Author Peter Janssen

Cruising Life
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After the Storm: Caribbean Status Update, Island by Island. Plus: What’s Open in the Keys

The storms that ravaged the Caribbean and the Florida Keys in September did not treat all areas the same. Some islands were almost totally destroyed (Barbuda, for example), while others (neighboring Antigua) were relatively spared. On the Florida Keys, Key West itself suffered flooding, while farther north, around Islamorada, damage was more widespread and severe. Here are two solid stories from The New York Times that give an update on conditions in the Caribbean and in the Keys today. In the Caribbean, The Times reports island by island (see the first link, below). In the Keys (see the second link), The…

On Watch with Peter Janssen
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On Watch

SPECIAL REPORT: Fort Lauderdale Show, Plus Our Reviews of 34 New Boats You Can See There By Peter A. Janssen With new owners, new docks, new signs to help you get around and more boats than ever before, the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show will open at a new time this year, starting on Wednesday, Nov. 1 and running through Sunday, Nov. 5. And you need to put on your walking shoes. This year the show will have 1,500 boats at seven different locations, although the main event is still centered at the Bahia Mar Resort and Yachting Center, where…

Cruising Life
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New 40-foot Aspen Power Cat Reaches L.A. on 10,000-Mile Tour of U.S.

Knot Wafflen’, the 40-foot Aspen Power Catamaran that’s on a 10,000-mile tour of the United States, just reached Los Angeles, having cruised down the West Coast from Anacortes, Washington. After he tied up in Marina del Rey, David Jenkins, the boat’s owner and an entrepreneur from Annapolis, said simply that “the boat is amazing.” Jenkins and his brother-in-law, Blake Elder, a professional delivery captain from North Carolina, cruised the boat 1,230 nm down the Pacific Coast, taking 16 days from Anacortes to L.A. (Jenkins is left in the picture above; Elder on the right.) They stopped each night, spending an…

Cruising Life
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Walker Bay Launches New 11-Foot RIB Designed To Fit on a Swim Platform

Walker Bay is introducing a new lightweight 11-foot RIB, the Generation LTE 11, at the Fort Lauderdale show. Designed as a tender or small sport boat, the LTE 11 is small and light enough to be lifted by davits and fit easily on a swim platform. The new RIB “is designed for customers who want all the luxurious style and performance of a Generation but can only accommodate a lighter tender,” says Michael Carroll, director of sales and marketing for Walker Bay. The LTE’s light weight and hull design mean it only needs a 20-hp outboard to get on plane.…

Cruising Life
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Good Samaritans Rescue Two from Water after Boat Fire on Lake Michigan

Jason and Christie Assink were just out for a fall boat ride in Lake Michigan off South Haven, Michigan, south of Holland, when they saw flames and smoke billowing up from a boat fire about a mile offshore. In their day jobs, they’re both first responders. They’re also responsible boaters. They immediately called the Coast Guard and headed over to the burning boat to help. When the Assinks got there, they saw a couple in the water. The couple had jumped off their boat in such a hurry that they didn’t have life jackets or any floatation devices; they were…

Cruising Life
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The 13 Best Spots for Beautiful Blue (or Emerald) Water Around the World

Where can you find the most beautiful water in the world? Here’s a list of the 13 spots with the best blue water, according to Travel + Leisure, ranging from the ones you’d expect (the Maldives) to places you’ve probably not yet considered (Con Son, an island 110 miles off the coast of Vietnam). Ambergris Caye in Belize, a diver’s paradise for many years, is on the list for good reason (see the picture, above). The waters there teem with sharks and stingrays, as well as more peaceful eels, turtles and colorful fish. And many cruisers or charterers already know…

Cruising Life
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Four Irishmen Plan to Row Across Atlantic in 28-foot Boat

Four young Irishmen, three doctors from Cork and a successful entrepreneur from Dublin, are training to row across the Atlantic in a 28-foot boat on Dec. 12. They hope to beat the record of 35 days from La Gomera, in the Canary Islands, to Antigua, in the Caribbean, although they say it make take them 60 or so. The doctors are Sean Underwood, Patrick O’Connor and Eoin O’Farrell, and they got the idea for their Atlantic adventure to raise money for the children’s unit at Cork University Hospital, where they work. Thomas Brown, who met them through mutual friends, had…

Cruising Life
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Coast Guard Warns of Documentation Scam

The Coast Guard is warning about a new scam that promises to make it easier for you to document your vessel, but in reality can cost a lot of money and result in paperwork that is not in compliance with Federal regulations. The problem stems from private websites that look like an official government site and that promise to renew your documentation for a fee – often much more than the Coast Guard’s renewal fee of $26. The Coast Guard says its National Documentation Center in Falling Waters, W.VA, is the only authorized entity to issue certificates of documentation. Coast…

Ft Lauderdale Boat Show
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Fort Lauderdale Show: New Dates, New Docks and New Boats. Here Are Our Reviews of 34 of Them

With new owners, new docks, new signs to help you get around and more boats than ever before, the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show will open at a new time this year, starting on Wednesday, Nov. 1 and running through Sunday, Nov. 5. And you need to put on your walking shoes. This year the show will have 1,500 boats at seven different locations, although the main event is still centered at the Bahia Mar Resort and Yachting Center, where the docks will stretch for 1.6 miles along the Waterway. The Lauderdale show, an icon in the industry, was started…

Boat Reviews
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New Prestige 520, the French Builder’s Latest Addition to Its Stylish Flybridge Fleet

The brand-new, French-styled Prestige 520, designed for easy cruising or entertaining, is making its U.S. debut at the Lauderdale show. With three cabins (plus an optional captain’s quarters) and a top speed of 26 knots, the Prestige 520 has a new luxurious, light-filled interior, where large windows create a bright, soft atmosphere in the salon. Its aggressive raked windshield and sleek, low profile mark it as a full-fledged member of the Prestige lineup. In the salon, the galley is aft, per the current custom, then a super-sized U-shaped lounge and table are on the port side, with an L-shaped settee…

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