Weather around Cape Horn in Jan/Feb.

We are on Black Watch around South America in Jan/Feb.

I would be interested to hear about the likely weather conditions from anyone who's done a similar cruise around that time.

Many thanks

wft:confused:

Highly variable. Predictably hot and humid from Buenos Aires and Valparaiso northward; varying from pleasant to quite cool in the south, e.g., when near Cape Horn. Near Cape Horn, it can vary from near calm to very windy and rough, sometimes with cold (and wind-blown) rain. It will not drop below 0 C / 32 F, but you may encounter 5-10 C with a 30+ knot wind (not uncommon near Tierra del Fuego). That feels cold even to us Canadians. You will need a wide variety of clothes, chosen so they can be layered to adapt to rapidly changing conditions.

You definitely should have waterproof rain gear (with hood) that can, when needed, be worn over a warm sweater, jacket, fleece, etc. We wanted to be prepared for some light hiking, and were very glad to have brought outer rain pants and water-resistant hiking boots with us on both of our cruises around Cape Horn. That necessitated bringing an extra suitcase, but it was worthwhile doing so. In any case, the key is layering and being prepared for everything from cool/wet/windy conditions in the south to very hot conditions farther north.

John

I have sailed around the horn many times in January and February.

The actual time you sail around the horn the weather can range from very rough, windy and rainy to relatively calm, cool and even a little sunny or somewhere in the middle.

On a voyage that goes between say Buenos Aires and Valparaiso expect it to be warm in those two areas and as you make your way south it will get cool and windy and possibly rainy. AS mentioned the key is to layer clothing so you are ready for all sorts of possibilities.

It is an extraordinary cruise and I highly recommend it.

Keith

There actually is an alternative to a whole bunch of layers and if you have one I would strongly advise you to consider taking a down-filled jacket. Why? It is lightweight and it is more compressible than all those layers. Just a thought but this solution worked for us when we were last on that itinerary.

Down-filled jackets or vests are great on dry days, but rain (sometimes blown by strong wind) is common near Cape Horn. In my view, rain gear is essential on that itinerary. A waterproof shell plus the down jacket or vest = layers!

John

We sailed around the Horn Jan 2009 it was cool we had winter jacket. The water was calm, we looked over the side of the ship & we could clearly see our reflection. A ship a week ahead of us had 40 ft waves. Hard to say what it will be like. In Ushuaia it rained during our tour, so yes rain gear would be a good idea.

Allan

It will likely be unpredictable. The captain decides whether to even try to get to the Horn. In our case, in March about 5 years ago, on the Star Princess, the ship got close enough to CH to see it but captain decided not to go around it. Roughest weather on the trip was later, after Punta Arenas, as we hit a storm coming from the Pacific. Seas high enough that the decks were closed. My wife gave me Dramamine and I slept a lot. Did go to the dining room, and just told myself to not look at the high seas, though once in a while my wife would exclaim, "Look at that wave!" A few people got seasick, but no widespread problems that I was aware of. If you want predictable seas, this isn't the trip to take, but I think there are actually rougher seas elsewhere. CH is famous (and many picture the HMS Bounty in "Mutiny on the Bounty" as it unsuccessfully tried to round Cape Horn to get to Tahiti, and finally turned around and went via the Cape of Good Hope. Seas to Antarctica would scare me more.