Cruising Life

Lessons from a Long-Range Cruiser: What Tools To Take on Your Boat

By Peter Janssen on August 23, 2017 Cruising Life

We all learn from experience, or rather, we all should learn from experience. Here’s some good advice from Steve D’Antonio, who has a lot of experience cruising himself, as well as working on cruising boats as the former manager of a boatyard. The reality is that if you’re cruising offshore, you’ll have to be able to fix any problem yourself. D’Antonio’s been there, done that. Here, in a story in PropWalk, D’Antonio spells out the requisite tools and spare parts you need for a safe cruise, based on his own years of experience. First, he says, never leave the dock…

27 Reasons to Go Cruising in Mystic, Old Saybrook and Essex, Connecticut. And Then There’s the Fall Foliage

By Peter Janssen on August 23, 2017 Cruising Life, Destinations

It’s no secret that the Connecticut shoreline, particularly in the Old Saybrook to Mystic area, offers some of the best cruising on the east coast, with a combination of national and maritime history and a large selection of welcoming large and small marinas. And that’s before you head up the Connecticut River to Essex, which was burned by the British in the War of 1812 and is now the quintessential small New England town, or Hamburg Cove, just up the river a bit, one of the best gunkholes anywhere, in my opinion. But now that area is attracting more attention.…

Iconic 55-foot Thunderbird Returns to Concours d’Elegance on Lake Tahoe. See Great Video

By Peter Janssen on August 23, 2017 Cruising Life

An American icon, the double-planked mahogany and brushed stainless steel Thunderbird just returned to the annual Concours d’Elegance on Lake Tahoe, California, after some refurbishing. Built in 1940, the 55-foot-long Thunderbird is powered by two V-12 Allison P-38 Lightening aircraft engines that produce a top speed of 70 mph. Thunderbird was built for George Whittell, Jr., a wealthy and reclusive playboy who also owned a Grumman Goose seaplane and six Duesenbergs. He built a 100-foot long boathouse for the boat and a 600-foot tunnel to connect it to his main house on Tahoe’s west shore. Designed by John L. Hacker, of…

Boathandling Tips: How To Hold Your Boat Steady. Good Video

By Peter Janssen on August 22, 2017 Cruising Life

There are many times when you basically want to keep your boat where it is – waiting for a bridge to open, for example, or looking for an open spot on the fuel dock. But knowing how to keep it in place (assuming you don’t have Skyhook or a similar electronic station-keeping system) is much more important, and is part of a basic boat-handling skillset that will serve you well when you’re docking, waiting for traffic to clear in a narrow passage, or even sitting out a sudden squall. Here’s a great video from Motor Boat & Yachting that will…

New Outer Reef 610 Motoryacht: Built for Couples, Comfort and Cruising

By Peter Janssen on August 22, 2017 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Designed to be run by a cruising couple, the new Outer Reef 610 Motoryacht is spacious, fuel-efficient and easy to maneuver. Indeed, in early July hull number one carried its new owners, a couple from Newport, Rhode Island, on a shakedown cruise from Fort Lauderdale up to their home in five days with just two pit stops, although they had a captain from Outer Reef to help them get acquainted with the boat. Then they cruised New England waters for the rest of the summer themselves. That boat will be displayed at the Newport International Boat Show, starting Sept. 14.…

Danish Submarine Inventor Now Says He Buried Journalist at Sea

By Peter Janssen on August 22, 2017 Cruising Life

Police in Copenhagen report that Peter Madsen, the inventor of a 26-foot long submarine, now says that Kim Wall, the Swedish journalist who climbed on board to interview him for a story, died on the sub and he buried her at sea. Madsen originally told police, after Wall disappeared, that he had dropped her off in a remote area. Madsen has since changed his story, telling police that there was an accident on the sub that caused Wall’s death. The sub sank the morning after Wall disappeared, and Madsen was rescued by a passing boat. Police are still trying to…

Greenline 39 Hybrid: A Light-Filled Cruising Boat Under Diesel or Electric Power

By Peter Janssen on August 21, 2017 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Operating in two cruising modes, the Greenline 39 Hybrid can run under its 220-hp Volvo diesel at an 11-knot cruising speed, topping out at 18 knots, or under its electric power at 4 knots, topping out at 6.5 knots. Under diesel power, range is 1,000 nm at 7 knots; under electric power, however, range is only 20 knots. What this means is that under its green, electric, low-carbon footprint, the Greenline 39 Harbor can cruise around a harbor or two, or enter a quiet anchorage at night, silently and efficiently. Either way, the Greenline 39 is a low-profile, light-filled, two-stateroom,…

128-foot Feadship Burns and Sinks Off Nice; All 11 on Board Safe. See Video

By Peter Janssen on August 21, 2017 Cruising Life

It’s hard to think of a lot of things worse than a fire at sea. Perhaps a fire on an airplane? Fortunately for the seven passengers and four crew on board the superyacht If Only, when a fire broke out in the engine room a few days ago the 128-foot Feadship was only a few miles south of the Nice airport on the French Riviera. Someone in the airport tower saw smoke billowing from the yacht and notified first responders. A combination of six boats and 66 firefighters got everyone off the yacht safely, although one firefighter was taken to…

Navy Destroyer John S. McCain in Collision with Tanker off Singapore. Ten Sailors Missing.

By Peter Janssen on August 21, 2017 Cruising Life

It’s hard to believe this could happen again. But now, just two months after the Navy destroyer USS Fitzgerald collided with a container ship off Japan, killing seven sailors, another destroyer, the USS John S. McCain, collided with a chemical tanker off Singapore, with ten sailors missing at sea. The John S. McCain is a guided-missile destroyer, with some of the most advanced electronics in the world. It collided with a 600-foot tanker in the highly-trafficked Strait of Malacca. The tanker hit the McCain fairly far aft on its port side. Other American vessels and ships from the Singapore Navy…

Navy: Fitzgerald Lost Situational Awareness Before Collision

By Peter Janssen on August 18, 2017 Cruising Life

The Navy is punishing the captain, the executive officer, the senior enlisted sailor and all those on watch on the destroyer Fitzgerald on the night in June when it collided with a freighter off Japan, killing seven Americans. The freighter crashed into the starboard side of the Fitzgerald, its bow penetrating the cabin of the destroyer’s captain, Commander Bryce Benson. It took sailors with a sledgehammer 25 minutes to break down the door to rescue Benson, who was badly injured and hanging from the side of the ship. (His cabin is pictured above). The Navy’s report said “serious mistakes were…

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