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Sailing to French Polynesia - Plotting My Course (Feb 2026)
February 24, 2026 · 13 min · 896 views
Sailboat glides toward Socorro Island under full sail
What this video covers
A solo sailor on a Valiant Yachts 40-2 completed a 3,000-nautical-mile passage from Banderas Bay, Mexico, to the Marquesas in French Polynesia.▶ 0:09 To avoid stalling in light coastal winds, the route initially heads west toward Isla Socorro and Isla Clarion rather than directly south.▶ 3:54 These islands serve as a final shakedown point and a potential bailout location near Mexican Navy outposts.▶ 5:07 The passage strategy relies on timing departures to the taper of the El Norte wind cycle, which typically repeats every 7–10 days.▶ 2:11 For the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), the sailor utilized a paid weather router to identify a narrow crossing window between 3 and 10 degrees north, specifically avoiding crossing the equator west of 128 degrees to prevent a close-hauled final leg.▶ 8:29 During the crossing, the sailor used BNG radar in weather mode to track squalls, noting that they often cause a "push-suck" effect where wind speeds spike before dropping to near-calm.▶ 10:26 Starlink provided reliable communication for weather updates during the transit.▶ 10:49
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