Very interesting, Clay.  Thanks.  I would only suggest further that our
early ships' captains did not attempt to go straight across the Atlantic
from England, southwestern Europe and Spain/Portugal because the "Sargasso
Sea" in the area of what you now call the "Bermuda High" often was almost
impenetrable.  Further, because of that "high" and those sargassum weeds,
ships that found their way into that zone not only often became nearly
becalmed but also tangled in that giant sea of plants. 

If my memory serves me (probably not :-), there were incidents of such
becalmed and mired ships spending 12-14 weeks for the westward voyage,
thereby bringing the greatest discomfort for all aboard since that length of
time exhausted the on-board food, water and supplies.  Correct my memory
again; did not the ships, bound for the West Indies and our Southern
colonies, departing from, again, England and all of southwestern Europe,
sail south to the Antilles, thence west with the tradewinds and currents to
the Indies, then north with the Gulf Stream?  And am I correct in recalling
your words of the past that the "slavers" moved north along the coast of
Africa, thence northwest to the Canaries, on to the Indies, and north to VA
via the Gulf Stream?

Thanks much.

Paul   
***************  
From Clay Gullet

Subject: Re: [VA-ROOTS] Slow goin' + migration travel time
-Mayflower-Ark-Dove

The only reference to the Mayflower was in connection as to how long it took
to get back and forth across the North Atlantic against and with the Gulf
Stream and the stormy weather encountered and how much faster the return
trip was. We are talking about travel time and nothing more. If the Ark and
Dove took the same route at the same time of the year they would have
encountered the same problems. 

Note that 100 to 200 years later the fast clipper ships only made 3 MPH on
the trip from England to the US. Only with steam ships was the northern
passage made faster. Many of them went over the top north of the Gulf Stream
with a whole new set of problems ice burgs as the Titanic found out.
As Meteorologist for Commander Second Fleet I  sailed these routes back and
forth 3 times aboard a large Navy Command Ship during the Sep-Oct period
during the early 1980s including once over the top.  I can verify that it
indeed is a stormy and dangerous trip especially for such small ships as the
Ark, Dove and Mayflower. In some of the storms they would have encountered
40 to 60 foot seas and hurricane force winds.

The 1600s were also during the cold of the Little Ice Age (coldest points
1650, 1770, 1800/1870) while the Vikings made their trips over the top
during the Medieval Climate Optimum (10th-14th century) when it was as or
warmer than it is today. You should also take into account these cold
periods when Americans were moving westward across the US, travel in winter
would not have been easy. I remember reading in Weather Wise magazine that
Chesapeake Bay was frozen solid in the 1800s enough that a train engine was
placed on a barge and pulled from Baltimore MD to Norfolk VA.

The Spanish and Portuguese took the easier Trade Route down the West Coast
of African then with the NE Trade Winds to the West Indies. This way you had
sea currents and winds mostly in your favor all the way. 

I doubt that many Americans today would even think of undertaking such
dangerous crossings in such small vessels as out ancestors did. Our
ancestors were indeed determined, bold and courageous men, women and
children regardless of which colony they were going to.

Clay Gullatt
USN Ret.

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