Cruising Life

NOAA: Long Island Sound Estuary Now Protected

By Peter Janssen on January 19, 2022 Cruising Life, Destinations

NOAA just named a Long Island Sound estuary as a protected place, establishing a 52,160-acre National Estuarine Research Reserve. The area includes part of Long Island Sound, part of Fisher’s Island Sound, and portions of the Thames River and the Connecticut River. See NOAA’s announcement, dated January 14, here: Today, NOAA and the State of Connecticut designated a new national estuarine research reserve in Long Island Sound. Research reserves are designated to protect a section of an estuary and provide a living laboratory to explore and understand important areas where rivers meet the sea, thus promoting understanding and informed management…

VanDutch Launches Fast, Elegant, New 32

By Peter Janssen on January 18, 2022 Cruising Life

VanDutch has launched its new entry-level 32 with an uber-modern minimalist vibe and a 45-knot performance. From its plumb bow back, the boat’s lines are elegant and clean; there aren’t any windows notched in the sides to interrupt the visual flow of the hull. The 32 is the first VanDutch made in the Cantiere del Pardo yard in Italy after Cantiere bought the company in June, 2020. VanDutch now has five models going up to 75 feet. Standard power for the VanDutch 32 is a single Volvo 430-gas sterndrive. At a cruising speed of 22 knots, the boat has a…

Red Rover, Nordhavn 55, Reaches 20,000 nm

By Peter Janssen on January 18, 2022 Cruising Life

In case there’s any doubt, Kevin and Allison Jeffries are indeed long-range cruisers. In fact, they just raised their 20,000 nm Nordhavn distance pennant while they were cruising from Huatulco to Chiapas off the Pacific coast of Mexico near the Guatemalan border. Lifelong boaters, the Jeffries have been cruising ever since they bought their Nordhavn 55, Red Rover, in 2016, sold their house in Seattle and moved aboard full time with their two rescue dogs, Zoe and Max. Their children were grown, and they wanted to take on a cruising lifestyle. Red Rover is 2005 Nordhavn 55 (hull number 05),…

Video: New Superyacht Squeezes Under Bridge

By Peter Janssen on January 18, 2022 Cruising Life

Here’s an incredible video of a brand-new 262-foot superyacht named Galactica squeezing under a bridge with less than five inches of clearance on its delivery from the Heesen yard in Oss, east of Rotterdam in the Netherlands, to the North Sea. Somebody measured well. Click on the link below: https://flipboard.com/topic/boating/amazing-scenes-as-superyacht-squeezes-under-bridges-with-12cm-clearance/a-zp4h6WL0RFa2g7z-MorNsw%3Aa%3A3483341013-9a8fd620bf%2Fflipboard.com

Favors Get Their New Ranger Tugs 25

By Peter Janssen on January 17, 2022 Cruising Life

Jim and Lisa Favors just took delivery of their new Ranger Tugs 25 near the factory south of Seattle, and it has a red hull, just like their two previous Rangers, and it’s named Kismet, just like their two previous Rangers. Even though this is the Favors’ third Ranger Tug, and the smallest (they had started with a 27 and then moved up to a 29), and they have owned boats and cruised for most of their adult lives, they signed up for Ranger’s new-owner factory orientation. Available to all new owners, the orientation is a two-day, on-the-water session where…

Coming: True North 39 Outboard Express

By Peter Janssen on January 17, 2022 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

True North is building a 39 Outboard Express, just after introducing its new 34 Outboard Express at the Annapolis power boat show last fall. The 34 is powered by twin 300-hp outboards; the 39 will have twin 350-hp outboards. The new 39 will have all the Down East looks and family resemblance of earlier True North models, with a plumb bow, reverse transom, long shear line, protected helm deck, and large cockpit that can adapt to fishing, diving, cruising, or entertaining. The 39, like the 34, is designed as a versatile all-weather boat that will be comfortable as everything from…

New Longreach Power Cats from Australia

By Peter Janssen on January 16, 2022 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Longreach Power Catamarans from Australia are new players in the fast-growing international power cat market. They won’t launch their first boat until next year, but they’ve already sold several boats, including two of their most-popular 44-foot models to experienced cruisers in the U.S. The company, based just outside Sydney, is making 58-foot and 40-foot production models in addition to the 44 (shown above). Brent Vaughan, director of Multihull Central, which sells Longreach, says that most have been sold to experienced catamaran sailors, including some who have circumnavigated the world. All are built for long-range, blue-water cruising. The 44, powered by…

Volvo Developing Hybrid Boat for Arctic Tourism

By Peter Janssen on January 16, 2022 Cruising Life

Volvo Penta is working with Marrell Boats in Sweden to build a hybrid-powered boat for sustainable cruising in the Svalbard archipelago in the Arctic Ocean, about halfway between the northern tip of Norway and the North Pole. The boat, an M15, will be named Kvitbjorn, or Polar Bear in English, and it will have a top speed of 32 knots and a cruising speed of 25 knots. It also will have a range of 500 nm without affecting the delicate balance of marine life in the area. It’s designed to run for more than 1,000 hours in the season from…

Princess Launching X80 Superfly Cruiser

By Peter Janssen on January 12, 2022 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Princess is launching a new X80 Superfly luxury cruiser, the second in its Superfly series and modeled after the earlier X95 flagship that has been well received. The X80 has all the same lines as the 95, and it was designed by Princess, Olesinski Design and Peninfarina, creating a yacht with lots of volume inside and some innovations that make it stand out on its own. First is what Princess calls the “super flybridge” that it says provides 30 percent more space than that found on other yachts of its size. The yacht’s only helm station is up there, and…

GM Gives Big Boost To Electric Boats

By Peter Janssen on January 12, 2022 Cruising Life

General Motors just gave a big boost to electric boating when Pure Watercraft, with the help of a major investment from GM, unveiled its electric-powered pontoon boat at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Founded 11 years ago in Seattle, Pure Watercraft says it wants to disrupt the boating industry with its new electric outboard motors. GM, the automotive giant, bought a 25 percent stake in Pure Watercraft in November, investing $150 million. GM said its goal was to help create a new generation of zero-emissions boats. The new pontoon boat that Pure Watercraft just unveiled is 24’ 7”…

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