Cruising Life

New Galeon 450 HTC Family Cruiser

By Peter Janssen on April 16, 2024 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

The new Galeon 450 HTC (Hard Top Cruiser) is a comfortable family cruiser with a full-length glass roof and a “beach mode” aft with large terraces that fold out of the bulwarks. Powered by twin 480-hp Volvo diesels with straight shafts, the Galeon tops out at 28 knots. It’s easy for a couple, or even a solo captain, to handle, and a door next to the helm opens to the starboard side deck so the captain can help with docking. The railings open on both sides for easy boarding from a dock. The Galeon’s salon has panoramic windows that are…

Sunseeker Building New Predator 55

By Peter Janssen on April 16, 2024 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Sunseeker, the major British builder, just unveiled a new Predator 55 with a low-profile and aggressively sloping hardtop that tops out at 36 knots. Meanwhile. Bloomberg reports that the same Miami holding company that bought Cigarette three years ago is now in the process of buying Sunseeker. Sunseeker says the new Predator 55 is a blend of luxury and performance. It certainly has all the latest bells and whistles, including Garmin’s high-tech Surround View that has six cameras built into the hull to provide 360-degree views and computerized assistance in docking. And an optional gyro stabilizer will keep everyone on…

Oceans Warming: Storms Ahead

By Peter Janssen on April 15, 2024 Cruising Life

Ocean temperatures are setting records all around the world, according to new reports, and the rising temperatures will probably lead to more storms ahead. The average global sea surface temperature in February was the highest for any month ever measured, according to Copernicus, a climate arm of the European Union. February also set the record for any single month, 69.9 degrees Fahrenheit. The previous record was just in August, at 69.7 Fahrenheit. Copernicus measured the temperatures in all the oceans of the world between 60 degrees north and 60 degrees south. The World Meteorological Organization reports that “Every month since…

Castaways Spell HELP on Beach: Get Rescued

By Peter Janssen on April 14, 2024 Cruising Life

Three fishermen who were stranded on an uninhabited South Pacific island for more than a week were rescued by the Navy and the Coast Guard after they used palm fronds to write “HELP” on the white-sand beach. The men subsisted by eating coconut meat. They had some fresh water from a well. On Easter Sunday, the three, all experienced fishermen in their 40s, left their homes on Polowat Atoll in Micronesia to fish off Pikelot Atoll, about 100 nm away on a 20-foot open skiff. As they neared Pikelot, the boat swamped in heavy weather. The outboard quit but they…

Silent Launches First 62 Tri-Deck

By Peter Janssen on April 10, 2024 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Silent Yachts, the creative Austrian builder, just launched its first 62 solar/electric tri-deck at its yard in Fano, Italy. The blue-water catamaran, with a CE A certification, has a trans-oceanic range at its cruising speed of 6 to 8 knots. The new Silent 62 is based on the company’s well-received 60, which won a Multihull of the Year Award and a Best of Boats Award when it was launched in 2021. It’s two feet longer, of course, but it has the third upper deck, giving it something of a superyacht flair. The new Silent has a reverse bow and a…

BluNav Studies Whales: Builds New Prop

By Peter Janssen on April 10, 2024 Cruising Life, Engine Room

BluNav, a French start-up, has a new idea for boat propellers. After studying humpback whales, it developed a Whale Design prop for its electric drives with the blades set on a magnetically driven inner ring. So far, of course, traditional boat propellers have been mounted on a shaft. But BluNav likes to think outside the box. Founded in 2020, the company wants to promote electric power for recreational and commercial vessels. Recently it has taken a hybrid approach, developing its BlueSpin electric propulsion system that can be used with a boat’s original combustion engine. The BlueSpin provides silent propulsion with…

More Channels Open in Baltimore

By Peter Janssen on April 10, 2024 Cruising Life

A larger temporary shipping channel to the Port of Baltimore will be open by the end of this month, and the larger main channel will reopen by the end of May, according to officials with the Unified Command there. The main channel to one of the most important ports in the U.S. has been closed since the 984-foot-long container ship Dali lost power and crashed into the 1.6-mile-long Key Bridge over the channel at 1:30 a.m. on March 26, sending it toppling into the Patapsco River below. The crash killed six construction workers filling pot holes on the bridge; the…

Pershing Launches Sporty GTX80

By Peter Janssen on April 9, 2024 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Pershing, the luxury performance brand from the Ferretti Group, just launched its sporty new GTX80, with a unique blend of Italian-styled indoor and outdoor spaces, at its factory in Fano on the Adriatic. The new 80 has two decks and a sportbidge, and can sleep eight guests in four cabins; there’s also a crew cabin with two berths. Standard power comes from three 1,000-hp Volvo IPS1350 pod drives, delivering a top speed of 34 knots and a cruising speed of 28 knots. Without stanchions to clutter the design, the Pershing GTX80 has a clean, aggressive, modern look with an almost…

Beer Can Island: Yours for $14.2 Million

By Peter Janssen on April 9, 2024 Cruising Life

Pine Key, aka Beer Can Island, a nine-acre uninhabited island in Tampa Bay, is now for sale for $14.2 million, a considerable markup from the $65,000 that four investors paid for it in 2017. The investors say they’ve spent $5 million on improvements, including adding toilets, a full-sized Tiki bar, a sand volleyball court, and a massive inflatable side. They also spent more than $1 million on lawyers’ fees relating to zoning. Right now, the island doesn’t have any zoning, something the Hillsborough County commissioners are working on. The island, accessible only by boat, has been a local partying destination…

First Yacht with Dog-Rescue Buoy

By Peter Janssen on April 9, 2024 Cruising Life

Now here’s an idea that I really like. Heesen’s new 197-foot superyacht Ultra G has a built-in U Safe smart rescue buoy to save the owner’s dog if the pet falls overboard. It’s built into a hatch on the starboard side just in front of the main steering system. As far as we know, it’s the first such system built into a new boat. The bright-orange U Safe buoy has already won a DAME design award and an innovation award at the Consumer Electronics Show. It’s self-powered and you can steer it with a remote to reach a pet, or…

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