We sailed with following winds and seas from Key West, crossing the Straits of Florida on a South Westerly course. The almost constant North Westerly wind from the past days had its effect on the Gulf Stream, which was located much more to the south than in the previous weeks. Thus while sailing above Cuba we lost almost 2 knots of speed, until we started to hug the Cuban coast where we picked up some counter current. Hugging the coast is a bit too much to say; we stayed about 12 miles away from the coastline. Continue reading

It is always a very tight run to Key West and I need a Northerly wind and a bit of Gulf Stream to get there before another cruise ship comes in. This time we were all by ourselves and that meant I could arrive at the pilot station with an ETA (Estimated Time of Arrival) that suited me. After a quiet night, the wind had started to pick up again and by the time we arrived at the pilot station it was blowing near gale force. Courtesy of the next cold front coming down. However the wind was blowing over the island and thus sufficient shelter for a safe docking. The weather was nice again but on the chilly side with this wind coming from the North North East. Continue reading

For once we were the lucky ones and the wind was getting less and less while we approached the Tampa sea buoy and compared to the 50 knots of last Sunday, the 25 knots that we now had at the pilot station was a piece of cake. By the time that we docked the wind was almost gone and it turned out to be a beautiful day. The sun was shining and there was hardly any wind. It was just a little bit chilly for Tampa standards but what can you expect with four cold fronts coming over in one week. Continue reading

With a near gale force wind on the bow we pushed towards Tampa. Luckily wind and waves were from the same direction and so the ship did not roll but only slightly pitched in combination with an occasional shudder when the bow hit a wave on a strange angle. Thus we had still a good and sunny day, compared with what it could have been. Although for some guests the little movement of the ship was still a bit too much. However had these winds and waves been coming at us from another angle, the ship would have been much livelier. Continue reading

It was another windy day. The cold fronts from the North are not letting up at all. At the moment the next one is forming in the Gulf of Mexico and will pass over us while we are approaching Tampa. Similar to last Sunday. The result is a continuous pattern of strong winds over the North West and Middle Caribbean. However as the wind also pushed the clouds away, it was a nice and sunny day. We arrived on the minute at the pilot station and after picking up the pilot proceeded to the dock. As I was first I had the option to pick my dock but with the North Easterly wind and swell, only docks 1 and 2 could be used. (See Costa Maya blog of last week) Thus I went for dock 2, as I was the smaller ship, leaving the easier approach to dock 1 for the Westerdam, which is quite a bit longer than the Veendam. Continue reading

The weather front was creating quite some swell in the West Caribbean but as we sailed close to the coast we did not notice it very much. Wind needs a free surface on the water to whip up the waves and when you stay close to land that free surface is not there. Thus we had the wind but very little of the associated swell and that made for a nice ride to Santo Tomas. It was a bright and early arrival as well as I had to be docked by 05.30 to get the 06.00 tour on the way. The weather front did cool things down and noon temperature was at least 10oF less than normal. Also it drizzled in the morning and in the afternoon the sun had a very hard time to peak through the clouds. Still most guests were happy with the cooler temperatures. Continue reading

It turned to be a very choppy and a mostly overcast day. The temperature did not go down to what the locals had predicted but still for Belize standards it was on the cool side. For some onboard that was just pleasant for others not really what they had hoped for. It is amazing to see how far the weather influence from the North Gulf can reach into the Caribbean. The second cold front came over Belize during the day; in the mid afternoon and thus the weather of the morning persisted throughout the rest of the day. Continue reading

The one good thing about Cold fronts from the North West is, is that they produce following winds when you are southbound and that makes for a pleasant situation on deck. With the ship traveling at 18 knots and the wind blowing at 25 knots, the relative wind of 7 knots created a gentle breeze on the ship. As long as that wind has changed directions by the time we leave Costa Maya, I am happy with it. Going back to Tampa bucking against 25 knots, can create an uncomfortable ride as the sustained wind creates quite a bit of swell. But that is still three days away. Continue reading

The cold front kept confusing the meteorologists as their wind prediction was off again. With a wind supposed to be around 16 knots, we had around 25 to 30 knots blowing, while entering the Key West entrance channel. Thus docking was a windy affair again. This time we had the Fascination behind us and that ship is a little bit shorter than the Disney Magic or the Westerdam from previous visits and thus I had a bit more room to play with when docking. I should say the Carnival Fascination as all ships now all carry the Carnival prefix as part of a company rebranding operation. It remained a relatively cold day for Key West standards and on departure there was a distinctive absence of shorts and T-shirts on Mallory square and a lot of windbreakers present. Continue reading

With a predicted wind of 25 knots from the North West on my mind we sailed towards the Tampa Sea buoy. That would have meant about 10 to 15 knots at the dock and thus an easy docking. Coming closer and closer to the sea buoy we observed ever increasing winds until it was gusting up to 50 knots; that is heavy storm. Entering the narrow fairway with so much wind fully on the beam is very unpleasant so I opted to go north of the channel; make lee for the pilot outside the buoys and while he was boarding drift on the wind into the channel. Continue reading