Cruising Life

Dramatic You-Are-There Video of Rescue of Disabled Fishing Boat in a Gale off Scotland

By Peter Janssen on November 13, 2017 Cruising Life

This video is not for the faint of heart, but it is a dramatic testimony to the courage and dedication of the crew of a RNLI (Royal National Lifeboat Institution) rescue boat who went out in 45-mph winds and 30-foot waves to rescue six fishermen on a disabled fishing boat off the north coast of Scotland. The fishing boat became disabled when it fouled its prop in a westerly gale, and it started drifting toward shore. It took the RNLI rescue boat more than nine hours to tow the fishing boat back to port; the tow line parted a total…

Admiral Stavridis: Navy Needs To Return to Basic Blocking and Tackling

By Peter Janssen on November 13, 2017 Cruising Life

To my mind, James Stavridis is a national treasure. A retired four-star Admiral, Stavridis originally graduated from Annapolis and after 37 years rose to be Supreme Commander of NATO. He’s now chairman of the board of the U.S. Naval Institute and dean of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts. In his writing and public appearances, Stavridis comes across as an experienced, plain-spoken patriot who knows what he’s talking about. In this story for Bloomberg, below, Stavridis writes about what the Navy needs to do in the aftermath of the collisions of two destroyers, the USS McCain and…

The Seven Knots You Need to Know – in an Easy Video. Take a Look

By Peter Janssen on November 13, 2017 Cruising Life

One of my all-time movie favorites is the scene toward the end of Jaws where Roy Schneider, playing the very un-nautical police chief, is sitting in the cockpit of Robert Shaw’s fishing boat, trying to learn how to tie a bowline…”The rabbit comes out of the hole…” he recites, while the theme music comes up and the shark swims closer and closer for its final attack. In real life, as in the movies, you don’t want to wait until you – or your crew – are actually on the boat before you learn how to tie at least a few…

International Dispute About Cannons, Other Artifacts from 1565 Shipwreck off Cape Canaveral

By Peter Janssen on November 9, 2017 Cruising Life

What we know is that in September, 1565, French navigator Jean Ribault, who’d already been exploring the Florida area for three years, was sailing his fleet of three ships up to St. Augustine to attack the new Spanish colony there. All three disappeared in a storm. In May and June, 2016, Global Marine Exploration, a marine salvage firm operating with permits from the state of Florida, found artifacts from an old shipwreck on the sandy seafloor in seven different spots off Cape Canaveral. The debris includes three brass cannons (each one, pictured above, is worth about $1 million), plus a marble…

See the Video of an Oil Tanker Running Aground off Southport, North Carolina

By Peter Janssen on November 9, 2017 Cruising Life

I think it’s safe to say that most of us (all of us?) who’ve cruised on the ICW have run aground at some point. Running aground in a recreational boat is one thing. Running aground in an oil tanker is another. This video, taken from a backyard home security camera in Southport, North Carolina, shows the MT Swan Biscay, flagged in the Marshall Islands, running aground on the Cape Fear River. Not only does the ship hit the bottom, but it also keeps going, spinning around, throwing considerable fear into the captain of the small fishing boat who scrambles to…

New Riva 76 Bahamas: High-Tech, High-Style and a Very Cool Convertible Top

By Peter Janssen on November 9, 2017 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

If you want to go cruising in style, iconic Italian style, take a look at the new Riva 76 Bahamas, which just made its U.S. debut at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show. It’s a combination of high-tech, legendary Riva styling and massive power – plus what the company calls “shark grey” paint with “bright black” detailing – that will turn heads in harbors from the Med to Miami. The new Riva also has a very cool carbon-fiber convertible top that transforms the three-cabin (plus crew), four-head beauty from an open boat to a coupe, all in 90 seconds. “The…

Saudi Crown Prince Sees Superyacht in French Harbor and Buys It for $500 Million that Afternoon

By Peter Janssen on November 8, 2017 Cruising Life

We usually don’t write about superyachts (we generally try to keep in the 25 to 75-foot owner-operator range), but in this case, I couldn’t resist. I’ve been reading news items about Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia, 32, who’s trying to reform the government there, letting women drive, for example, and arresting other members of the royal family for corruption while cutting spending in an austerity program. Several stories mentioned that two years ago, while on vacation in the south of France, the prince saw a large yacht in the harbor and was so enamored of it he…

Worried About Docking? Protect Your Boat Like Royalty

By Peter Janssen on November 8, 2017 Cruising Life, Gear

Worried about hitting the dock when you’re coming back to your slip? Well, who isn’t. But here’s something new to protect your boat, in addition to all the fenders that you’ve already hung over the side. It’s called ParmaFender, and it’s actually an air-filled series of chambers that act as fenders along the side of the dock, so you won’t have to worry about scratching your hull the next time you come home. ParmaFender also offers another benefit, as you can see in the picture above. King Harald and Queen Sonya of Norway don’t have to worry about stepping over…

What’s Open in the BVI? A First-Hand Status Report

By Peter Janssen on November 7, 2017 Charter, Cruising Life, Destinations

We all know that the British Virgin Islands were hit hard – twice – by Hurricanes Irma and Maria, causing widespread damage and destroying many yachts in the charter fleets there. Still, the BVI remains the BVI, one of the best and most widely recognized charter and cruising destinations on the planet. The gorgeous water, the easily navigated cruising grounds, the dive spots – the basic geography – are the same today as they were before the storms. But what can you expect now if you want to go there? Here’s a report from the people at Dream Yacht Charter…

Harvey and Irma Hit 63,500 Boats, Almost an All-Time High, Says BoatUS

By Peter Janssen on November 7, 2017 Cruising Life

Now it’s time to put some numbers on the damage caused by this season’s two hurricanes, Harvey and Irma, and they aren’t good. In fact, BoatUS says that 63,500 recreational boats, worth $655 million, were damaged or destroyed by the two storms. That dollar amount includes damage just to boats themselves; it doesn’t count damage to marinas, waterfront property or anything else. By comparison, five years ago Hurricane Sandy caused the largest loss ever, with 65,000 boats destroyed or damaged. This hurricane season Irma hit 50,000 recreational boats, causing $500 million in damage, while Harvey hit 13,500 boats and caused…

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