### L300 predictable winds that change seasonally are called trade winds > Open water is, of course, hazardous, but it has some advantages. The first is sea room—plenty of space to maneuver, to reduce sail and lie to in storms. The ocean far from land is more predictable, in the sense that prevailing winds often blow from the same general directions for much of the time. The trade winds of the Atlantic and the Pacific are classic examples. Monsoon winds in the Indian Ocean blow relatively gently from the northeast for six months or so per year before reversing and filling in more boisterously from the southwest. Even people on land know of these predictable winds, and especially of the seasons of the year when they reverse, allowing easy sailing in the opposite direction. When ancient Polynesian navigators wanted to sail east in the face of prevailing northeasterly trades, they waited until the months between January and March, or for major El Niño years, when the wind turned to the west and the trades faltered. It was a matter of lingering patiently, then setting out at once when the wind changed. This is really useful for sailing as traders: I didn't remember that the winds changed directions, although I definitely taught this with the dhow traders on the Horn of Africa. - [[Beyond the Blue Horizon by Brian Fagan#L300 predictable winds that change seasonally are called trade winds|View in Vault]]