Cruising Life

Huckins Starts New 38 Sportsman with Either Outboard or Hybrid Diesel-Electric Power

By Peter Janssen on October 27, 2018 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Huckins is starting work on its 38 Sportsman, and the 90-year-old company is offering its retro-styled cruiser with either outboard power or hybrid diesel-electric power, showing that it can still blend traditional styling with the most modern engines and technology. Whatever the power, the new 38 will have Huckins’ iconic Quadraconic hull that founder Frank Pembroke Huckins introduced generations ago. Huckins Yacht in Jacksonville, Florida, is now run by Huckins’ granddaughter, Cindy Purcell, and she is staying true to the company’s heritage. The 38 has Huckins’ traditional art deco styling, but the company wants to offer buyers either the increasingly…

Luxurious 332-foot Megayacht and Charter Fishing Boat Collide South of San Diego. One Man Died, Several Injured

By Peter Janssen on October 27, 2018 Cruising Life

A 332-foot megayacht and a charter fishing boat collided at night in the Pacific south of San Diego. Several people were injured, one critically, and the fishing boat sustained major damage. The critically injured man died the next day. The Coast Guard said there were 28 people on Prowler, a 65-foot fishing boat out of San Diego. It launched a Jayhawk helicopter, a 45-foot response boat and the Cutter Sea Otter to the scene, which was nine miles off Imperial Beach near the U.S.-Mexico border. The Jayhawk crew hoisted the critically injured person off the Prowler and flew him to a…

Stephens Waring Designs New Custom Composite 57-Foot Cruiser for C.W. Hood

By Peter Janssen on October 27, 2018 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Here’s a first look at a new custom composite 57-foot Down East cruiser that Stephens Waring Yacht Design of Belfast, Maine, worked on for C. W. Hood Yachts of Marblehead, Massachusetts. Construction of major components is starting at Lyman-Morse Boatbuilding in Thomaston, Maine, and will be finished at the Hood yard. “The client originally came to us with a 26-foot repower and refit project,” says Chris Hood, the founder of C.W. Hood Yachts. “Inspired by the style and performance of our earlier designs, the conversation turned to a larger custom yacht. With a few guidelines and a fair amount of…

New, Elegant Beau Lake Runabout: A Pedal Boat Designed After a Riva Aquarama

By Peter Janssen on October 27, 2018 Cruising Life

The new elegant, high-style Beau Lake Runabout is definitely not your grandfather’s pedal boat, the big white plastic contraption that you’d often find in city lakes and amusement parks. Indeed, its designers say they were inspired by the lines of a Riva Aquarama. With its mahogany deck, inch-thick leather seats, reverse transom and gracious tumblehome, the Beau Lake would be at home in any first-class dock or boathouse from Lake Tahoe to Lake Como. “Traditional injection-molded plastic pedal boats stand out like sore thumbs,” says Paul Lavoie, the co-founder and CEO of Beau Lake. “Nothing about them blends into the…

Outer Reef Starts New 550 Atlas Series Motoryacht, a Strong and Comfortable Long-Range Cruiser

By Peter Janssen on October 27, 2018 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Outer Reef has just announced a new line, the 550 Atlas Series Motoryacht, designed for long-range or coastal cruising with a pilothouse, Portuguese bridge and everything you’d need for a safe and comfortable long weekend or month or so on board. The company says it named the series after the Greek god who personified strength and endurance. Powered by twin 500-hp John Deere diesels, the new 550 Atlas is expected to cruise economically in the 10-knot range, and top out in the 17-knot range. The hull is made of hand-laid fiberglass with PVC core sandwich construction above the waterline and…

Key West: Home of the Colorful Conch Republic and a Great Cruising Destination

By Peter Janssen on October 24, 2018 Cruising Life, Destinations

Key West is a lot of things. The Conch Republic. The end of the road, or at least the end of the 127-mile-long Overseas Highway. It’s irreverent, different, fun. And it’s colorful: Consider the daily scene where hundreds, or thousands, of people, plus various fire-eaters, jugglers and tightrope walkers, gather on Mallory Square to look for the green flash as the sun goes down. Or the annual Fantasy Fest parade (pictured above right) or the New Year’s Eve blowout (above left). Most of all, Key West is a great cruising destination. If you’re looking for a weekend or more, head…

NOAA: What Makes You Seasick, and What You Can Do About It

By Peter Janssen on October 23, 2018 Cruising Life

Sooner or later, everybody gets seasick. If not actually sick, then certainly queasy. One of my best friends has been cruising on sail and powerboats for almost 50 years. Hardly a novice, he’s won the Bermuda Race and a Transatlantic, among other things. And he still gets seasick every time he start a voyage. “I just figure I’m going to be miserable for about two days and then everything will be OK,” he says. Over the years, I think I’ve tried just about everything, wrist bands, ear patches, whatever, for various members of my family to keep them from getting…

Simrad Launches New HALO24 Radar with 60 RPM Sweep, an Industry First

By Peter Janssen on October 23, 2018 Cruising Life, Electronics

Simrad just launched its new HALO24 radar with a compact 24-inch dome that’s just right for a lot of cruising powerboats, with a 60-rpm high-speed rotation for a range of two miles, an industry first. This full 360-degree sweep every second provides extra safety for your boat, giving you an up-close view any potential vessel or navigation problem in any direction. The new Simrad HALO24 also has the company’s Dual Range performance, so you can see near and far at the same time. It lets you monitor two distance ranges simultaneously; you could keep an eye on distant weather cells,…

Don’t Run Out of Gas in Oceanside, California

By Peter Janssen on October 23, 2018 Cruising Life

What happens if you run out of fuel or have an engine problem near Oceanside, California, and need a tow home? Until last week, you could call the harbor police and they’d help you out for free. But no longer. Now, you can call Tow Boat US. Here’s the full story from The San Diego Union Tribune: Boaters who find themselves dead in the water can no longer count on a free tow back to the Oceanside harbor. The city has turned its non-emergency assists over to the private company Tow Boat US, said Lt. Aaron Doyle of the Oceanside…

What Does It Really Cost To Own a Yacht? These Pictures Will Make You Laugh – or Cry

By Peter Janssen on October 22, 2018 Cruising Life

Remember that old prize-winning Rolling Stone ad campaign, perception vs. reality? The perception was that the Rolling Stone reader was a doped-out hippie who didn’t have a nickel to his name, while the reality, at least according to the ad campaign, was that the average reader was an up-and-coming entrepreneur who could easily afford that new BMW 5 Series convertible or that alluring American Airlines first-class flight to Paris that were displayed in four-color ad spreads throughout the magazine. Now, the same is true of boats, at least according to this very funny piece in Business Insider. In this case, the juxtaposed…

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