The Pacific Puddle Jump on YouTube

For those of us in the bigger latitudes, sailing can be really cold during the winter months. It's about this time that my mind always begins to set sail somewhere in the South Pacific. This is fitting since this is also the time of year that many cruisers are staging in California and Mexico for the Pacific puddle jump. Sailboats heading to French Polynesia, the Marquesas, the Tuamotus and beyond typically depart sometime in March or April to cross the Pacific.

Crossing the Pacific is no small feat and encompasses the longest single stretch of bluewater open ocean sailing available on planet Earth. Most of the sailboats making the crossing will be at sea anywhere from 2 weeks to over a month. Landfall is a sweet reward!

There's always a few boats that blog about their trip through the Pacific and some post nice video recaps of the journey. To set the stage for "crossing season" and to get a winter sailing fix,  the sailing videos below will take your mind away for a few moments. These are all Pacific crossing videos from previous years. They offer great perspective on a long voyage in a small boat and provide a lot of good information that cruisers of all types will find useful.

Cruising LeaLea: This husband and wife crew have sailed their humble Albin Vega 27 up and down the west coast of the United States and have crossed back and forth to Hawaii. This video is the first in a long series of videos capturing their journeys on our biggest ocean.


s/v Delos: Join a crew of young friends as they sail across the Pacific and explore points from Seattle to Australia.


s/v Estrellita 5.10B: Carol and Livia document their Pacific crossing aboard their Wauquiez Pretorien 35. They're still "out there" cruising and post often on their excellent blog.


s/v Honeymoon: I really enjoyed following along on Seth's blog back in 2008 when he and his wife were preparing for their journey through the Caribbean and across the Pacific. Their crossing video is still one of my favorites.



Excido1's Pacific Crossing: I don't know the backstory for this boat/crew, but I did enjoy their video.


s/v Tumbleweed: This Pacific crossing video series is really well done and captures the high's and low's of a long passage.


Lost on Purpose: A bit raw and unfiltered at times, this crossing video from Lost on Purpose still manages to be entertaining and insightful.


s/v Billabong: This is an "oldie but goodie" from Billabong's crossing way back in 2004.


What about getting back to the United States for those that don't want to circumnavigate or risk the recent increase in piracy in the Indian Ocean? Well, for that, you might be tasked with challenging opposing winds and currents, but it can be done. Below is one final video that shows this reverse Pacific crossing. This time, the video is from Steve and Linda Dashew, very well-known cruisers who have a ton of experience and knowledge.


Comments

  1. IO left British Columbia in 2010 if I remember correctly. It was a Baba 30 with Mike and Hyo aboard. We met them in Victoria but they left to head South while we stayed in Canada cruising for a year.

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  2. Here's one more for the list :) https://youtu.be/WJo5yXnWnjk?list=PLpMdlvkfb-_nu53wFZOGBRWT7NTOHkqu9

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