Sommaire pour April 2017 de PassageMaker

Maritime Northwest Washington is dubbed “The Evergreen State,” which is a half-truth. The geological demarcation line between the two sides is the Cascade Range—a lineup of peaks that includes Washington’s highest (14,411 foot Mt. Rainier), and the most recent to blow its lid (Mount Saint Helens in 1980). Eastern Washington is beautiful but different. It features rolling hills, lakes, farmlands, and is home to Yakima, a world-class producer of wine as well as a large percentage of the world’s hops. West of the Cascades, another, smaller mountain range overlooks the Pacific. The Olympics and Cascades combine to dwarf 100-milelong Puget Sound, the second largest estuary in the United States after Chesapeake Bay. The sound is a protected waterway—protected rom ocean swells, anyway—and is strewn with islands, rocky beaches, and plenty…

The last time I saw Bob Smith was at the Annapolis Boat Show, just a few short years ago. He was perched on a stool in his American Diesel booth, behind a table that was decorated with Ford Lehman diesel engine parts—pistons, valves, water pumps, exhaust elbows—that had failed due to corrosion, poor maintenance, or abuse. Bob saw me coming, looked me in the eye, and with a straight face said, “Well, it looks like they’ll let anybody in here.” Then he’d smile, stand up, and come forward with an extended hand and a solid grip that said, “Welcome, friend.” Robert Frederick Smith, or “Diesel Bob” as some called him, made the journey to Fiddler’s Green in January of this year, leaving behind a legion of boat owners who, whether…

As the coastal cruiser category of boats is growing, so too are the adventures owners are taking with this capable and versatile style of boat. And it doesn’t take long looking at a world map to realize there are a lot of coasts to cruise. When John Brice was about to take delivery of Restless, a North Pacific 49 Pilothouse, he thought of all the places he could see aboard his new boat. John and his family were experienced boaters, having spent years cruising the coastal waters of the Pacific Northwest from their home in Vancouver. John may not be your typical new-boat owner, given that he helped his son, Trevor, start North Pacific Yachts. What began as a quest for their own perfect coastal cruiser led to the creation…

The GRIB data isn’t an actual weather forecast, but rather a computer-generated raw weather model data that meteorologists use to create their forecasts. Several national meteorology services, such as NOAA and Météo France, produce GRIB data that is available for free or with a fee from a number of sources, as are viewers to interpret the data. For making passage decisions, we use GRIB models from two NOAA models: WW3 and GFS. We download and view the WW3 data through our PC chartplotter software MaxSea. (See https://youtu.be/LV1O1Bgf5wI for a sample visualization prior to our crossing to Hawaii.) We obtain the GFS data through Saildocs.com and use their viewer, ViewFax. Both download services are free. The WW3 data includes wave period, which we use for making passage decisions. We use GFS…

YOU’VE GOT MAIL! Releasing our docklines and taking off on a grand adventure doesn’t mean we can cut ourselves off from our bills and other mail. There are several businesses that offer mail forwarding so you can receive your (now) past-due bills and useless catalogues in far-off ports of call. We caught up with Angela Brosius at the Seattle Boat Show and learned all about how she is making mail services easier for extended travelers and cruisers through Dockside Solutions, the company she founded six years ago. Angela and her husband have lived aboard their sailboat for 18 years, raising two children along the way. After working at a small mailbox company, she started to see a need for a unique mail service for traveling customers; especially cruisers. Here’s how…

Many of us use divers to maintain what lies beneath or only deal with these areas when hauled out. We turned to our good friend Sterling Hines-Elzinga, owner of Sterling Marine Services, a dive service in Seattle, Washington, to discuss what he thinks owners should know. How did Sterling Marine get its start? As a long-time boater, when I got my start as a marine professional I saw a need for a new, reliable, professional underwater service company. Sterling Marine started with just me diving boats and providing simple yacht services. Since then, Sterling Marine has grown into a leading underwater service provider and commercial dive company in the greater Seattle area. What role do your divers play for their clients? Our divers connect the yacht owner with the unreachable…

