Posts Tagged “Seamanship”
Although we hadn’t run overnight before the Alaska trip, we frequently ran at night in the previous boat. And we did make a couple of night runs in the 52. The learning from those two runs proved invaluable in our 24×7 trip. We found that 1) the navigation screens were too bright, even turned down…
One of the things we learned from our trip to Alaska is that 24×7 operation with a double-handed crew is achievable for us, and with reasonable comfort. We arrived at the end of the run feeling alert and well-rested. In planning for the trip, we researched aspects of running a boat 24×7, ranging from…
We have four Lenovo ThinkVison L1900p monitors for navigation. They have a low-profile bezel and controls in the front, so can readily be flush-mounted into the pilot-house dash. The display is crisp and clear, and we’re very happy with them. But we found they were a little bright for night running, even with the screen…
A major spring storm was forecast to hit the Puget Sound on Friday. A 972-mb low over southern Vancouver Island would generate storm-force winds along the Washington state coast. A gale warning was in effect for the more-protected Puget Sound, and winds there were forecast to reach 30-40 knots, with wind waves of 5-7 feet….
Last week, an anchor accidentally deployed on the BC Ferry Spirit of British Columbia at it exited the east end of Active Pass into the Strait of Georgia. The ship apparently did a complete donut as the crew put the vessel in full reverse to slow it down. The ferry was delayed for 80 minutes…
Approaching the head of Blakely Harbor this weekend, we saw what looked like a rock near where we planned to anchor. It turned out to a small boat, submerged bow-up. It was covered with barnacles and appeared to have been underwater for a while. We guessed that it must have blown in from farther out…
Elliott Bay Marina is a wonderful place to keep a boat, but docking can be difficult—the fairways are narrow, as are the slips. And the slips are oriented east-west while the winds are typically from the north or the south, so if any wind is blowing, it’s against the side of the boat as we…
The vast majority of time, close quarters maneuvering at low speed is fine. But strong current or big wind gusts can greatly reduce the margin for error. We recently saw an example of exactly that at Eagle Island, where strong currents wrap around the island. A particularly large exchange that weekend made for especially swift…
Hi James, As I recall, your website shows pictures of you using your laptop on the bridge of Dirona. Can you tell me what laptop you use that is viewable in the bright sunshine? Is your laptop dedicated to Nobeltec or other software or does is get all-around use?…….Excel, Word, Photoshop…..that sort of thing….
Hi. I just bought your book and love it. I’m a little confused about the anchor buoy/trip line system you describe in Chapter 4. We run a Bruce 33 lb. anchor off a 32-foot wooden Grand Banks. If the anchor is fouled, it sounds like you approach the buoy while continuing to pick up…
In busy Pacific Northwest anchorages, stern-tying is a common option to allow more boats to fit in than would if they all swung free at anchor. Smuggler Cove Provincial Marine Park along the southern BC coast is a good example: We aren’t often in anchorages that busy, as we tend to favor less-traveled areas. Nonetheless,…
Below is a reprint from the 2/2002 Safety Digest, published by the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) of the British Department of Transport (www.maib.gov.uk). Although the vessels involved are quite large and the locale is distant, the lessons learned are applicable to craft of any size and are particularly relevant to boaters in the Puget…
For us, the start of the winter boating season also means the start of our night boating season. We got a bit of a reprieve this year with the longer Daylight Saving Time, so this weekend likely will be our first night run since the beginning of the year. We don’t boat at night necessarily…
The winter boating season is upon us with the first big storm of the year: http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2007/oct/27/no-headline—ferry/. We’ve been boating year-round between Olympia and Port Hardy for years now. One publication that we have found particularly useful in navigating through winter (and summer) storms is Environment Canada’s The Wind Came All Ways. The book contains detailed…