The Dash to Luperón Before Hurricane Season E367
February 1, 2026 · 19 min · 873 views · Luperón
Sailboat cuts through choppy blue sea under sky
What this video covers
The crew of Wildly Intrepid makes an 80-mile passage from Turks and Caicos to Luperón, Dominican Republic on June 28, sailing in 15–20 knot winds with 5–6 foot seas after a month of poor weather windows — the last calm crossing had been May 30.0:40 Seas ran slightly smaller than forecast; the main complication was a large thunderstorm the crew outran, then had to slow down to avoid arriving before sunrise, as the channel into Luperón has shallow sections requiring daylight navigation.3:43 A local named Papo guides them to a mooring at $75 USD per month.6:08 Checking in requires stops at immigration, agricultura, harbor authority, aduanas, and Armada; agricultura costs 600 pesos cash, harbor authority 1,800 pesos cash, and some fees can be paid by card.7:17 Required documents include boat registration, passports, the despacho from the previous port, and a passport photo.7:01 The crew chose Luperón specifically as a hurricane hole, citing the surrounding mountains as protection from June through November.7:38 Boat projects in the anchorage include fiberglass tabbing work that failed after hardener was omitted from one batch, and a messy oil change on the Westerbeke engine where Sierra replacement filters blew their gaskets repeatedly; the original dirty filter was reinstalled to restore operation.13:44
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