Cruising Life

Furuno’s New Point-and-Shoot Autopilot: Just Aim It Where You Want To Go

By Peter Janssen on June 5, 2018 Cruising Life, Electronics

Furuno has just developed a new handheld autopilot remote that lets you point where you want to go and the boat will take you there. It’s called the NavPilot-300 with Gesture Control, and it’s made for outboard-powered boats from 24 to 50 feet. You can see a video of it in action below. The key to the new NavPilot is the 4.1” Gesture Control remote with color LCD that lets you control the boat’s heading if you’re standing anywhere within 32 feet of the helm (and the processor). You hold a button in the middle of the remote, point it…

Whale Dies on Beach in Thailand After Eating 18 Plastic Bags Weighing 80 Pounds

By Peter Janssen on June 5, 2018 Cruising Life

An ailing pilot whale that washed up in a beach in southern Thailand had 18 plastic bags weighing 80 pounds in its stomach. Despite attempts by marine conservationists to save the whale, it died five days later. They say the plastic bags clogged up the whale’s digestive tract and it wasn’t able to eat. In essence, the whale starved to death. After the whale died, a necropsy showed the extent of the plastic in its stomach. Stories and pictures of the whale promoted an outrage in social media. Each year, more than 300 endangered sea turtles and 150 dolphins and…

Fountaine Pajot Building New 40 Power Cat, Based on Success and Awards of Its 44

By Peter Janssen on June 4, 2018 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Fountaine Pajot, the prestigious French builder, has just released details about its new MY 40 power catamaran, with three cabins, two heads, Volvo IPS performance and simply space and more space everywhere. The 40 is built on the success of the MY 44, which has won three awards, including “European Powerboat of the Year 2018,” at the Düsseldorf show in January. The hull is designed by naval architect Daniel Andreu, who specializes in motor yachts and who designed the 44, and it’s made for performance and seakeeping. Standard power is twin 260-hp Volvos, with IPS350 pod drives; optional power is…

Where To Find the Best Lobster Rolls in Maine. Yes, There’s Red’s – Plus 16 More

By Peter Janssen on June 4, 2018 Cruising Life, Destinations

If you’re heading Down East to Maine this summer, take this story with you. It’s a great list of the best lobster rolls you can buy in the state of Maine, stretching from the border with New Hampshire to the border with Canada. Put together by Coastal Living, the list has 17 spots where you’ll find Maine’s best lobster rolls; most are along the water, in one way or another, but all of them serve fresh lobster almost right off the lobster boat. Number one on the list is The Clam Shack in Kennebunk, which features locally caught lobsters on…

Greenline Launches Eco-Friendly NEO Line with Twin Gas or Electric Outboards: 42 Knots or 16 Knots

By Peter Janssen on June 4, 2018 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Greenline Yachts is celebrating its tenth anniversary by creating a new NEO line, which consists of three deck plans for a 36’ 5” eco-friendly boat that can be powered either by twin 300-hp gas outboards or twin Torqueedo electric outboards and Lithium-ion batteries. With the big gas outboards, the NEO cruises at 36 knots and tops out at 42 knots. With twin 80-hp Torqueedo Deep Blue electric outboards, the NEO tops out at 16 knots with a range of 20 nm; at 6 knots, it has a range of 40 nm. Made in Slovenia, the NEO line comes in Open,…

83 Containers Tumble Off Cargo Ship Near Australia. Debris Washes Up on Beaches

By Peter Janssen on June 3, 2018 Cruising Life

Reports of problems with cargo washing overboard from container ships just keep coming. In the latest incident, 83 containers tumbled off the 880-foot cargo ship YM Efficiency in heavy seas off the east coast of Australia. And debris from some of the containers was washing up on beaches north of Sydney. The Efficiency, owned by a Taiwan company but registered in Liberia, hit 16-foot seas in the Tasman Sea about 18 miles off the coast and rolled heavily. The 83 containers slid off the ship while another 30 were damaged but remained on board. TV pictures taken by a news helicopter showed…

Bells Stolen from Buoys off Coast of Maine. Coast Guard Asks for Help in Finding Culprits

By Peter Janssen on June 2, 2018 Cruising Life

This is just bizarre. Over the past six months, somebody’s been stealing the brass bells from offshore buoys off the coast of Maine. The Coast Guard is not happy about this, and neither would you be if you were relying on the sound signals from the buoys to help you navigate in the fog or at night. “These thefts not only reduce the reliability of our aids to navigation system and put lives at risk, said Lt. Matthew Odom of the Coast Guard waterways management division, “but they also create a burden and expense to the taxpayer for the buoy…

New Customer Wants “Fastest Zeelander Ever.” Zeelander Builds New 42-Knot Z55

By Peter Janssen on June 2, 2018 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Zeelander, the upscale Dutch builder, just completed a Z55 for a new customer who said he wanted “the fastest Zeelander ever built.” With twin Volvo IPS1350s delivering 2,000 hp, the new Zeelander 55 tops out at 42 knots; the traditional Z55, with twin IPS950s and 1,450 hp, tops out at 33 knots. To fit the larger engines, Zeelander had to customize the hull, adding more strength to the engine room and more lamination from bow to midship. It also upgraded the engine room insulation and installed double-flex mounts on all pumps and motors. As a result, the boat is quiet,…

Front Street Shipyard Finishes Major Refit of 1962 North Sea Trawler Sindbad

By Peter Janssen on May 30, 2018 Cruising Life

Front Street Shipyard in Belfast, Maine, just finished an 18-month major refit of Sindbad, an 80-foot North Sea steel-hulled trawler that was built in Norway in 1962 as an ice-class vessel. Sindbad was transformed into a yacht in the early 1990s, and needed some major work to restore it to yacht-quality again. After the latest refit, Sindbad underwent sea trials off Front Street, where Billy Black took these pictures, before heading south for the season. Sindbad was a major refit for Front Street Shipyard, which is a combination of custom builder, service yard and marina. Front Street Shipyard also is something of a…

Walker Bay Launches New 10′ 8″ RIB that Seats Five and Costs Just $14,500 with 20-hp Outboard

By Peter Janssen on May 30, 2018 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Walker Bay has just launched a new 10’ 8” RIB with a console that holds five passengers and costs just $14,500 with a 20-hp outboard. And the new Walker Bay Supertender 325 Deluxe Console RIB is a lightweight, coming in at just 259 pounds. “We feel this is the best lightweight console tender in its class,” says Michael Carroll, Walker Bay’s director of sales and marketing, “in that it offers superior comfort, unmatched luxurious features and exceptional performance for a boat this size.” The 325 hull has a sharp entry that flattens out aft and a hard chine that grips…

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