Cruising Life

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…

Aquila Unveils New 50 Power Cat

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

Aquila just announced that it’s building a new 50 Power Yacht Catamaran that will make its public debut at the Fort Lauderdale show in October. The 50 replaces the now-retired Aquila 48, which was the very first power cat that Aquila made in partnership with MarineMax 12 years ago to supply boats to MarineMax Vacations’ growing charter fleet. Aquilas are made in China by Sino Eagle and sold in the U.S. by MarineMax, the largest powerboat dealer in the world with more than 60 retail locations. The new Aquila will measure 52’ 2” overall with a beam of 25’ 6”;…

How To Watch the Eclipse from Your Boat

By Peter Janssen on April 4, 2024 Cruising Life

A rare total eclipse of the sun will move across North America on Monday, April 8, starting in Mexico, moving across the U.S. from Texas to Maine, and then exiting along the coast of Canada. A total eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth, covering the full disk of the Sun and briefly revealing the Sun’s corona, its wispy, white outer atmosphere. You can watch the eclipse anywhere along its route (see the NASA map). If you’re in the “path of totality,” you’ll experience a period of total darkness as the umbra, the darkest part of…

Aspen L107 CLX: A Family-Friendly Cat

By Peter Janssen on April 3, 2024 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Larry Graf, the founder and “chief adventurer” of Aspen Power Catamarans, has launched an updated version of the 36-foot Aspen L107 that he ran 1,200 miles up the Mackenzie River in Canada’s Northwest Territories to the Arctic Circle – and back – in 2019. Now, Graf has launched the L107 CLX, a new and improved version of his Arctic Circe boat with enough amenities to make it much more family friendly than the original. The CLX version stays true to the original design, but it now can be used as much more than an adventure or day boat. Indeed, it…

Temporary Channels Open in Baltimore

By Peter Janssen on April 3, 2024 Cruising Life

The first ship, a barge carrying jet fuel to Dover Air Force Base, passed under the wreckage of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge on Monday afternoon, almost a week after the 984-foot container ship Dali lost power and crashed into it, sending it toppling into the Patapsco River. The accident, at 1:30 a.m. on Tuesday, March 26, killed six construction workers filling pot holes on the bridge, and shut down the Port of Baltimore, one of the busiest commercial ports in the U.S. (More imported cars land in Baltimore than anywhere else.) Colonel Estee S. Pinchasin, commander of the U.S. Army…

SACs Rebel 50: A Luxurious RIB

By Peter Janssen on April 2, 2024 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

The SACS Rebel 50, recently introduced to the U.S. at the Palm Beach show, just may be the most luxurious RIB in the world. It’s certainly one of the most good looking, and it comes with the fit and finish of a five-star motoryacht. Actually, the Italian-built Rebel 50 isn’t a traditional RIB at all; it’s somewhat in its own category. Its RIB credentials come from foam-filed collars (instead of inflatable tubes) that are mounted around the bulwarks; they are D-shaped fenders that do the same job as inflatable tubes, but they don’t take up as much room, leaving more…

Riviera Belize 54 Daybridge: High-End Cruiser

By Peter Janssen on April 2, 2024 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

The new Belize 54 Daybridge motoryacht from Riviera manages to have some retro design appeal combined with all the elements that make a high-end family cruiser so appealing. With three staterooms and two heads and a blue-water hull, the Belize 54 can hold a family of six or a group of friends for an overnight excursion or a long cruise. A convertible dinette in the salon can sleep two more. Standard power comes from twin 725-hp Volvo IPS950 pod drives, delivering a top speed of 33 knots, and a range of 370 nm at its cruising speed of 20 knots.…

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