Kanmon Kaikyo

This is a little more on the Kanmon Kaikyo with some photos.  Although we were a little busy at the time so not much on photos.  The busy at the time is something to note.  Most people stress the Kanmon Kaikyo, including us, but it is actually pretty easy.  There is no doubt the currents do rip through there.  But there are three stations with huge digital displays telling you from which direction the tide is going, how fast and if the current is increasing or decreasing.  There are also a couple of spots to bail out and hide to wait for the current to change.  In our case we hit it as it was increasing and we hoped to get through while it was only 4-5 knots.  One thing to note is that the current is only strong near the bridge so we didn't get much of a boost until the end so we ended up hitting the bridge with 7 knots of current.  But not really any nasty whirlpools and was actually a lot easier than the Obatake Bridge further up near Yamaguchi.  Please note to keep your radio on channel 16 as they do call you and ask some information as you are transiting.  We had heard this from many yachts and so we were listening carefully.  And they did call us.

Entering the Straits The Speed is Picking Up

The Straits Ahead

The Japan Sea Behind

The Current is getting stronger.  This reached 12.3 Knots

The Kanmon Kaikyo Bridge