's windy...

ericandholly · Joined: 20 Jun 1999 Posts: 292

Change the 40 down to a 30, be willing to drive 45 minutes west and it's all year long, though you may need to chip ice off of your sail/kite in Nov/Dec/Jan.

andymc4610 · Joined: 19 May 2000 Posts: 684

Some people sail all year long, not me, I skip Dec/ Jan. Then I start febuary, even though that is when the water is the coldest 38. I look mostly for the warm east wind day's with the air 55-60, I do more slalom sailing and spend little time in the water. The good west wind becomes more common in April and often you have the hatch to yourself or a handfull of die hards. West winds become less common by November.

isobars · Joined: 12 Dec 1999 Posts: 20935

Several of my buds sail year 'round in the eastern (desert) Gorge. The conditions in Jan and Feb may be sunny or overcast, with water temps dipping to upper 30s and air temps from upper 30s to around 50. Winter winds are usually gusty, but can be fairly steady, and are often very strong (always westerly). Swell can get huge on the better days. If they're lucky enough to get wind from the (rare) proper direction (SSW), Port Kelley swell dwarfs anything else on the Columbia. More commonly, Maryhill/the Wall/Arlington/3-Mile can absolutely RIP in the winter. Of course, they dress like Eskimos and sometimes rig in near-freezing drizzle, but they think they're having fun.

And isn't that what counts?

OTOH, in the '99-'00 winter, I sailed barehanded out there until mid-January; some winters arrive very late, remain mild, and/or succumb to spring early.

Mike \m/

WMP · Joined: 30 May 2000 Posts: 671

No such thing as a "sailing season" here in the Gorge for some of us. East winds nuke much of the winter here, these are much more reliable & consistent than west winds. Nice thing about winter easties, air becomes very dry and the sun comes out at Stevenson / Rooster.... feels great. Biggest problem comes along in February / March when the river water turns very cold (coldest of the year) from snow runoff. Then, it's just a matter of mind control and keeping the blood flowing....

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/22839819#22839819

farabi · Posted: Fri Aug 01, 2008 12:00 pm Post subject:

that's all I need to hear. My friend had to break ice along the shore this Feb so that we can go sailing. I don't mind that every once in a while. My concern was It not being windy in the winder because that's what I have heard from someone .

jimoakes · Joined: 21 Apr 2006 Posts: 172

Hi farabi,

I hope you come here and sail the off season. That's what we need, more sailors. I sail a lot of the cold months but it's more fun if other people are on the water.

I sailed Texas in the cold months for years. The real wind (4.7 and better)in Texas from October to early March is on cold fronts so it's around 45 air temp. I found it is actually windier and just as warm or warmer in the Gorge in the winter. I sailed lot's more days my first winter in the Gorge than any winter in Texas. Texas gets a lot of summer like days in winter with no wind.
Another observation for Gorge winter sailing. A 50 degree air temp west wind day FEELS way warmer than a 50 degree east wind day. May be the stoke factor of the bigger swells on west wind days, but it feels warmer.

andymc4610 · Joined: 19 May 2000 Posts: 684

I had a couple east wind days in Feb. where ait temp was 60 and it felt warmer than some of the west wind April/ May days this year. It was an extra cold spring, coldest since 1996.

isobars · Joined: 12 Dec 1999 Posts: 20935

Which, if memory and reports are correct, was another extremely windy year.

\m/

billgfc · Joined: 20 Aug 2006 Posts: 226

great sailing without cold water for at least a couple months yet:)