Browsing: Jim and Lisa Favors

Cruising Life
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Favors Get Their New Ranger Tugs 25

Jim and Lisa Favors just took delivery of their new Ranger Tugs 25 near the factory south of Seattle, and it has a red hull, just like their two previous Rangers, and it’s named Kismet, just like their two previous Rangers. Even though this is the Favors’ third Ranger Tug, and the smallest (they had started with a 27 and then moved up to a 29), and they have owned boats and cruised for most of their adult lives, they signed up for Ranger’s new-owner factory orientation. Available to all new owners, the orientation is a two-day, on-the-water session where…

Destinations
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Change of Plans: The Favors Cruise to Cypress Island

Jim and Lisa Favors are on the water again, this time on Cypress Island in the San Juans in Washington state on their red-hulled Ranger Tugs 29 Kismet. In this time of COVID-19, it isn’t the trip they had planned (they had originally hoped to get up to Alaska), but they are finding that it’s a beautiful cruising destination in its own right. The Favors are one of the most experienced cruising couples we know. They’ve already completed the Great Loop, and they trailered their original Kismet, a Ranger Tugs 27, around much of the U.S. for six years, before…

Cruising Life
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Visit Historic Montreal on the Favors’ Ranger Tugs 29 Kismet

You can’t say that Jim and Lisa Favors, from Traverse City, Michigan, don’t get around. In fact, they’re two of the most accomplished cruisers we know, having already completed the Great Loop. They’ve also cruised in many areas of the U.S. on various boats, including their Ranger Tugs 27 and for the past two years their Ranger Tugs 29, both named Kismet. That’s the new Kismet, with the red hull, in the picture above, in Montreal, which the Favors loved. Here’s Lisa’s account of that trip, along with a series of great photos: Montreal – The End of Our Trent Severn Waterway,…

Cruising Life
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The Favors Keep Cruising: Now Down the Historic Trent Severn Waterway on Their Ranger 29

Many cruisers consider the historic, pastoral 240-mile Trent Severn Waterway the most beautiful part of the entire 5,000-mile-long Great Loop. Connecting Trenton on Lake Ontario to Port Severn on Georgian Bay, the waterway runs through small villages,  farmland and lakes, and has no fewer than 44 locks. Jim and Lisa Favors, two experienced cruisers (they’ve already completed the Loop, for example), now write about their north to south passage on the Trent Severn, including their transit of the Peterborough lift lock, which is so unique it has been designated a Canadian National Historic Site. Built in the early 1900s, the…

On Watch with Peter Janssen
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On Watch

From Seattle to Michigan to Florida to the Trent Severn Waterway in Canada: The Favors Find the Advantages of a Trailerable Ranger 29 By Peter A. Janssen When we last visited Jim and Lisa Favors, they had just bought their Ranger Tug 29 in Seattle and were spending a few weeks cruising and getting used to their new boat. Not that they needed an introduction to Ranger or to cruising. They already had cruised extensively on their Ranger 27 (completing the Great Loop, for example), but a year ago they wanted to move up in size and traded up to…

Cruising Life
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After Trading Up to a Ranger Tugs 29, the Favors Take a First Cruise with Their Grandson

Jim and Lisa Favors just took delivery of their new Ranger Tugs 29, named Kismet, the same name as their old Ranger Tugs 27. The main reason the Favors (who’ve cruised all over the United States, including the Great Loop) moved up to the larger boat was that they wanted to spend time with their grandchildren on board. Well, that just happened. The first overnight guest on the new, larger Kismet was their grandson, Silas, who’s almost four. When the Favors first invited him to join them for a week-long cruise in South Puget Sound, Washington, Silas immediately replied, “When…

Cruising Life
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The Favors Get Their New Ranger 29 and Start New Cruising Adventures

Jim and Lisa Favors from Traverse City, Michigan, are hardly new to cruising, or to Ranger Tugs, for that matter. They’ve been boating most of their lives and have completed the Great Loop once (plus many, many side trips), and they’ve trailered their red-hulled Ranger Tugs 27 Kismet all across the United States. But last winter they decided they wanted to move up a bit (and have room for visiting grandchildren), so they sold Kismet – and bought another Ranger Tug, this time a 29. They just took delivery of their new Ranger Tugs R29, also called Kismet, also with…

Cruising Life
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Pierre’s Echo Bay Lodge & Marina: A Laid-Back Gem in British Columbia

Pierre’s Echo Bay Lodge & Marina may not be on your cruising radar (I have to admit I wasn’t aware of it), but from the looks of things it’s definitely worth a stop if you’re cruising up the Inside Passage to Alaska or just hanging out in Queen Charlotte Strait, British Columbia. Pierre’s, it seems, is more laid-back than your normal marina; where else can you find a wood-burning hot tub, a community fire pit and even a “canine yacht club”? In fact, Pierre’s has the usual marina facilities – a fuel dock, grocery store, inviting docks – but people…

Destinations
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On Watch

Moving On – and Moving Up – With a Dedicated Cruising Couple It would be hard to find a couple more committed to the cruising life than Jim and Lisa Favors. Indeed, they’ve been boating for most of their lives, starting with a 20-foot Four Winns in their home town of Traverse City, Michigan, moving up to a 32-foot Silverton, a 42-foot Silverton and finally a 40-foot Fathom trawler. They lived aboard the two 40-footers full-time for five years after Jim retired, completing the Great Loop once and returning to favorite spots to almost complete it a second time, cruising…