The eighth annual Salty Dawg Fall Rally saw 70 boats depart from Hampton, VA in early November bound for points south in the Caribbean and Bahamas. As always, entrants chose their own time to depart depending on how they read the weather windows and how they interpreted the forecasting provided by weather guru Chris Parker. There was fairly heavy weather in the Gulf Stream this year so some skippers decided to delay for a day or two to let the seas settle down. Some headed south to Beaufort, NC so they could get through the stream at a better angle and in better conditions. Rick Palm, the Director of Rally Management noted, “The weather conditions for this year’s rally called on skippers and crews to make careful decisions based upon their individual circumstances.”
The fleet split as it headed offshore and found steady southeasterly headwinds for the course to the Caribbean. The Bahama bound boats had a good fast ride southward in blustery conditions and fetched up in March Harbour, the Abacos after passages that ran from four to six days. For the Caribbean bound boats, several opted to sail to Bermuda instead of bashing into the headwinds and once there found that they had to wait several days for a favorable weather window for the run south.
The rally had two destinations in the Caribbean, the BVI as always, and Falmouth Harbour, Antigua which had been a very popular destination last year. The BVI fleet made landfall in Virgin Gorda’s North Sound and homed in on Leverick Bay which was acting as host for the fleet. After challenging passages south, the Pain Killers ashore flowed freely and all were glad to be in and happy to have made the passage (as in the photo above). The Antigua fleet were entertained by local sailors and the marine companies that serve the cruising and racing boats that frequent the island, which is known as the sailing capital of the eastern Caribbean.
Bob Osborn, SDSA board member and Antigua Port Captain reported, “After arrival in Antigua, we had cocktail parties, a welcome dinner and cookouts on the beach with something going on every night. New friendships were forged and old friends were reunited.”
The 2018 fleet was diverse and crews ranged from couples to groups of four or five. The boats ranged from 37 to 70 feet, with about 28 percent being multihulls. Six boats had kids onboard and seven had pets. About 38 percent of the skippers in this year’s rally were veterans of previous Salty Dawg events.
The Salty Dawg Sailng Association is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that emphasizes safety at sea, communications, education and camaraderie. Over 700 boats and 3,000 sailors have participated in Salty Dawg rallies since the organization was founded in 2011. Check out the website at www.saltydawgsailing.org.
