Cruising Life

Aquador Launches 250 HT Pocket Cruiser

By Peter Janssen on February 26, 2024 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Aquador has launched a new 250 HT (for hard top) pocket cruiser that offers almost all-weather protection for a couple or small family and is powered by a single 250-hp Mercury outboard. The 250 HT is the latest in the Finnish builder’s “next generation” of boats, following the successful reception of its 300 HT. A 380 HT is coming later in the year. The 250 has a relatively low profile and a wide internal helm deck that stretches out almost full beam. The Eco Teak side decks are fairly narrow as a result, but they have high stainless steel railings…

Riviera Unveiling New 46 Sports Cruiser

By Peter Janssen on February 26, 2024 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Riviera, the large Australian builder, will display its new 46 Sports Motor Yacht at the Palm Beach show, starting March 21. The 46 is a luxury family cruiser with three staterooms and two heads, a large aft galley in the salon and lots of room aft for relaxing on board and enjoying water sports. The new 46 is the entry level model in Riviera’s Sports Motor Yacht series, which already includes a 50, 68, and 72. Standard power comes from twin 600-hp Volvo IPS800 pod drives, with fingertip control from the joystick for easy maneuvering around a dock. Top speed…

How To Use Nav Aid Sound Signals

By co_admin on February 26, 2024 Cruising Life

Here’s some great advice from Skipper Tips that could help you navigate safely in fog or reduced visibility: Imagine you’re cruising on a fogbound coast in New England, the Great Lakes or the West Coast. You see a note on your chart that tells you that you can trigger a fog signal on a lighthouse nearby. Follow these three easy steps. Mariner Radio Activated Sound Signals (MRASS) gives the skipper more control over aids to navigation fog signals. If you see the chart abbreviation MRASS in the description of an aid, you can use your radio to trigger the sound…

Tyde Making 48-foot, e-Foiling Cruiser

By Peter Janssen on February 21, 2024 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Tyde, the German startup that works with BMW, just released images of its new Open, a 48-foot sports cruiser that it says is the world’s largest foiling electric recreational boat. The Open is the production version of the prototype Icon that Tyde revealed at the Cannes show last September. Tyde plans to start delivering the Open in the fall. Powered by two 100-kW Torqeedo Deep Blue electric motors, the Open starts to fly, or foil, at about 17 knots. It tops out at 30 knots, and has a range of 50 nm at 25 knots. Its zero-emissions drivetrain includes a…

Outer Reef Commissions First 830 Classic

By Peter Janssen on February 21, 2024 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Outer Reef just commissioned its first 830 Classic Motoryacht, a luxurious long-range cruiser, for its new, and repeat, owners in Fort Lauderdale. You can see this latest Outer Reef at the Palm Beach show that starts on March 21. The 830 is the latest addition to Outer Reef’s X Class fleet, designed for ocean-crossing capabilities. It’s a combination of timeless motoryacht lines with cutting-edge features and technology. Hull number one was made for owners of an Ocean Reef 700 Classic who wanted more space for entertaining and spending time on board. They already were familiar with Outer Reef’s craftsmanship and…

Breakthrough in EV Batteries

By Peter Janssen on February 20, 2024 Cruising Life

StoreDot, a high-tech Israeli company, is on the verge of a major breakthrough in making batteries for electric cars and boats that can be fully recharged in just ten minutes. The goal in the electric car market, and by extension the electric boat market, has been to make it just as easy to recharge an electric vehicle as it is to refuel a gas or diesel vehicle. That centers around a “100 miles in 5 minutes” theme, meaning you only have to charge the vehicle for 5 minutes (about the same time you now spend at your neighborhood gas station)…

New Fiat 500 Offshore: Big Hit in Miami

By Peter Janssen on February 20, 2024 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

The real hit of the Miami show last week wasn’t the 278-foot, $129 million superyacht Victorious. It was the 15-foot, $122,000 Fiat 500 Offshore, making its U.S. debut. Made in Italy by Car Off-Shore and Fiat, the new car-like tender was launched there last summer (pictured above). The idea was to replicate the look and lines of the iconic Fiat 500, one of the most-recognized European vehicles ever. Fiat described the boat as the “500 of the seas.” The boats were shown in Miami by 1 Ocean Yachts Group. The Fiat 500 Offshore is not mass produced like its land-based…

Great Lakes: Where Did All the Ice Go?

By co_admin on February 20, 2024 Cruising Life

NOAA says there’s been a record low level of ice on the Great Lakes so far this winter. Here’s their report: NOAA researchers at NOAA’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory (GLERL) report that they’ve seen a steady decrease in ice coverage across the Great Lakes, which has reached a historic low. Together, Great Lakes ice coverage was measured at 2.7 % on February 11, 2024. Coverage on each of the lakes was measured as follows: Lake Superior 1.7 % Lake Michigan 2.6 % Lake Huron 5.9 % Lake Erie 0.05 % Lake Ontario 1.7 % Lakes Erie and Ontario are…

Sunseeker’s New Manhattan 68 Pacific

By Peter Janssen on February 20, 2024 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Sunseeker, the big British builder of luxury motoryachts, made a big splash in Miami last week. Indeed, Sunseeker had eight yachts there, including the Manhattan 68 Pacific specifically designed to appeal to a U.S. market. In the past few years, Sunseeker has been increasing its presence here, and the new Manhattan 68 Pacific should add to that growth. It’s basically a four-cabin, three head flybridge yacht with some appealing features. Extensive hull glazing provides light throughout the yacht, including the Grand Master stateroom below. It’s set full-beam amidships, and you get there via a private staircase from the port side…

NTSB: Why Fishing Boat Sank in Alaska

By Peter Janssen on February 19, 2024 Cruising Life

A new report from the National Transportation Safety Board about the sinking of a 52-foot commercial fishing boat off the coast of Alaska highlights the importance of having high-water bilge alarms on your cruising boat, no matter how big or how small. The NTSB investigation said the bilge alarms did not sound before the Hotspur, a 1988 purse seiner (pictured), capsized and sank while heading west in the Dixon Entrance, about 43 miles south-southwest of Ketchikan, on August 2, 2022. It said that if the alarms had been working, the crew might have been able to correct the problem before…

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