Everything You Need to Know Before Planning Your First Sailing Adventure

If you get butterflies in your stomach when you think about letting go of the coast and embracing the limitless blue seas, it might be time to unleash your inner wanderer. While there’s a lot of fun to be had by the shore, don’t forget that catamarans are built for long haul sailing. As long as you pack the right supplies, they are more than capable of handling extended voyages and epic adventures.

Week or even month long sailing trips can be an intimidating prospect at first, but they provide an experience like no other. Whether you go it alone or recruit sailing companions, you’ll learn how to harness the power of the sea and use it to your advantage. You’ll get to know your boat better than ever before because you’ll be mapping out and monitoring its progress on the fly. There’s nothing like your first sailing adventure, so it’s time get started on yours.

Multihull Solutions, catamaran specialists, know a thing or two about sailing and they’ve given us a few tips on how to plan your first sailing adventure.

Be Sure About Your Route

The first part of planning any sailing trip is deciding on the route. You should be very clear on where you plan to travel to and what passages you’ll use to get there.

Slight deviations are to be expected, particularly if the weather changes, but you are strongly advised to decide on a route and stick to it. That way, you can log your trip with marine safety officials, who’ll know exactly where to search if you get into trouble.

Get Yourself Some Bolt Holes

When marking out your passage, don’t forget to search for suitable ‘bolt holes’ in areas which are prone to bad weather and stormy seas. You should be checking the weather forecast every day in the week leading up to your trip, but there are no guarantees.

Having some reliable escape spots, where you can get your boat to shore in poor conditions, is just an extra precaution which will give you peace of mind while sailing.

Inspect All Safety Items

Take the time to visually inspect all of the bits and pieces in your safety kit. This includes flares, radios, personal EPIRBS devices, fuel stores, and anything else which is deemed essential for a long trip.

Pick them up, handle them, and switch them on if applicable. Just make sure that everything is in working order and ready to go. This is something that should be done before every extended voyage, even if you haven’t actually used any of the kit.

Calculate Food and Water Supplies

The chance of a sailing catamaran running out of water for long enough to get into real trouble is small. If you’ve done your research and know your route, you’ll be aware of the fastest passage back to shore in the event of an emergency.

Nevertheless, it is a good idea to take a little more food and fresh water than you think you need. Canned snacks like beans, spaghetti, corned beef and tuna are great for sailing because they don’t need to be refrigerated.

Why Safe Sailing is All about Being Prepared

The open sea can be a stormy place at times, but the reality is that sailing emergencies occur when crews aren’t prepared. If you’re ready for the unexpected, there’s no reason to fear it. In fact, learning how to conquer the unpredictability of the waves is half the fun.

If you plan your trip carefully and pack the right supplies, all that’s left is to find some big adventures.