Author Peter Janssen

Cruising Life
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Trouble in Paradise: Cruisers Overwhelm USVI

So many cruising boats have headed to the U.S. Virgin Islands recently because of the COVID-19 pandemic that they have caused worries about overloading the finite resources on the islands there. At this time of year, there usually about 270 boats moored or anchored in the USVI – St. Thomas, St. John, St. Croix, and Water Island. Now there are about 600. The problem is that many ports have closed across the Caribbean to stop the spread of the coronavirus. The USVI, subject to U.S. laws, at first welcomed cruisers. On March 27, Gov. Albert Bryan, Jr., said the islands…

Cruising Life
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Michigan Opens Again to Motor Boats

Here’s some very good news for motor boat owners in Michigan: You can go boating again. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has removed her ban on the use of motorized boats in Michigan waters. Her new announcement came just days before a hearing was scheduled in a lawsuit brought by the Michigan United Conservation Club, challenging the ban as unconstitutional. The original ban, part of the Governor’s stay-at-home orders to prevent the spread of COVID-19, made the use of any boat powered by a gas or electric motor illegal, but it permitted the use of canoes, kayaks and sailboats. It was very…

Cruising Life
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Maine Marinas: Operating in Uncharted Waters

Here’s a timely story from the Press Herald in Portland, Maine: YARMOUTH — Motorists whizzing across the Interstate 295 bridge over the Royal River at this time of year are accustomed to glancing at a harbinger of summer on the Maine coast – the daily progression of recreational boats being moored in the anchorage and docked at the three marinas lining the tidal shores. But in this pandemic spring, the scene is strikingly different. Few more than a handful of vessels were dockside early this week, an indicator of how the state’s 40 or so major marinas have been forced…

Charter
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When Things Get Better, What To Take on a Charter

At some point, the current coronavirus crisis will wind down, and we’ll be able to take charter vacations again. In the meantime, we can plan ahead; a few dreams about warm waters, white beaches, and dark rum painkillers never hurt anyone. When the  timing is right, we can start making a list about what to take on that dreamed-about charter. Even for the most experienced or organized cruiser, a list helps. For newcomers, it helps a lot. Here, from the people at Awestruckwander, is one of the most thorough lists I’ve seen of what to take on your charter, including…

Boat Reviews
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Nordhavn Gets Ready To Launch New 41 Passagemaker

Nordhavn is putting the final touches on its new 41, and will launch it soon. The 41, the successor to the 40 that went around the world in 2001 and 2002, is the smallest vessel in Nordhavn’s fleet, and it’s the only one made in Turkey. It also has twin diesel engines, a bit of a change for Nordhavn’s smaller boats, instead of a single and perhaps a wing engine. Work on the 41 is almost complete, but the company needs permission from the Turkish government to launch it. Turkey has closed all marinas because of the COVID-19 pandemic, so…

Cruising Life
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Warmest Oceans on Record Add to Hurricane Risk

Warmest Oceans on Record Adds to Hurricanes, Wildfires Risks By Brian K. Sullivan (Bloomberg) — The world’s seas are simmering, with record high temperatures spurring worry among forecasters that the global warming effect may generate a chaotic year of extreme weather ahead. Parts of the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans all hit the record books for warmth last month, according to the U.S. National Centers for Environmental Information. The high temperatures could offer clues on the ferocity of the Atlantic hurricane season, the eruption of wildfires from the Amazon region to Australia, and whether the record heat and severe thunderstorms raking…

On Watch with Peter Janssen
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New Closings on the Erie Canal?

This isn’t good news for anyone planning on cruising the Great Loop or the inland portions of the Northeast this summer. Now, on top of all the problems with closings and delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, it turns out that the Erie Canal might not open on time. The Canal, a historic 363-mile stretch from Albany, on the Hudson, to Buffalo, on Lake Erie, may not open as scheduled on May 15 because of delayed maintenance and repair work on seven locks there, starting with Lockport, at the western end of the canal, and running east. An eighth canal…

Cruising Life
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Ship Captain Murdered Off Colombia. What Happened?

Only one fact is clear: Myo Tun Zaw, 50, the captain of the container ship Spirit of Hamburg, was murdered while it was anchored off Cartagena, Colombia. His body was found on deck about 5 p.m. on Thursday, April 16. After that, stories differ. In one version, he was killed by members of his crew. In another, he was killed by an intruder. Captain Zaw’s body was examined by a forensics team in Cartagena, and the local media reported he was killed by members of his crew. Colombian authorities were investigating. The Spirit of Hamburg, a 833-feet-long ship built in…

Cruising Life
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When Is a Small Craft Advisory a Small Craft Warning?

The National Weather Service wants to change the name of its traditional Small Craft Advisory to a Small Craft Warning, and it wants your help. The NWS wants to make the change in the spirit of simplifying things. Its other marine warnings are, well, warnings: Gale Warning, Storm Warning, Hurricane Warning. The Small Craft Advisory was pretty much sticking out there by itself. Now, as part of its Hazard Simplification Project, the NWS wants to remove the “Advisory” for small craft and make it match the other “Warnings.” It also wants to end its “Special Weather Statement” and “NOWcast” messages.…

Boat Reviews
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Sun Concept Launches Innovative New CAT 12.0 Solar Cruiser

Sun Concept, an innovative Portuguese builder, just launched its new CAT 12.0 solar-electric catamaran, and it has virtually unlimited range at 5 or 6 knots. At an 8-knot cruising speed, the CAT 12.0 can run a full day and end up with batteries at 40 percent capacity. It has a top speed of 14.5 knots, all operating under silent, sustainable solar and electric power. What’s particularly unusual about this new 39-foot cat is that it’s designed to be as adaptable as possible. It comes in a Lounge model, with open decks that can hold up to 42 people, and a…

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