Pacific Puddle Jumpers Prepare to Head West

If you were to set sail from the West Coast and voyage around the world via the tropics, the largest patch of open water you’d have to face would be the first: the 3,000-mile crossing from the Coast to French Polynesia. With that in mind, anxiety naturally runs high among those who are about to do the so-called Pacific Puddle Jump. But there’s also tremendous exuberance among the ‘Class of 2012’ Jumpers, as the realm they’re about to enter — the fabled isles of the South Pacific — is one of the most spectacular cruising grounds on the planet.

At least 20 boatloads of westbounders gathered last Wednesday at the Vallarta YC in Nuevo Vallarta’s Paradise Village Resort for Latitude 38‘s annual Pacific Puddle Jump Send-off Party. They’ll all be heading west in the coming weeks, as March and April comprise the ideal weather window for making the crossing. 

Meanwhile, another 20 boats are now staging for departure in La Paz — which is unusual — and an untold number are also making final preparations in Panama. We hope to meet many of them this Saturday at our annual PPJ Send-off Party at the Balboa YC, located just past the Pacific end of the Canal. Look for photos and mini-profiles of this year’s fleet in upcoming editions of the magazine. You’ll find a complete list of registered Puddle Jumpers at the rally’s website, along with a wealth of additional info.