New: Cruising Rallies... what is it that leads some boats to succeed and others to fail? None of us can cross oceans with any guarantees. But the choices we make can have a big impact on the results.
New and Regularly Updated: Aleria's Great Adventures
Alex and Daria, with Onyx their cruising kitty, packed up their Bowman 57 sailing boat and sailed across the Atlantic to Ireland. The winter was cold so the next year they sailed to Spain and Portugal and on to the Caribbean via the Madeiras and Canaries. Then they missed Ireland so they sailed back via the Azores, completing a spiral around the Atlantic. Now they sail here and there, depending on their mood when they pull up anchor. These are a few stories about their continuing adventures.
Cruising Ireland - Having crossed the pond three times, we are currently based in the west of Ireland! This is perhaps the nicest cruising we have done to date, and we just had to share.
Dominica - Dominica
is the island paradise in the
Caribbean
. It has 365 rivers, eight volcanoes, and only 70,000 people. It is one of the largest islands yet the least built up.
Barbados - Barbados is known for its beautiful beaches, expansive mansions, and lavish parties. There are highly competitive cricket matches and lots of famous inhabitants and visitors, but the facilities for visiting yachts are limited.
New:Top Ten Holiday Gift ideas for 2013
Electronics keep getting smaller and lighter and stronger, giving us plenty of choices for great gifts for the boating enthusiast. There are loads of apps out there targeting the boating market so we are not going there in this list, but we’ll do a top 10 apps update shortly. Here is a list of our favourite gifts for boaters. We’re a bit heavy on the safety side, but there have been some dramatic improvements in safety equipment recently. What are you asking Santa for this year?
Best practices in watch keeping procedures
Most skippers have rules they adopt for their vessel on passage. Ask questions if you are not clear. The most important thing for the skipper is to know they can trust that you will alert them if you are not certain of something.
Boat Builders and Boat Yards of Westchester and Long Island - “From Shore to Shore: Boat Builders of Westchester and Long Island” a major exhibition at the Port Jefferson Village Center on the traditional occupational and recreational culture of boat builders and boatyards in the region. In collaboration with ArtsWestchester and with support from the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts, the New York Council for the Humanities and Suffolk County, this exhibition is the culmination of two years of planning and field research on the current and historical art of boat building by folklorists Nancy Solomon, the executive director of Long Island Traditions, and Tom Van Buren, staff folklorist at ArtsWestchester. The exhibition runs through September 2.
Solar Powered Anchor Light - For years we had a solar powered commercial Navigation aid light on our boat at her permanent mooring as self defence against nocturnal dinghies and larger boats cruising through the mooring field. And yes, before we put this up, our boat did receive the occasional scratch or scrape.
Dinghy Attachment Points - When we got our current inflatable dinghy, we added two sturdy eye bolts to the transom, as we wanted to be able to lift the dinghy out of the water on a halyard while cruising – both for security and to keep the bottom from fouling while living at anchor for extended periods of time in some tropical paradise.
Top Ten Cruising Seamanship Best Practice Resoluitons - The truth of the matter is that although the governing bodies of sailing as a sport prepare detailed instructions for safety at sea, they are usually woefully inadequate and totally unfeasible for cruisers and sailors who view sailing as a hobby, a pastime, or a lifestyle rather than a racing sport.
The Future of Sailing - In most parts of the world, people lament the decline in enthusiasm for sailing. And yes, we do see so very, very many boats that never seem to leave the harbor. We have heard many tales of youth sailing programs that have serious rates of attrition from one year to another. What can one do about this?
US Coast Guard Captain's License update - Transit Workers Identification Card To TWIC or nor to TWIC
Disaster Preparation - Now we are not predicting a disaster, but this is what we did after one struck and we anticipated the follow-up
Sailing Music
There's something curious about sailing and being on the water. It's not always that just any music will do. Sometimes you have to hear that soothing rhythm that reflects a soul borne on the water. A selection of our favorited with additions from our readers.
Here are a few samplings.
World on the Water TV - Weekly Global Boating Report - the Internet's best free weekly sailing news and action programme - View this past week's sailing and boating events live here On Coastalboating.net
Education for you:
Learn to Sail with NauticEd beginner to advanced sailing courses
by (us!) Capt. Alex Blackwell & Capt. Daria Blackwell
Unless you are far offshore, at some point or another you are going to need to park your boat. Just like knowing how to stop your car before you start is perhaps the most important part of driving, we feel that anchoring is perhaps the most important skill you can and should acquire in boating. 226 pages, 182 Illustrations
Happy Hooking is a very readable book loaded with valuable information on anchoring tackle, anchoring technique, tying up and rafting, anchoring etiquette, as well as the occasional anecdote - simply stated a must have!
Cruising Outpost - The latest and greatest source of all things Cruising and Adventure Voyaging. - Formerly: Latitudes & Attitudes - Bob Bitchin's irreverent (or is it irrelevant) rag supporting the cruisers lifestyle. It is truly a breath of fresh air. Not for everyone (or at least some won't admit it while reading it in the closet).
Managing the Waterway - An enriched Cruising Guide for Intracoastal Waterway Travelers by Mark & Diana Doyle
Do-it-yourself (DIY)
This section is devoted to things you can do yourself to maintain or upgrade your boat, saving yourself money, and often aggravation.
Blue Planet Odyssey Want to sail around the world in the company of like-minded sailors with a higher purpose? Then join the Blue Planet Odyssey, Jimmy Cornell’s newest and boldest venture.
CoastalBoating.net is dedicated to the joy of coastal boating, coastal sailing, coastal cruising, and coastal racing. The primary objective of this site is to empower sailors and those who would like to be sailors to go out and enjoy their sport and passtime - to enjoy boating in whatever form it takes for the sake of boating.
Coastal Boating provides the best all around experience for boaters who would like a local resource guide that also covers local news, including race results, and seamanship skills. It is not intended to prepare people for the great offshore experience: there are plenty of resources out there for that. It is for all of the rest of us who may dream about a big adventure yet find ourselves perfectly content, if not driven, to experience the waters in our own territory to the fullest.
Please be aware that boating, as most other water sports, can be dangerous. You should not attempt it without first receiving competent instruction. Coastal Boating and Knowledge Clinic Limited will not accept any liability whatsoever related to content on our website.
Coastal Boating (Reg. in Ireland No. 443222) is a division of Knowledge Clinic Ltd.
Cruising Ireland
by (us!) Capt. Alex Blackwell & Capt. Daria Blackwell
