Cruising Life

French Adventurer Crosses Atlantic in a Barrel. Reaches Caribbean After 122 Days

By Peter Janssen on May 5, 2019 Cruising Life

After 127 days and 3,125 nm, Jean-Jacques Savin, a 72-year French adventurer, is back on dry land, having crossed the Atlantic in his ten-foot-long barrel propelled only by the ocean currents. He left El Hierro in the Canary Islands in December, hoping that the currents and winds would carry him to the Caribbean. He sent out a message after 122 days that his GPS showed that he had reached the meridian marking the Caribbean; he then drifted for five more days before a passing oil tanker picked him and took him to the small Dutch island of St. Eustatius, the…

Canada Ends 10 Percent Tax on Boats Imported from the U.S.

By Peter Janssen on May 5, 2019 Cruising Life

The Canadian government has some good news for the U.S. boating industry, and for new boat buyers there. It just announced that it is ending the 10 percent retaliatory tariff on boats imported from the U.S. The Canadian government imposed the 10 percent tax on boats imported from the U.S. last July 1 in retaliation for President Trump’s 10 percent tariff on aluminum and 25 percent tariff on steel imported from Canada. The tax hurt many U.S. builders who had been selling a significant percent of their new boats to dealers and buyers in Canada (see picture of the Cutwater…

A Fast Look at AIS: How To See and Be Seen

By Peter Janssen on May 1, 2019 Cruising Life

Although it’s been around on commercial vessels for many years, AIS (Automatic Identification System) is growing in popularity and use among recreational boat owners, particularly owners of cruising powerboats. It is indeed a major advance in boating safety and navigation, and a terrific tool in aiding situation awareness on board any boat. In brief, AIS is a digital, VHF-based transponder system that uses GPS, VHF radio and digital processing to communicate automatically among AIS-equipped vessels. You can integrate it on a chart plotter, radar or other display screen, put your curser on the target (another boat in the neighborhood) and…

Helmsman Trawler 38E Wins People’s Choice Award in Seattle

By Peter Janssen on April 30, 2019 Cruising Life

The Helmsman Trawler 38E just won the People’s Choice Award at Seattle Trawlerfest, quite an honor considering there were 45 other boats, from 23 to 72 feet, lining the docks there. The 38E is Helmsman’s most popular model, with a raised pilothouse, flybridge, large master cabin and a full-beam salon. Helmsman Trawlers are built in Fuzhou, China, and are designed for owners who want a quality cruising boat but don’t want to overpay for one. The Helmsman line runs from 31 to 43 feet, and the boats all provide classic trawler amenities and coastal cruising possibilities. They are particularly popular…

Will the Missouri River Just Keep on Flooding? And What Can We Do About It?

By Peter Janssen on April 30, 2019 Cruising Life

If you do the Great Loop counterclockwise, like most people, you’ll go down the Illinois River from Chicago to the Mississippi; I did this in three very easy days a few years ago on a Beneteau 34 Swift Trawler, and entering the Mississippi was breathtaking. The Mississippi at that point is simply awesome in its breadth and power. But then, about 20 miles or so downstream, the Missouri flows into the Mississippi on the west side, and the Mississippi simply gains in strength and majesty. It is indeed the Mighty Mississippi, carrying the strength and energy of the heartland all…

Hudson Powercat 48: A Stylish, Stable Cruiser with Lots of Light and Space

By Peter Janssen on April 30, 2019 Cruising Life

With lines from the famed British designer Bill Dixon, the new Hudson Powercat 48 is a stylish, stable and strong catamaran with large, luxurious spaces to make long-range cruising or just weekend entertaining easy and inviting. One notable feature: The full-beam master stateroom is on the main deck forward, filled with lots of light and space. The Hudson 48 comes with three staterooms, all with en suite heads and showers, and three separate dining areas, offering a variety of shared and private spaces on board. Owners can choose to cover the flybridge with a Bimini or a hardtop or even…

Can Boat Owners Avoid Paying Taxes? Read on…

By Peter Janssen on April 30, 2019 Cruising Life

As Ben Franklin once said, nothing is certain except death and taxes. For us, that includes sales taxes on boats – or does it? To some degree, the answer depends on where you live, and where you’ll use your boat. Here’s a great story from BoatUS that spells out the tax you’ll have to pay when you buy a new or used boat: SPRINGFIELD, Va., April 29, 2019 – Boaters who’ve heard about no-sales-tax states, such as Delaware or Oregon, wonder if they could eliminate sales tax on a boat purchase if they simply buy a boat there. The answer…

How To Stay Connected on Board: One Cruiser’s Solution

By Peter Janssen on April 29, 2019 Cruising Life

Right at the top of most cruising people’s concerns is the ability to stay connected, to be able to use their smartphones, laptops and tablets, no matter where they are. Spotty Wi-Fi coverage, in-and-out cell networks, expensive (and often hard-to-understand) internet contracts all make for a major source of frustration and irritation. It doesn’t always have to be that way. Here’s a very clear personal story in Canadian Yachting by Jim Leshaw, a lawyer from Key Biscayne, Florida, who in installed a wireless network on his 34-foot PDQ powercat that lets him work while he’s cruising. And he spent less than…

Yanmar’s Stand-Up Wheeebo: A Totally New, 3-Knot Electric Watertoy

By Peter Janssen on April 29, 2019 Cruising Life

Here’s something truly new from Yanmar: The Wheeebo, and it looks like fun. Usually when we think of Yanmar we think of diesel engines. Not the Wheeebo. It’s a stand-on circular board that’s powered by a nickel-hydrogen battery with a top speed of three knots. And it definitely will give you, and your kids or grandkids, something to do when you drop the hook in that secluded cove at the end of the day. You control the Wheeebo by leaning in the direction you want to go. Onboard sensors detect the change in weight distribution and engage the board’s motor…

Controversy Grows Over Lighting on Government Cut Jetties After Recent Crash

By Peter Janssen on April 28, 2019 Cruising Life

The controversy is growing about lighting on the jetties marking Government Cut in Miami after a crash last week killed three people and seriously injured a fourth when their 32-foot center console hit the north jetty at 9:20 at night. The two jetties marking the entrance to the cut are not lighted, although they are clearly marked on charts. After the latest crash, Fabiola Santiago wrote an opinion story in the Miami Herald with the headline, How Many More Boaters Must Die Before We Properly Light Treacherous Government Cut? “This is a story of deaths foretold,” she wrote. The crash last…

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