St. Martin Cruising Conditions
General Conditions
The Leeward Islands that include the island of St Martin are constantly cooled by trade winds, so it's comfortable to visit them at any time of the year. The average temperature is 80°F (26°C) and rainfall totals an average of 45 inches (1143 mm) yearly.
Winds are the Easterly Trades generally at 10 to 20 knots, lighter in the summer months, during the hurricane season, between August and September. The stronger Christmas winds blow for a couple of weeks in winter and can be up around 25 to 30 knots. During these couple of weeks a north-east swell is dominates above 8–9 ft.
Visibility is generally excellent and on very clear days you can see the islands of Saba, St Eustatius (Statia), St Christopher (St Kitts) and even Nevis, some 60 miles to the south-east. Fog is unheard of but occasionally haze, especially from August to October, can reduce visibility to 15 miles or so.
From the sailors’ point of view the briskest sailing is around Christmas time and the lightest is in the middle of the hurricane season.
Immediate weather conditions can be found at https://weather.com/en-GB/.
Historical weather (Averages by month):
Month | °F Max | °F Min | °C Max | °C Min | Ave Precip | Ave Precip (mm) | Ave Water Temp (°F) | Ave Water Temp (°C) | Ave Wind Speed (knots) |
Jan | 83 | 75 | 28 | 24 | 3 | 76 | 77 | 25 | NE15-20 |
Feb | 83 | 75 | 28 | 24 | 2 | 51 | 77 | 25 | E15-20 |
Mar | 83 | 75 | 28 | 24 | 2 | 51 | 78 | 26 | E15-20 |
Apr | 84 | 77 | 29 | 25 | 3 | 76 | 80 | 27 | E15-20 |
May | 86 | 78 | 30 | 26 | 4 | 101 | 82 | 28 | SE15-20 |
Jun | 88 | 80 | 31 | 27 | 3 | 76 | 83 | 28 | SE15-20 |
Jul | 88 | 80 | 31 | 27 | 3 | 76 | 84 | 29 | SE15-20 |
Aug | 88 | 80 | 31 | 27 | 5 | 127 | 85 | 29 | SE15-20 |
Sept | 88 | 80 | 31 | 27 | 5 | 127 | 84 | 29 | SE 15-20 |
Oct | 87 | 80 | 31 | 27 | 4 | 101 | 83 | 28 | SE 15-20 |
Nov | 85 | 78 | 29 | 26 | 5 | 127 | 82 | 28 | NE15-20 |
Dec | 83 | 76 | 28 | 24 | 4 | 101 | 80 | 27 | NE15-20 |
Tides
The tidal range is very small: 30 cm to 60 cm (one to two feet) including the variation of level due to atmospheric pressure and dominant winds.
Forecasts
The base provides a weather forecast for the first day and will provide a listing of stations that broadcast weather.
Clients can obtain the weather situation at any time by calling: Météo France: 08 92 68 08 08 Or by listening to LASER 101.5 FM radio for local weather at 7.45 a.m. and 8.15 a.m. (English).
Radio Transat 106.1 FM broadcasts weather every hour/day 6.30 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. (French).
NEW: VHF channel 64 at 9.00 a.m., 12.00 a.m., 8.00 p.m. and 10.00 p.m. (French).
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