The Best Life Jacket for Sailing Cruisers? Let me tell you a story first. Never did I expect to be standing under the boom in a Force 10 storm trying to tie down our mainsail. The seas were an ominous muddy gray with enormous white angry cresting waves. The waves were crashing on top of[Read More]
Safety
Rescue At Sea
If you had to perform a rescue at sea would you know what to do? Would your partner, guests, family, or friends sailing with you know what to do? In this video, we explain and show you a recent REAL Man Overboard that we experienced. While we were sailing a mile or so off the[Read More]
How To Make A VHF Radio Call
Most new VHF radio users get their initial experience by calling another person or a marina. After making a few calls, using the VHF radio becomes second nature – just like using the telephone. Here are six easy steps on how to make a VHF Radio call, a video and a written example in addition[Read More]
Is a VHF Radio course really necessary to take if you’re a boater?
When my husband, Simon, and I purchased our first boat in the UK, back in 2012, one of us had to hold a VHF radio license. In the UK, it’s the only requirement necessary for owning and operating a boat. Simon took a VHF Radio course which enabled him to operate our boat and I[Read More]
Boat Safety – How To Keep Safe On The Water
When it comes to boat safety it’s quite a broad category. You might immediately think that it’s just life jackets, a GPS positioning device and Man Overboard equipment but that’s only a very small tip of the iceberg. As with most things boating related, safety is yet another huge category to get your head around. Allow[Read More]
Sending a MAYDAY checklist
One of the first things you need to know BEFORE becoming an active bluewater cruiser is to know how to send a MAYDAY. Sure, the VHF radio is equipped with a red ‘panic’ type button but that’s not necessarily going to save you. Your chances for getting help increase drastically if you follow up an[Read More]
Quickest & Easiest Man Overboard Procedure
When it comes to sailing and sailboats there are several different ways to do a variety of tasks. Some captains and sailing schools preach one method and others preach another. Your best bet is to understand the options and then choose the system, or way, that works best for you. How will you know what[Read More]
Three Things That All Liveaboards Must Know
I’m ashamed to admit it but until recently, I wasn’t 100% sure about how to deploy our life raft. If you’re not familiar with what a life raft is, it’s a backup floatation device that can be used for survival if the boat sinks. It blows up to look like a neon orange floating tent and is packed with water, flares, and a range of other life-saving items. Before I get ahead of myself, this article is about three things that all liveaboards must know…And I mean MUST KNOW. Read more here…
Boat Safety Manual
Members only! As mentioned in my article, Three Things That All Liveaboards Must Know, I offer a free copy of the Britican Boat Safety Manual for members to use. This 15-page document will provide a template for your own boat safety manual. You’ll have to chop and change according to your own boat but the bulk of the information is standard.
The document covers a basic boat operating manual in addition to procedures for Man Over Board, fire, steering malfunctions, engine failure, collision, taking on water, the location of all thru-hull fittings, how to deploy the life raft, medical emergencies, grounding, and other procedures and boat rules. This manual can be used if you’re getting your boat coded for chartering purposes or to simply have in your navigation desk as a reference for the crew, guests, and passengers.
This post is only available to members.
Using An Anchor Alarm App
In this video, Simon demonstrates how we use the Safe Anchor app on our Ipad. Using an anchor alarm app alone or conjunction with the boat’s system is advisable. There are a variety of apps on the market for Iphone’s and Androids. They all work similarly. The key is to try them out and see what one works best for you.
This post is only available to members.
