Author Peter Janssen

On Watch
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Bahamas Eases COVID Protocols for Boaters

Here’s some good news finally for anyone thinking about cruising to the Bahamas. On April 21, the Bahamian government announced new protocols for boaters and Bahamas marinas. The most important one is that starting May 1, anyone traveling to the Bahamas will be exempt from taking a COVID 19 test if they have been fully vaccinated and are past the two-week immunity period. This should make life much easier for anyone cruising to the Bahamas from Florida or anywhere else in the U.S. In addition, boaters who are already in the Bahamas and have been fully vaccinated will be exempt…

Cruising Life
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Canada Considers Luxury Tax on Boats

The Canadian government is considering a new luxury tax on boats, bringing back memories of the devastating 10 per cent luxury tax that crippled the U.S. boating industry in the early 1990s. The governing Liberal Party in Ottawa proposed the tax as part of its federal budget starting next January 1. The tax would apply to cars and airplanes costing more than C$100,000 and recreational boats costing more than C$250,000. (At current rates, $250,000 in Canadian dollars is equal to just a little more than $200,000 in U.S. dollars.) Chrystia Freeland, the federal finance minister, said it was fair to…

Charter
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The Moorings Starts Charters in Key West

The Moorings just opened its latest charter operation in Key West, the southernmost point in the United States; it’s actually closer to Havana than it is to Miami. Key West, just in case you haven’t been there, also exists in a different mind-set than the rest of the United States; it’s fun, it’s historic, and the boating is sensational. Once the home of Ernest Hemingway, Tennessee Williams and Jimmy Buffet, Key West offers a vacation, on land or on the water, that you won’t forget. It has a unique architecture, and is full of pastel homes and colorful bars. You…

Cruising Life
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NOAA Unveils Plan To Restore Reefs in Keys

Earlier this week, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced a historic new plan for restoring seven coral reefs in the Florida Keys. NOAA says the plan, called Mission: Iconic Reefs, is an effort to restore almost three million square feet of reefs in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, stretching the length of the keys. The plan is one of the largest investments ever made for coral restoration. The reefs protect the keys, with five million visitors a year, from catastrophic storm surge, while providing some of the best-known destinations in the world for diving, snorkeling and fishing. But…

Boat Reviews
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Maritimo Planning New M600 Offshore Cruiser

Maritimo is working on a new M600 luxury cruiser, the first in its Offshore Series, designed for long-range cruising with a combination of performance, efficiency and blue-water seakeeping ability. The new 60-foot yacht will have a complete package to operate as both a state-of-art offshore fishing platform and a large, comfortable and safe offshore cruiser. It is being developed based on Maritimo’s years of experience in building solid and seaworthy boats in Australia. Tom Barry-Cotter, Maritimo’s lead designer, said “The M600 is centered upon a hull design that is an advanced evolution of Maritimo’s longstanding experience in long-range cruising design…

Cruising Life
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Coast Guard Ends Search for 8 Missing in Gulf

The Coast Guard has suspended its search for the eight crew still missing from the 129-foot commercial lift boat that capsized in a sudden storm in the Gulf of Mexico last week. The boat, the Seacore Power, was eight miles off Port Fourchon, the southernmost port in Louisiana, at the time. Six members of its crew were rescued fairly quickly, and the bodies of five others were recovered. A massive search, covering more than 9,200 square nm and involving four Coast Guard cutters, three 45-foot response boats, six fixed-wing aircraft and three helicopters did not find the eight still missing.…

Cruising Life
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Ben, an Orca Almost Left for Dead, Now Thriving

Ben, an orca in New Zealand, almost died twice more than two decades ago. First, he was stranded, then he was hit by a boat. But since then Ben has been thriving. He’s been spotted in 48 locations around New Zealand, and he’s traveled about 29,000 miles, roughly the distance around the world at the equator. Now he’s the subject of a chapter in a new book. Read about him here at stuff.co.nz:  An orca who has twice dodged death is proving to be a poster boy for researchers thanks to the scars of his adventures. Ben the orca is…

Boat Reviews
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Sirena Building New 68 for Experienced Cruisers

The highly regarded Turkish builder of luxury yachts, Sirena just announced that it’s working on a new 68 that’s designed for experienced cruisers. The new Sirena 68 has a semi-displacement hull, designed by German Frers; this is the fifth collaboration between Sirena and Frers Naval Architecture. The new boat will be launched in time for the Cannes Yachting Festival in September. Frers’ innovative hull, powered by standard twin 900-hp Volvos with V drives, is expected to top out at 26 knots, and deliver a range of about 1,200 nm at 10 knots. Twin 1,000-hp Volvos are an option, and produce…

Cruising Life
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Foxy’s Iconic Bar in BVI Adds a Music School

If you’re heading for Foxy’s Tamarind Bar on Jost Van Dyke in the British Virgin Islands, you may  not find Foxy himself. That’s because Foxy (Foxy Callwood ) is spending a lot of his time at his music school down the road behind the restaurant, helping kids from the islands. Foxy’s has become an institution of almost folklore proportions ever since it opened on the beach in Great Harbour in 1968, a destination for cruisers and charter-boat customers from all around the world. (If you don’t have your own boat, you can take the ferry from West End, Tortola, across…

Boat Reviews
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New Regency 65: Designed for Extended Cruising

The new Regency 65 is designed for comfortable, long-range cruising anywhere from Alaska to the Caribbean, plus anywhere else you might have in mind. It’s a relatively heavy yacht (88,105 pounds) and its 18-foot-plus beam gives it a large footprint, so there’s lots of room. But that also means it will give you a good ride in a seaway where stability is always a blessing. The Regency 65 is powered by twin 900-hp Volvos, giving it a cruising speed of 15 to 17 knots. Dial back to 8 to 9 knots and the yacht has a range of more than…

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