Cruising Life

Two Tugs Stranded, Crew Not Paid, Off Sabine Pass, Texas

By Peter Janssen on February 19, 2020 Cruising Life

Two tugboats have been stranded in the Gulf of Mexico, five miles off the coast of Sabine Pass, Texas, since Nov. 26. Members of the crew say they haven’t been paid since the start of the year. The tugs, with their attached barges, are more than 700 feet long, and are lying at anchor. The crews are asking for help, and contacted Father Sinclair Oubre, who’s with the International Seafarers Center in Port Arthur. He, in turn, asked the Transport Workers Federation, as well as the marine safety unit in Port Arthur, to seek a solution. Various members of the…

Albatrosses with Radar Detectors Find Illegal Fishing Boats

By Peter Janssen on February 18, 2020 Cruising Life

A team of French and New Zealand scientists have used almost 200 albatrosses, fitted out with radar detection devices, to track fishing vessels at sea. Their findings, just reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences: About a third of the vessels the birds tracked were probably fishing illegally. Henri Weimerskirch, a marine ornithologist at the French National Center for Scientific Research and one of the leaders of the albatross project, said that albatrosses were ideal for finding fishing boats, legal or illegal. With wingspans up to 11 feet, the largest of any bird alive, an albatross can…

Whaler To Offer Raymarine’s Assisted Docking on Some Boats

By Peter Janssen on February 11, 2020 Cruising Life

Worried about docking? About overcoming wind or current or accidentally bumping into nearby boats? About looking bad in front of your friends? Well, at one time or another, who isn’t? But a new era of “assisted docking” takes care of all that. And, with the spread of Raymarine’s DockSense Alert Technology, all those worries may be things of the past. To a large degree, the high-tech DockSense does the docking for you; at the very least, it keeps you from hitting anything. Think of the growing driver-assist technology for cars, which basically parks the car for you, now on boats.…

New Challenges to Georgia’s “Draconian” Anchoring Regulations

By Peter Janssen on February 9, 2020 Cruising Life

Here’s the latest on Georgia’s controversial new anchoring restrictions, which went into effect on January 1. Ron Stephens, a veteran cruiser and a Georgia State Representative, has filed a bill in the General Assembly to address the worst of the restrictions. His bill would take away the power of the state’s Department of Natural Resources to determine where boats can anchor. And it would change the rule that prohibits anchoring within 1,000 feet of structures, including public and private docks, wharves, bridges, piers and pilings except in areas near marinas. His proposal would change that distance to 150 feet. As…

New Sub from U-Boat Worx: Cruise at 6 Knots

By Peter Janssen on February 9, 2020 Cruising Life

If you’re looking for a new toy, think about the U-Boat Worx HiPer Sub 2, a two-person sports sub that goes 6 knots on the surface or under the surface and that provides what the Dutch builder calls “the ultimate underwater experience.” In the HiPer Sub 2, you can glide along and admire the view, or you can engage in underwater acrobatics, performing loops, steep turns and vertical ascents and descents. The intuitive joystick controls let you, along with your trained pilot, maneuver the sub like a fighter jet, all in air-conditioned comfort. The sub comes with a depth sounder,…

Antarctica Hits Historic 65 Degrees, “Doomsday Glacier” Melting

By Peter Janssen on February 8, 2020 Cruising Life

Here’s a disturbing story from USA Today, with a video, about a historic high of 65 degrees in Antarctica. Scientists also found warm water under the “Doomsday Glacier” there, which could accelerate its melting. The temperature was recorded at an Argentine research base on the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. It beats the previous record of 63.5 degrees Fahrenheit, set in 2015. The Antarctic Peninsula is among the fastest warming regions on Earth. A balmy temperature of nearly 65 degrees was recorded in Antarctica on Thursday, and if verified, it would be an all-time record high for the normally bitterly…

See Spectacular Shots of Coast Guard Surf Training

By Peter Janssen on February 6, 2020 Cruising Life

Here are some of the best pictures I’ve ever seen of Coast Guard motor lifeboat crews training in rough surf. The photographer is Jeremy Burke, and the story, from USA Today Sports, was shared on social media. Burke took the pictures of two boats from Coast Guard Station Yaquina Bay training in 20- to 25-foot waves off Newport, Oregon. The station schedules training days when the surf or winds are high. Watch the crews, who are all experienced, challenge the waves head on. Take a look: Pete Thomas February 4, 2020 12:24 pm When a massive swell slammed Oregon recently,…

Kayaker, 67, Missing in Everglades for 12 Days; Rescued by Cell Phone

By Peter Janssen on February 4, 2020 Cruising Life

A 67-year-old on a solo kayaking expedition was missing in the Everglades for 12 days. But then sheriff’s deputies found his cellphone on the banks of a river, recovered his last know GPS coordinates, and found him the next morning. As it turned out, they found the man, Mark Miele, from Virginia, just in time. “When we found him it didn’t look like he was moving and we didn’t know if it was going to be a rescue or a recovery,” Ed Henderson, the rescue helicopter pilot told CBS affiliate WINK. Miele had severe hypothermia and was dehydrated. Originally, Miele…

Best New Electronics: NMEA Technology Award Winners

By Peter Janssen on February 4, 2020 Cruising Life, Electronics

If you’re thinking about buying new electronics for your boat, either as part of a new vessel or as an upgrade on your existing one, you’ll want to take a look at this review of some of the best from NMEA Boater. It lists the winner and four other finalists for the National Marine Electronics Association Technology Award in 2019, and it’s certainly a good place to start. It has the manufacturers’ own descriptions of their entries. The overall winner was Raymarine/FLIR ClearCruise (pictured above). The entry says it “is an industry-first navigation technology that brings leading-edge Augmented Reality to…

Coast Guard Warns of Dangerous Bar Conditions in Pacific NW

By Peter Janssen on January 28, 2020 Cruising Life

If you’re thinking of cruising in the Pacific Northwest any time soon, you need to read this warning from the U.S. Coast Guard: SEATTLE – The Coast Guard advises all mariners of the dangers related to crossing hazardous bars in the Pacific Northwest. Recent incidents have highlighted the challenges of attempting to cross waterway bars in heavy weather and at night. The marine casualty of a commercial fishing vessel on the Coos Bay bar resulted in the loss of a vessel, but miraculously all three crew members were saved. Unfortunately, in a similar incident on the Yaquina Bay bar, both…

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