Traveling the Great Loop? Making a passage offshore or across a Great Lake? If you have access to the internet you should check the "National Data Buoy Center" website. http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/index.shtml It will tell you exactly what the weather is out there, before you go. AND it will give you a historical data, that will show whether it's starting to blow up, or the weather is calming down. And even trends, if you want to see the typical weather pattern for the area. You also get to know what those yellow buoys are for! We use it in conjunction with the weather radios report, the weather channel, and common sense. Regards, Capt. James Clausen, MV Summer School "At sea a fellow comes out. Salt water is like wine, in that respect." - Herman Melville