When boats don't go out?

[ektess1]

In your area of the county, when and why do boat cancel trips? I am not talking about number of divers, but about weather.
In south Florida 6 foot seas and 20 knot winds is enought to cancel a boat trip.

What about your area?

[Lulubelle]

Most captains use roughly the same parameters here. We have 2 plus hour rides to the dive sites though and even in better conditions, people have a tendency to get sick. They also cancel because of not being full.

[chinacat46]

So how often do these trips get canceled because of the seas or the boat not being full? I'd hate to plan a trip to NC or to the Flower Gardens and then after arriving have my trip canceled. Probably the main reason I've never been to either. What is the best time of year for either with the least chance of getting blown out?

[fireflock]

Come during the summer tourist season. There is a waiting list for most boats on summer weekends, and the weather patterns give you a good chance for diving.

Boats can handle more bad weather than divers can. Most dive ops cancel when they are worried about divers ability to get back on the boat safely after the dive. Rough weather also makes it more difficult to track people down if they drift away.

[MSilvia]

Depends on the boat here... I've been out in 5' seas when the air temps were in the low 30s and it was raining, and I've had trips cancel because the forecast called for thunderstorms that never arrived. Some won't go if they aren't mostly full, others will go regardless of whether any paying customers signed up at all.

[ReefHound]

Originally Posted by chinacat46

So how often do these trips get canceled because of the seas or the boat not being full? I'd hate to plan a trip to NC or to the Flower Gardens and then after arriving have my trip canceled. Probably the main reason I've never been to either. What is the best time of year for either with the least chance of getting blown out?

It varies by location. The Texas gulf (Flower Gardens) is often rough and unpredictable. Spring is a crap shoot, more than 50% of trips get blown out. Summer is much calmer, unless there is a tropical system the trip will probably go, I'd say it's a 80% to 90% chance in the summer.

Florida, esp. the Keys since they don't have to go but 5 or 6 miles out, is less likely to get blown out. In fact, I haven't lost a trip due to weather in over a dozen trips. Some ops have two standards - one for newbies and unknowns, and one for veterans. Our last trip was during a blue norther with 4-6 seas and 30 knots, and the op said we wouldn't go. We said we all had 100+ dives, dived the Texas gulf in 6' seas regularly, and they said for an experienced payload they would go as long as it didn't go over 6' and 30 knots.

As for canceling due to not being full, it seldoms happens to me as I am usually with a group of at least 4 buddies. Most six packs will go with 4. In the FG, where the boats carry 24-32 people, it never used to be a problem. The problem was getting a spot. But last year things changed and there were midweek trips that didn't make due to lack of divers. The Fling carries 32 and needs at least 20, I was on a trip that had 19 and everybody threw in $25 to cover an extra spot.

Hey, if you're going to be a diver, it's just a fact of life. It's going to happen and it's just the nature of the sport. I've been on boats that never left the dock, boats that made it to the site then turned around and headed back, boats that bucked in high seas the whole time, and boats that sat motionless on flat seas. You just never know and the rough trips make you appreciate the nice trips that much more.

[Grin]

Most of the time the captain will go if you will. If the captain says it's too rough to go, it's very highly likely it is way to rough. Most captains need to put food on the table, and when it comes to food or quality of trip, it's food. Once you leave the dock, you are required to pay the charter fee by law unless otherwise bartered before leaving the dock. If they take you out and you tell,them it's too rough, take me home, they are absolutly fine with that as it's your trip. If you are still interested in going when it's rported 6 ft, they will be happy to go in most cases. They realize that if they take people out in 6 fters, the probability of everyone being seasick is about 90%. Some people can take it though. The thing is when people show up for their charter, they rarly have a clue as to sea conditions. I've seen the happy faces in swim trunks show up at 7am for their fishing trip when it's blowing 20-30. Alot of people just don't register what makes seas nice, as simple as it seems to us who have been watching the wind every day of our life and judging the seas. It's as if many think sunny days mean calm seas or something. Personally, my days of fishing in 6 ft seas are over. That is not what I call fun. But I live here in FL and I can pick my days.

[CompuDude]

Originally Posted by Grin

Most of the time the captain will go if you will. If the captain says it's too rough to go, it's very highly likely it is way to rough. Most captains need to put food on the table, and when it comes to food or quality of trip, it's food. Once you leave the dock, you are required to pay the charter fee by law unless otherwise bartered before leaving the dock. If they take you out and you tell,them it's too rough, take me home, they are absolutly fine with that as it's your trip. If you are still interested in going when it's rported 6 ft, they will be happy to go in most cases. They realize that if they take people out in 6 fters, the probability of everyone being seasick is about 90%. Some people can take it though. The thing is when people show up for their charter, they rarly have a clue as to sea conditions. I've seen the happy faces in swim trunks show up at 7am for their fishing trip when it's blowing 20-30. Alot of people just don't register what makes seas nice, as simple as it seems to us who have been watching the wind every day of our life and judging the seas. It's as if many think sunny days mean calm seas or something. Personally, my days of fishing in 6 ft seas are over. That is not what I call fun. But I live here in FL and I can pick my days.

Must be a Florida thing. Here in SoCal, every boat that I've been on that turned back due to weather refunded my money. Ditto in the event of weather-based cancellations where the boat never left. I trust the Captain to make the call, but then, I'm not overly prone to sea sickness. (and always drug up anyway) Six-packs aren't popular here, though; there's only a couple, and the rest of the fleet hold anywhere from 12-30 divers.

[BouzoukiJoe A.K.A. wrecker130 AKA Chuck Norris AKA joeforbroke (banned)]

The general rule here is that if they make it to the dive site you pay. If they turn around due to conditions you don't.

The main problem with NC diving is the blow outs. In the Spring and Winter you are more than likely to be blown out. In the summer it's a coin toss. You need to come for a week and expect to spend at least a couple of days at the aquarium. I've never had a trip fail to go because of too few divers during the season.

[patsmedad]

OK rough weather divers, I need your advice. Being a mid-westerner, I can only go on a few ocean dives a year. I also don't have time to adapt and get my 'sea legs', so invariably, I get seasick in conditions you would laugh at.
Besides your natural hearty nature, what is your best tried-and-true seasick preventative?
I've tried meclazine (prescription), Benadryl, ginger, dramamine. No seem to work too well. A friend from the merchant marine suggested I should start taking my drug of choice two days ahead of time to build it up in my system. Seems excessive. Anyone tried the scopolamine patch?

Color me green.