Cruising Life

New Vanquish 26: A Fast, Stable, Premium Center Console with a Downeast Look

By Peter Janssen on November 28, 2018 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

The new Vanquish 26 Center Console is a user-friendly, hand-crafted, all-purpose boat with a Downeast look and a fast, fuel-efficient and stable hull, all designed by Doug Zurn, one of the best in the business today. It has a long, straight sheerline, bow flare, generous tumblehome and enough teak accents to keep a purist happy, while its 53-plus mph top speed, driven by a state-of-the-art 250-hp Mercury Verado outboard, will give an adrenaline rush to even the most jaded boat owner. In its new 2019 model, Vanquish has added a modest forward cabin to the 26, making it a center-console-plus.…

St. Barts: A Magnet for the Rich and Famous for New Year’s Eve and an Island Paradise for the Rest of Us All Year Round

By Peter Janssen on November 27, 2018 Charter, Cruising Life, Destinations

It’s only a few weeks until St. Barts, the eight-square-mile island in the West Indies that seems like a part of France, becomes the yachting center of the world. Well, the rich-and-famous yachting center of the world, that is. Because between Christmas and New Years the gorgeous, protected harbor at Gustavia, the island’s capital, is filled wall-to-wall with beautiful yachts and beautiful people. That’s all well and good, but if you’re like me and the rest of us, that means you’ll probably be spending your holidays somewhere else. But it also means that there are 50 or so other weeks…

Here Are the Main Points on Ocean and Coastal Changes from the New Federal Report on Global Warming

By Peter Janssen on November 27, 2018 Cruising Life

The 1,656-page federal government’s report on climate change, called the National Climate Assessment, was mandated by Congress and written by 13 federal agencies and more than 300 scientists and climate experts. You can read the entire report via the link at the bottom of this story, but here are direct excerpts from the part that’s relevant to us. It’s the section on “Climate-Related Drivers of Ocean Change,” dealing with ocean temperature, sea and water levels, and storms. Here are the main points: “Sea surface temperatures are rising and are expected to rise faster over the next few decades, with significant…

How To Choose An Anchor Snubber: Longer Is Better, Probably Longer Than You Think

By Peter Janssen on November 27, 2018 Cruising Life

Anchor snubbers, generally a length of nylon line, are meant to reduce shocks on your anchoring system. After the anchor is set, one end of the snubber is hooked in the chain between the boat and the water surface, and the other end is made fast to a strong point on deck. It is not attached to the windlass, which is a weak point, but preferably to a cleat or other strong point. After the snubber is attached, the tension is slacked so that the load is carried by the stretchable snubber. Most snubbers are made with three-strand nylon, which…

Leaders of Slowboat Flotillas Buy a New, Bigger, Not-So-Slow Boat

By Peter Janssen on November 26, 2018 Cruising Life

Laura Domela and her husband, Kevin Morris, leaders of the popular Slowboat Flotillas from Seattle to Alaska, just bought a Nordic Tug 44 to replace their old Nordic Tug 34. And they’re more than pleased with the deal. The new boat, Domela wrote on their blog, has “SO MUCH ROOM.” They heard about the 44 while they were leading a Flotilla around the outside of Vancouver Island in September. They worked with Seattle Yachts to both buy their new boat, a 2006 Nordic Tug 44 flybridge, and to sell their old boat, a 2013 Nordic Tug 34. They actually closed…

Holiday Boat Parades Now Underway. See Complete Listings of Parades All Across the U.S.

By Peter Janssen on November 26, 2018 Cruising Life

It’s that time of the year again, with holiday boat parades being planned and enjoyed in all parts of the U.S., even in the north. Some have already occurred; about 50 boats were decked out in lights and holiday themes for the annual parade along the St. Johns River in Jacksonville, Florida, for example, carrying on a 30-year tradition. The Fort Lauderdale Winterfest is probably the largest parade, which is no surprise, given the city’s 165 miles of waterway. It attracts hundreds of boats, and more than a million viewers. Across the country, the Newport Beach Christmas Boat Parade in…

Ferry Crashes into Ferry Building in San Francisco. See the Video

By Peter Janssen on November 26, 2018 Cruising Life

A ferry carrying 53 passengers from Marin County across the bay crashed into a dock at San Francisco’s famed Ferry Building. Two passengers were slightly injured. You can see a video of the accident below. The ferry, the M.S. San Francisco, originated in Larkspur, in Marin. Witnesses said the ferry bumped into one dock before crashing into a larger one, sending people who were dining and shopping nearby running. It came to a stop when it hit a concrete walkway. The Coast Guard is investigating. I feel that I have a personal connection with the ferry. Many years ago, I…

Ocean Alexander Building Totally New Line, Divergence, a 45-Foot Luxury Sport Boat with Four 350-hp Outboards

By Peter Janssen on November 25, 2018 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Ocean Alexander is stepping way outside its box and is building a totally new line, called Divergence, a 45-foot luxury outboard powered by four 350-hp Mercury Verados. The new boat, being built at the old Sea Ray factory on Merritt Island, Florida, will be ready for the Miami show in February. So far, Ocean Alexander has earned a reputation for quality and customer service in the large yacht and megayacht worlds. Its existing lineup stretches from 70 to 155 feet. But the 40-to-50-foot segment is hot now, as is the outboard market. The new Divergence fits into both of those…

Dead Whale in Indonesia Had 1,000 Pieces of Plastic in Its Stomach, Including Flip Flops

By Peter Janssen on November 25, 2018 Cruising Life

A dead 31-foot sperm whale washed up on a beach in a popular resort area of Indonesia recently with more than 1,000 pieces of plastic in its stomach, including 115 cups, 25 bags and two flip flops. All told, the plastic in the whale’s stomach weighed 13 pounds. State officials who were called to the scene near Kapota Island couldn’t tell if the plastic killed the whale or whether it died of other causes. Indonesia is one of the largest producers of plastic waste in the world, along with China. This was not the first such incident in that part…

Fort Pierce, Florida: A Historic, Boater-Friendly Stop on the ICW

By Peter Janssen on November 19, 2018 Cruising Life, Destinations

If you’re cruising through Florida, you may want to think about stopping at Fort Pierce. It’s a major boating center right on the Intracoastal Waterway, and the Fort Pierce Inlet gives easy access to the Atlantic, if you want to go outside, or to the Bahamas. Hutchinson Island, the long, thin barrier island, separates the Waterway from the ocean there. Fort Pierce is called the “sunrise city,” because of the clear view to the east. One of the oldest cities in the area (with roots dating to 1567), it’s on Florida’s Treasure Coast, so-named because of all the tons of…

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