Cruising Life

Garmin Introduces New, More Powerful GPSMAP X3 Chartplotters

By Peter Janssen on November 17, 2020 Cruising Life, Electronics

Garmin just launched its new GPSMAP x3 mid-sized chartplotters with more power and higher-res displays; they’re available with or without built-in sonar. The new units were shown at the recent Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show. Designed for a wide range of helm configurations, the new X3 series have streamlined borders with edge-to-edge glass displays and they can be installed in bail-, flush-, or flat-mounted configurations. The 12×3 and 9×3 models offer touchscreens with accurate colors that you can see from all viewing angles, even if you’re wearing polarized sunglasses. The 9×3 and 7×3 models offer 50 percent and 60 percent…

Brabus Shadow 500: Head-Turning Looks and Fun

By Peter Janssen on November 16, 2020 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

If you want to add a little juice to your life in these trying times, try the Brabus Shadow 500, built in conjunction with Axopar Boats. It’s a tricked out, semi-custom version of the Axopar 28, and it hits 50 knots with twin 250-hp Mercury outboards. You can order it with an open deck or optional aft cabin. Fun, as in a major adrenaline rush, is standard equipment. The fun comes from Axopar’s twin-stepped hull with a sharp entry and 22-degree deadrise at the transom, all driven by two Mercury V8 Pro XS outboards. The lightweight Mercs produce head-snapping torque;…

Sunreef Building New 60 with Solar Power

By Peter Janssen on November 16, 2020 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Sunreef Yachts just announced that it’s building a new 60 Sunreef Power Eco luxury power cat that seems to be covered with Sunreef’s proprietary state-of-the art solar panels for art totally green cruising. Indeed, the solar panels cover up to 738 square feet of the yacht’s surface; they’re fully integrated into the hull sides, the superstructure and even curved areas all over the yacht. They are designed to generate 13kWp of solar power. The 60 Sunreef Power Eco uses cutting-edge electric motors powered by a dedicated ultralight battery bank for silent and emissions-free cruising. The big cat’s other green features…

MarineMax Vacations Opens Charter Fleet in the Abacos

By Peter Janssen on November 16, 2020 Charter, Cruising Life

MarineMax Vacations is expanding its power charter fleet to the Bahamas, in a partnership with Navigare Yachting. The fleet will start with a two-cabin Aquila 362 power cat and a three-cabin Aquila 443 power cat at Marsh Harbor in the Abacos, starting Dec. 1. Under the partnership, Navigare Yachting will operate MarineMax Vacations in the Bahamas. Raul Bermudez, VP of MarineMax Vacations, said that Navigare Yachting was a world leader for charter vacations. “Our shared vision to create an exceptional vacation experience is key with our mutual passion for unmatched guest service, yacht maintenance, and expert delivery,” he said. Although…

Provisioning for a Cruise: 8 Simple Tips

By Peter Janssen on November 11, 2020 Charter, Cruising Life

Whether you’re going on a charter or a cruise on your own boat, getting the right stuff on board is a key to future happiness. That’s particularly true if you have more than a few people on board – each with his or her ideas about what to eat and drink. You want to keep everybody happy, but you also don’t want to buy too much, or too little, to last for the duration of your cruise. Here are eight tips from the people at The Moorings about how to make some basic provisioning decisions: Provisioning your yacht can seem…

AB Inflatables Introduces Two New Jet Tenders

By Peter Janssen on November 11, 2020 Cruising Life

AB Inflatables just introduced two new jet boats at the Fort Lauderdale show, an 11-foot model and a 15-foot model. The new tenders are the ABJET 350XP, the smaller one, and the ABJET 465XP, the larger (pictured above). AB’s XP series features an open deck so you can move around the boat easily and safely; they also maximize space while optimizing stability and promoting efficient weight distribution. The 350XP (above) is powered by a BRP-Rotax 90-hp jet and has a top speed of 37 knots. It holds five people, weighs 761 pounds, and carries 11 gallons of fuel. And it…

Alva Building New Electric Eco Cruiser 50 Monohull

By Peter Janssen on November 11, 2020 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Alva Yachts just announced that they are building an Eco Cruiser 50, the first monohull electric-powered yacht. The new Eco Cruiser will be powered by two electric motors producing a total of 272 hp with solar panels and the option of hydrogen fuel cells for totally self-sufficient, green, emissions-free cruising. Designed by Henndesign, the new 50, the smallest yacht in the Alva fleet, was designed specifically for electric propulsion. The two electric motors deliver 100 kW each. Power comes from a 50 kVA generator and from solar glass tiles on the rooftop, producing 4.9 kWp and stored in a 140…

NOAA: 2020 Atlantic Hurricane Season Already Worst Ever

By Peter Janssen on November 10, 2020 Cruising Life

NOAA: November 10, 2020 With less than a month remaining in the Atlantic hurricane season, the formation of Subtropical Storm Theta on November 10 over the northeastern Atlantic Ocean made the 2020 season the most active on record. Theta — the 29th named storm of the Atlantic season — breaks the record for the highest number of tropical/subtropical storms in a single year. The previous record of 28 storms was set in 2005. Official records date to 1851. “After the historic Atlantic hurricane season of 2005, it’s remarkable to have another season during my career that would reach this extreme level of…

Boats were scuttled between black Rock Harbor and the Pennfield Reef Lighthouse in Long Island Sound.

Marina Owner Pleads Guilty to Scuttling Old Boats

By Peter Janssen on November 10, 2020 Cruising Life

Here’s a great announcement from the U.S. Attorney’s office for Connecticut about how the owner of a marina in Bridgeport just pleaded guilty to scuttling several old boats in Long Island Sound in an issue involving paid dockage fees: John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that JOHN MAGNESS, 71, of Southbury; PETER ALBRECHT, 70, of Norwalk; and CARLOS SANTOS, 60, of Westbrook, have each pleaded guilty to a federal charge related to the scuttling of several sailboats and motor boats between the Black Rock Harbor and the Pennfield Reef Lighthouse in Long Island…

Largest Great White Sharks Swimming Down Atlantic Coast

By Peter Janssen on November 10, 2020 Cruising Life

Some of the largest great white sharks ever tagged have been getting a lot of attention in the past few days from Florida to New Jersey. Heading south, like a snowbird, Unama’ki, the second largest great white ever tagged by OCEARCH, the large marine animal research organization, was swimming along the Florida coast from Vero Beach to Key Largo. Unama’ki (pictured above) is 15 feet, 5 inches long, and weighs more than 2,000 pounds. The researchers think she may be heading for the Gulf of Mexico, where she spent much of last winter. OCEARCH has tagged about two dozen great…

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