Weather Forecast

Wix and Wrabness Yacht Club

Dove Cottage Oakley Road Wix Nr. Manningtree Essex. CO11 2SE

Tel 01255 870777

To go or not to go?

Hope fully some of the information and links below will help you decide.

Please see weather forecast from Windfinder.com below.

Beaufort Force	Windspeed Knots	Description	Sea Condition
0	0	Calm	Sea like a mirror
1	1 - 3	Light Air	Ripples but without foam crests
2	4 - 6	Light Breeze	Small wavelets. Crests do not break
3	7 - 10	Gentle Breeze	Large wavelets. Perhaps scattered white horses
4	11 - 16	Moderate Breeze	Small waves. Fairly frequent white horses.
5	17 - 21	Fresh Breeze	Moderate waves, many white horses
6	22 - 27	Strong Breeze	Large waves begin to form; white foam crests, probably spray
7	28 - 33	Near Gale	Sea heaps up and white foam blown in streaks along the direction of the wind
8	34 - 40	Gale	Moderately high waves, crests begin to break into spindrift
9	41 - 47	Strong Gale	High waves. Dense foam along the direction of the wind. Crests of waves begin to roll over. Spray may affect visibility
10	48 - 55	Storm	Very high waves with long overhanging crests. The surface of the sea takes a white appearance. The tumbling of the sea becomes heavy and shock like. Visibility affected
11	56 - 63	Violent Storm	Exceptionally high waves. The sea is completely covered with long white patches of foam lying in the direction of the wind. Visibility affected
12	64+	Hurricane	The air is filled with foam and spray. Sea completely white with driving spray. Visibility very seriously affected. DO NOT GO!!!!!!

here are as many web sites on the weather as there are views on what they mean. Here are a few links to some of the ones I find most useful.

The Met Office Shipping forecast: I use most for longer offshore passages. Less useful for planning in advance as although a general synopsis is provided, it doesn't give information more than 24 hours ahead.

The Met Office Inshore Waters Forecast: More relevant for coastal passages, also provides outlook for next day, perhaps useful for planning weekend trips.

Weather Online: Although less known about the source of the information, does give wind charts for up to 7 days ahead, broken down into 3 hourly slots as well as pressure charts and predicted wave heights.

I am sure there are many many more. If you have any suggestions for inclusions, please let us know with the reasons you find them useful.

Of course, the tides, and how they interact with the wind, also affect the state of the sea, so I include the link to the hydrographic office tidal predictions.

Useful Links: Royal Yachting Association. The Met Office. Weather Online. UK Hydrographic Office Easy tide.

Deben Entrance. Orford Entrance. www.marinas.com Stour Sailing Club. Windfinder.com