Cruising Life

New Company Converts Aquilla 44 to an All-Electric Cruiser

By Peter Janssen on March 6, 2019 Cruising Life

Here’s a new idea from a new company. Nova Luxe Yachts, a New York company, converts production power catamarans from 35 to 50 feet to all-electric power. It is now fitting out its first conversion, an Aquilla 44, in a yard in St. Petersburg, Florida, and it will be launched on June 1. The new Aquilla, usually powered by twin diesels, will be a totally solar/electric boat. It will have Torqueedo Deep Blue drives, BMW i3 batteries and an array of 16 solar panels on the cabintop. Nova Luxe says the new green Aquilla will be an environmentally friendly cruiser…

Aging Commuter Boat Gets a Total Refit and a New Life at Lyman-Morse

By Peter Janssen on March 5, 2019 Cruising Life

Here’s a wonderful blow-by-blow account, with pictures, showing how Lyman-Morse restored a beautiful, but suffering, 73-foot, 1930 commuter boat named Scout to all its former glory – plus some. In fact, over a six-month period. Lyman-Morse worked a total refit on Scout, replacing everything from her timbers to her engines. Now, once the weather improves Scout, based in Newport, Rhode Island, will be cruising the Northeast from Long Island Sound to Downeast Maine. The boat that now is Scout was originally christened Cormar when she was launched on April 4, 1930, at the Defoe Shipbuilding Company in Bay City, Michigan. Designed by Eldredge-McInnis of…

New Report: Ocean Heat Waves Threaten Marine Life

By Peter Janssen on March 5, 2019 Cruising Life

Heat waves in the ocean are occurring more often, and lasting much longer, than they have in the past, and they’re threatening marine life around the planet. Here’s a solid report from The New York Times about what this means: When deadly heat waves hit on land, we hear about them. But the oceans can have heat waves, too. They are happening far more frequently than they did last century and are harming marine life, according to a new study. The study, published Monday in the journal Nature Climate Change, looked at the impact of marine heat waves on the…

After Alaska on a Nordhavn 40, This West Coast Family Moves Up to a Nordhavn 56 Motorsailor in Florida

By Peter Janssen on March 4, 2019 Cruising Life

When we last checked in with the Gardyne family from Alameda, California, they had just returned from a trip on their Nordhavn 40, MV Cassidy, up to Juneau, Alaska, last summer. The trip was such a success that the Gardynes, Dougal, Jen and Cassidy, then 7, wanted to move up to a bigger boat. Now, it turns out, they’ve found one. It’s still a Nordhavn and it’s much bigger, at 56 feet, but it’s a motorsailor, and they don’t know how to sail. Ever adventurous, they say they’ll get some expert advice and figure it out. The Gardynes loved the…

Early Predictions for Hurricane Season: About Same Number, and Just as Destructive, As Past Two Years

By Peter Janssen on March 3, 2019 Cruising Life

It’s still very early in the hurricane prediction business, but we already have two major forecasts for this year’s season, which starts June 1. They both agree that the Atlantic and Gulf coasts will have about the same number of storms as in an average year, but one prediction says the hurricanes we do have will be just as destructive as they’ve been in the past two years. Global Weather Oscillations Inc. specializes in predicting hurricane landfalls, which is what we really want to know. They use ClimatePulse technology, developed by David Dilley, a former NOAA meteorologist; it tracks landfall…

Coast Guard Issues Largest Fine Ever in Crackdown on Illegal Charter Boats

By Peter Janssen on March 3, 2019 Cruising Life

The Coast Guard just issued its largest civil fine ever to a Chicago man accused of operating two illegal charter boats. The Coast Guard said the man, Robert Glick, violated three federal regulations for each of his two boats, Fun, a 40-foot pontoon boat, and Allora, a 37-foot Sea Ray. It said that it first warned Glick in June, 2016, that he was operating an illegal charter business, carrying passengers for hire, but that he continued to operate the charters anyway. Originally, the Coast Guard recommended fining Glick $214,000, but reduced the amount. The fines now include: $44,000 for operating without certificates…

New: State Department Issues Travel Warning for the Bahamas

By Peter Janssen on March 2, 2019 Cruising Life

The State Department just issued a travel warning urging U.S. travelers to “exercise increased caution in the Bahamas due to crime.” It cited armed robberies and sexual assaults, and urged travelers to be particularly careful in New Providence (Nassau) and Grand Bahama Islands. It also specifically warned about problems with local watercraft. The new warning is called a Level 2 warning, which is relatively mild. Level 1 urges travelers “to exercise normal precautions,” while Level 4 says, “do not travel.” Still, the new warning said that “violent crime, such as burglaries, armed robberies, and sexual assault, is common, even during…

Sydney Man Arrested for Towing Boat Down Street with Scooter. “Simply Daft,” Says Judge

By Peter Janssen on March 2, 2019 Cruising Life

This certainly isn’t the usual story we cover about cruising under power, but it’s just too good to pass up. It’s about an Australian man who was arrested for towing his 17-foot boat a little more than half a mile from his storage unit to his house behind his little red scooter. The entire idea, the judge said, was “simply daft.” As reported in The Sydney Morning Herald, Shane Swancott said he had done “research on numerous websites” about towing his boat with his scooter, and that using the scooter was “a great idea.” He wanted to move the boat…

Dept. of Homeland Security: Your Old GPS Might Not Work After April 6

By Peter Janssen on February 27, 2019 Cruising Life

If you’re cruising anywhere on or after April 6, you might want to check your GPS, particularly if it’s an older one. It might not be working. The problem is what is called a Global Positioning System Week Rollover Event on April 6. If your GPS is not designed to handle the rollover, it might revert to an earlier year, in which case it would not be able to calculate your position accurately. This situation should not appear with relatively new GPS devices, but it could appear in older models. The issue is severe enough that the Department of Homeland…

Royal Marines Vet, 48, Rows Across Atlantic Solo To Raise Funds for Post-Traumatic Stress Victims

By Peter Janssen on February 27, 2019 Cruising Life

For Tim Crockett, a 48-year-old former member of the Royal Marines Special Boat Service, the first 62 days rowing solo across the Atlantic weren’t so bad. It was the end, the last day, when he tried to reach the finish line in Antigua, that almost killed him. On the 63rd day, as his 24-foot ocean rowboat, Tame the Kraken, tried to get in to English Harbour, it was hit by a storm with sustained waves of 20 to 30 feet. He told the Marietta (Georgia) Daily Journal that the last hour and a half were the worst during his 3,200 mile…

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