Author Peter Janssen

Destinations
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New Chicago Transient Marina To Open at Iconic Navy Pier

Here’s some very good news for anyone cruising on the Great Loop or anywhere on Lake Michigan. Starting next year, a new transient marina will open on the north side of Chicago’s iconic Navy Pier, right in the heart of town, with access to all the city’s restaurants, museums, stores and parks. You can tie up there for a few hours, a few days, or even a week, and then enjoy everything that Chicago, one of the most vibrant cities in the U.S., has to offer. (Full disclosure: My very first journalism job, many years ago, was working for a…

On Watch
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Cutwater 32 CB Wins in Miami Innovation Awards

Cutwater Boats just won a prestigious Innovation Award at the Miami International Boat Show for its new 32 Command Bridge. In announcing the awards, one of the judges said, “A lot of engineering went into making a trailerable 32-foot retractable flybridge  boat with all the features included.” The annual Innovation Awards are a joint effort by the National Marine Manufacturers Association, which sponsors the boat show, and Boating Writers International. The jury is made up of seven boating writers. The awards recognize groundbreaking new consumer boating products. The Cutwater 32 CB (pictured above) is powered by two 300-hp Yamaha outboards.…

On Watch
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Miami Shows Open, Lots of Cruising Boat Debuts

The big Miami boat shows have just started, and I’ve already found my next boat, or rather my next half dozen boats. (In my dreams, of course.) And considering that there are 1,800 boats here, displayed at the yacht show downtown and the boat show on Virginia Key, I still have a way to go. I’ve been fortunate enough to have already climbed on half a dozen boats making their debuts here, just enough to whet my appetite for more, and to rekindle my taste for adventure. Standing at the helm of the brand-new, beautiful Sabre 58 Salon Express, which…

Cruising Life
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Whaler To Offer Raymarine’s Assisted Docking on Some Boats

Worried about docking? About overcoming wind or current or accidentally bumping into nearby boats? About looking bad in front of your friends? Well, at one time or another, who isn’t? But a new era of “assisted docking” takes care of all that. And, with the spread of Raymarine’s DockSense Alert Technology, all those worries may be things of the past. To a large degree, the high-tech DockSense does the docking for you; at the very least, it keeps you from hitting anything. Think of the growing driver-assist technology for cars, which basically parks the car for you, now on boats.…

Boat Reviews
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New Walker Bay Venture 16 RIB; Luxury Sport Tender

Walker Bay is launching its new Venture 16, and the company calls it the world’s first 16-foot luxury sport tender RIB. The new V16 is much more than a sport tender, however. You can use it for exploring, fishing, diving or just about anything else you can do on an all-around 16-foot runabout. The V16 offers three driving positions. Its flip-up bolster seats create room for standing or elevated seating, in addition to the regular seated position. Its hydraulic, tilt steering wheel and a top-mounted throttle make all three positions comfortable for the driver, while the wide rear seat with…

Boat Reviews
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SILENT-YACHTS Building New Solar-Electric 60 with Unlimited Range

SILENT-YACHTS, the innovative Austrian builder, is working on a new 60 solar-electric catamaran, a step up from it best-selling 55. They already have six orders for the new 60; the first will be launched this summer. The new SILENT 60 is designed to be self-sufficient and provide unlimited range under solar and electric power. The drive and house systems are all solar-electric, and they are free of fumes, vibration and reliance on fossil fuel. They also are, as the name of the company states, silent. The 60 has a total of 42 solar panels, two 250kW electric motors, and a…

Cruising Life
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New Challenges to Georgia’s “Draconian” Anchoring Regulations

Here’s the latest on Georgia’s controversial new anchoring restrictions, which went into effect on January 1. Ron Stephens, a veteran cruiser and a Georgia State Representative, has filed a bill in the General Assembly to address the worst of the restrictions. His bill would take away the power of the state’s Department of Natural Resources to determine where boats can anchor. And it would change the rule that prohibits anchoring within 1,000 feet of structures, including public and private docks, wharves, bridges, piers and pilings except in areas near marinas. His proposal would change that distance to 150 feet. As…

Cruising Life
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New Sub from U-Boat Worx: Cruise at 6 Knots

If you’re looking for a new toy, think about the U-Boat Worx HiPer Sub 2, a two-person sports sub that goes 6 knots on the surface or under the surface and that provides what the Dutch builder calls “the ultimate underwater experience.” In the HiPer Sub 2, you can glide along and admire the view, or you can engage in underwater acrobatics, performing loops, steep turns and vertical ascents and descents. The intuitive joystick controls let you, along with your trained pilot, maneuver the sub like a fighter jet, all in air-conditioned comfort. The sub comes with a depth sounder,…

Boat Reviews
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Elada EX 87: A New Generation of UHV Luxury Cruisers

The Elada EX 87, the first model in a new brand from the Lazzara Yacht Group, is indeed something new and different. It’s part of a new generation of UHV (ultra-high-volume) cruisers, with what the company calls disruptive design features promising more space, comfort, and stability on long voyages, with the possibility of a high degree of customization for future owners. Now under construction, the Elada 87 is scheduled to be launched this summer. An Elada EX 118 will follow. Powered by standard twin 720-hp Volvo diesels, the 87 has a cruising speed of 12 knots and a top speed…

Charter
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Northwest Explorations: Still Spots Open for Flotilla to Alaska

Northwest Explorations, the Bellingham, Washington, company that runs the legendary Mother Goose flotillas up to Alaska, just announced that it still has a few openings on its cruises this spring and summer. The reason that people, experienced skippers and those who are not so experienced, like the flotillas is that they offer safety in numbers, and they are planned, and led, by captains and crew from Northwest Explorations who have done this many times before. You cruise in a group, with planned stops every night, and excursions on shore that highlight the best of the natural beauty of this part…

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