Is the Gorge worth sailing in the winter?

[jesusjones]

I have been entertaining sailing this winter but I would like to know if it’s worth the investment? Are the many good days?

[biffmalibu]

There are a handful of freaks who sail the strong cold easterlies. But they obviously don't have lives or the desire/ability to ski or snowboard. Or they are macho-masochists. It's bitterly cold and super-windy (how much fun is it REALLY to survive out there? And the negative consequences of gear/body failure are huge). The sessions last no more than a half-hour before fingers and toes burn . Westerly sessions are rare and short-lived. And still too cold.

Winters are for SNOW. Invest in SNOW. The snow is good on Mt. Hood. Surf the mountain!

[cgoudie1]

I'm on my way to HR for 1 more week next week, but Mr Malibu is
correct, it can be brutally cold, and the frequency of windy days
is very low. Look for a good forecast and snap on up.

This data is amost 20 years old, but is probably still relevant
These are days sailable (defined as better than 15MPH wind for better than 1 hour)

Air Air
Mo Stevenson Swell Doug's Maryhill Arlington Water F High F Low F Rain
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jan 22 0 0 0 0 43-46 49 34 1.02
Feb 10 3 2 0 3 39-42 43 29 1.96
March 9 2 1 5 8 40-48 59 34 .51
April 9 13 11 10 12 48-55 64 42 .25
May 11 13 9 9 13 54-61 71 47 .32
June 14 18 19 14 20 60-65 73 49 .23
July 23 26 24 18 18 65-73 85 56 .01
Aug 18 24 22 14 16 70-73 91 54 .00
Sept 7 15 7 7 9 68-70 81 47 .08
Oct 8 8 6 10 15 57-68 63 37 3.05
Nov 8 5 1 7 11 48-57 41 32 2.26
Dec 11 0 0 2 1 44-48 43 32 1.30



-Craig

[jesusjones]

yeah, thats kind of what I thought. I guess I should have been out east the other day.

[andymc4610]

The hatch on saturday was windy. I get burned out by November and look forward to watching football and ski/ Snowboarding. I'll wait till I need a fix in feb/ March. I use to do the Baja (drive) for a month in December, but not anymore.

[isobars]

I’ll call “winter” December through March because I sail barehanded and barefooted except for those months, and proceed from there. You can decide whether it’s “worth it” to you.

Five of my regular sailing buds sail all winter, for three reasons: it provides the biggest swell the Columbia ever gets, it provides the best sailing they ever get (and two of them sail almost every windy day), and they stay warm and toasty as long as the air temps are above freezing. They get maybe 15 days, up to 20 (one of them keeps a detailed diary of every day he has ever sailed; he got nine HUGE days in one January) during those four months. The monetary cost is a dry suit, mittens, hood, booties, and gasoline to drive out east. The PITA cost is changing clothes in temps of 35-55 degrees, the occasional skunk, and -- usually but not always -- gustier wind than summer thermal action. Whether the sailing is worth the costs to you is a personal call.

Hell, YES you should have driven Monday. The swell at noon was well overhead (peaking around 7-8 feet), as smooth as a new parking lot, and up to 800 yards long (the river is 1200 yards wide and the swell ran at least 2/3 of that, sometimes almost shore to shore when the wind direction was perfect), with troughs something like 100 feet peak-to-peak. Air and water nearly 60, mostly sunny skies, crisp ankle-deep leaves of several colors on the lawn, gusty 3.5 wind all afternoon … just like summer but without the sweat and crowds. But then winter’s still at least a month away, so why wouldn’t the sailing be great?

I hear some people also sail wintertime easterlies, too, but I'm not sure why.

Mike \m/

[jesusjones]

Thanks M..........thats all needed to hear!!!! Now I just need to get off my but.

[WMP]

[MrFish]

I've sailed there up till new years eve. After that, it's not for me.

Actually, well before that it's not for me either.

The coast can be sailable by my standards all winter, but it's a long drive to maybe get skunked completely.

[isobars]