Navigation and Weather Tools for Offshore Sailing

The tools we actually use on Paikea for passage planning, weather routing, and navigation. Not a comprehensive review — just what works for us offshore and why.

PredictWind — weather routing and passage planning
Navionics — chart navigation on Android tablet
qtVlm — passage planning and polar analysis on laptop
Iridium GO — offshore communications and weather
Anchor Lite — anchor alarm on Android
Navily — anchorage information and reviews

For full details on how these tools are installed and integrated on Paikea visit Paikea’s Systems.

Weather Routing & Forecasting

PredictWind – Our go-to for offshore weather. We use the professional version for GRIB files, routing, and the Offshore App for satellite communication. Join PredictWind using our Affiliate Link

PredictWind Education Portal – Master weather routing with their professional education series. Access PredictWind Education Portal

Navigation Systems

  • Primary: Navionics on Android tablet, qtVlm on laptop, Raymarine E120W chartplotter, Sailmon sailing display
  • Communications: Iridium GO with external antenna, Starlink maritime, AIS Raymarine 500, VHF Garmin 100i
  • Autopilots: Raymarine (primary), Raspberry Pi/Arduino Pi pilot (secondary)
  • Anchoring: Raymarine anchor alarm, Anchor Lite (Android), Navily, Google Maps

For Paikea’s specific installation details, visit the Navigation Systems section in Paikea’s Systems page

Performance Analysis Tools

We use specialized software to analyze sail data and route efficiently:

  • Live Polar Analyser / qtVlm – Real-time polar analysis and routing
  • Polar builder / OpenCPN – Custom polar diagram generation
  • Excel & Project Libre Calc – Spreadsheet analysis and project tracking
  • Sail Performance Analysis / Sailpack Vision – Sail shape optimization

For Paikea’s specific details, visit the Performance Analysis Tools section in Paikea’s Systems page

Design & Engineering Tools

For composite engineering and boat building tools, visit the Engineering References & Tools page

Sailing Performance Multihulls

For sailing techniques and on-the-water tutorials, visit Sailing Techniques & Skills

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