FURTHER DISSECTION Thank you for your excellent article and analysis. Under the Pennsylvania Rule, 86 U.S. 125 (1874), Nap Tyme’s clear violation of Rule 5 could mean that Nap Tyme was the cause of the collision. This is a rebuttable presumption—not impossible to rebut, but perhaps very difficult. Also, it is entirely possible that the ferry was a vessel restricted in her ability to maneuver because of the nature of her work. The examples in Rule 3(g) are just that—examples. Consequently, under Rule 18(a), perhaps Nap Tyme was obligated to “keep out of the way of ” the ferry. Finally, Rule 15 contains some curious language: “… if the circumstances of the case admit ….” I could find no discussion of this language in Farwell’s Rules of the Nautical Road…

Readers can easily imagine cruising from port to port along North American coasts, summers exploring the Great Lakes and Canadian Maritimes, and winters in the Bahamas or even Cuba. But don’t let your imagination stop there. Look at a map; coastal cruising destinations are everywhere. If the limiting factor of where you take your boat is open water or land in between your planned destinations, consider shipping it to your new destination. There are several shipping companies dedicated specifically to transporting boats, and you may be surprised at how affordable it can be. Phuket, Thailand, is one of the most popular destinations in the world for off-loading cruising yachts. While John and Angie were in Phuket, one of the shipping companies hosted a cocktail party where the couple answered boat…

The octopus has taken starring roles in maritime lore from the ancient Kraken to Jules Verne’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Often portrayed as monsters with unquenchable thirst for murdering sailors—who, let’s be honest, had plenty of other things to worry about—the octopus and its alien anatomy became an easy target for writers wanting to stir up Melvillian tales of fright on the high seas. More recently it seems that the maligned octopus has hired a better public relations agent, starting, perhaps, with Paul the Octopus’ famously accurate predictions during the 2010 FIFA World Cup soccer tournament. An aquarist-approved test was set up for Paul, who nailed 12 of the 14 match results, including the final, and set off a flurry of pro-octopus news reporting. Laugh if you will, but…

The pride of the Pacific Northwest, salmon is a tasty and healthy source of protein that happily adapts to just about any cooking style. Whether you catch it yourself or buy it from your favorite fishmonger, salmon reigns as the perfect quickto- fix meal. Roasted or grilled, broiled or braised, panfried, or poached, it is sure to provide pleasure to family and friends as they gather around the table. If you’re lucky enough to have leftovers, there’s another delicious meal in store—chowder, pasta, salmon cakes, salads, frittatas, or one of my favorites, fish pâté. The debate about wild salmon vs. farm-raised salmon can be heated, especially in culinary and commercial fishing circles. The case for wild-caught salmon is straightforward: They live, feed, and return to die in their natural habitat.…

When we bought our first boat back in 1999, a coastal cruiser that we named Dirona, the salesperson asked how many hours a year we expected to put on. “Fifty, maybe a hundred,” we replied. We both worked full-time in busy software jobs in Seattle and were expecting to take short vacations to visit the San Juan and Gulf Islands, and possibly range as far north as Desolation Sound. We sold Dirona 10 years later with 4,100 hours on her, after circumnavigating Vancouver Island and travelling throughout the northern British Columbia coast, including winter trips to Desolation Sound, Princess Louisa Inlet, and the Broughton Archipelago. We loved that boat, but pushed it way beyond its design point. Friends who had moved from a similar boat to a Nordhavn 57 encouraged…

Birthday in Naples (FL) Among the deluxe, Mediterranean-style condos at the Naples Bay Resort, there is a snug harbor filled with motoryachts, and nestled among them floated three classy tenders. The clear standout was hull #1 of the Walker Bay Generation 525, a 17-foot luxury yacht tender. She looked right at home, in her element, as private jets soared overhead from nearby Naples airport. I was met by Mike Carroll, National Sales Manger of Walker Bay Boats. The company has an extensive history in small boats, starting with lightweight molded dinghies that can be rowed, sailed, or powered with a 4-horsepower motor. It can also be equipped with an inflatable tube, providing a rub rail and extra stability. The company produces an extensive lineup of inflatable boats as well, from…