Weather windows

A good window is boring on paper

The best weather window reads like nothing: moderate wind, a passing high, no fronts for two days. Boring is the point. Excitement is what you're avoiding.

wind      12-18 kt, steady direction
sea state  below 2 m
pressure   steady or rising
fronts     none within 48-72 h

Watch the pressure, not the promise

Forecasts change. Pressure doesn't lie the same way. A steady barometer and a forecast that agrees is a window; a forecast that keeps moving is a door half open.

Leave yourself an out

Every window needs an escape — a harbour up the coast, an anchorage of last resort. If the only plan is "make it", the plan is already wrong.