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Boating Tips Some Things You May Care to Try, Especially for Long Distance Cruises. Compiled by Lea Cook (web mistress)
Marking Your Anchor Chain: Whether cruising, chartering, or just weekending on a boat, chances are you will at some point need to anchor. It is always good to know how much rode you will need to be safely anchored. Without markings it is pretty hard to make sure your scope will be five to one or seven to one as needed. The simplest way to do this is just to mark sections of chain (line) using a single color. This could be every 20 or 25 feet. All you need to do is count the number of times you see a colored section of links pass in front of you to know the length. The problem with this is that sometimes we lose count.
To be more accurate and avoid any mistakes (especially if the sun is low on the horizon) I propose a different method: The one I use is pretty simple and allows you to know the length without having to count down as the chain runs off the gipsy.
BLUE=25'
WHITE=100'
RED= 25' Warning
A single blue marking = to 25 feet
Two blue markings = to 50 feet
Three blue markings = to 75 feet
One white marking =100 foot section
Red marking = warning indicating the last 25 feet in the rode.
(For the ease of the visual aid we only marked one link at a time but in reality it is better and easier to spray a section of links as one unit.)
This is also a great time to check if all links, shackles, and swivels are in good shape. As well as making sure the bitter end is tied properly and a seizing wire is securing the shackles.
~Happy cruising
Necessary Items for Cruising, especially long distance Cruises:
A good first aid kit. I've sewn up kids and relatives when we
were boating so my kit is alittle more than you'll need. I keep my first aid kit
in a small tackle box. Some basic items:
Steristrips
Bandaids
Sterile Gauze sponges (2" and 4")
Telfa pads
4" Coban bandage rolls
4" elastikon stretchy adhesive tape
Skin stapler, medium size
Tylenol or an NSAID such as naproxen, orudis, or ibuprofen
Clean dishtowel to make a cravat
Antibiotic ointment--Neosporin with lidocaine.
Sunscreen and aloe vera for sunburn
Immodium or some other antidiarrheal med such as Lomotil
Cold medicine--Dayquill or Nyquill. Nothing ruins a boat trip worse than if the
little ones catch a cold.
Pantyliners--they are clean and absorb well as a dressing.
A small (5") good quality scissors-need to cut the tapes.
Isopropyl alcohol
Tums and ranatidine (Xantac) 150 mg.
Ace bandages
Very fine point tweezers (as mentioned already). Need to dig out the splinters
from old wooden docks
More:
The staples are important. I have extra food on board in case
we are stuck somewhere and grocery stores are not available. Tuna, tuna helper,
canned soup,crackers,canned milk,pancake mix and chili, for example. You never
know know when the fog will set in and you have to slip into a cove and anchor
out the bad weather. carried stuff for the kids so they could draw. As
they got older, we brought board games or "bored" games. They also liked
flashlights to look for fish at night. It's amazing how many swim under the boat
at night. Of course they brought their own fleet of stuffed animals and toys, we
just had to provide an area and way to keep them organized. There is nothing
like stepping on the tail of a small P-51 Mustang in the middle of the night!
OUCH! They usually brought some kind of electronic toy, a Gameboy or whatever
they use these days. That also meant that we had to get a 12v charger too.
For your staples on the boat, include hot chocolate for those cold mornings!
Other staples will include your dishes and silverware of course. But there are
other things that you don't think about like matches, paper towels, regular
towels, dish soap, can opener, alcohol for the stove, etc., We also leave most
of our toiletries (Shampoo, toothbrushes, toothpaste, soap) during the summer
too. That way all we have to do each weekend is pull the cooler off the boat and
the dirty clothes and towels. The next weekend we add the food and clothes.
You might also need to include stuff depending on where you are boating like
inflatable toys, mask, snorkel and fins. Nail clippers Advil/Asprin Canned foods
- Chilli / Tuna Dishes - Corell has served us well and is super easy to
wash and take up very little room. Fresh air/breeze helps for my wife when she
gets a bit weasy underway. Putting her up in the helm chair also helps. Don't
forget the small sewing kit and safety pins.
We take wildlife books with lots of pictures and binoculurs
so the kids can try to identify birds and things they see. I gave our daughter
the old digital camera so she can take her own pictures. Also a Costco size
microwavable mac and cheese is great for kids. I always make sure we have a
chocolate cake on board just for my daughter. If you are going into Canada hit
the customs page and see what is allowed, there are strick regs on food both
into Canada and returning to the US. This includes canned food. Also if you have
animals you will need proof they have had all the shots etc.
The best bet is to take a few overnighters, like you have or will be very soon.
Then you'll know what to leave, what you forgot and can organize yourself each
time you go out. We find that it changes from Spring to Fall and some of the
items are removed or re-appear based on the seasons. You'll figure it out! Oh
yeah, and don't forget the dock chairs!!
Ok this sounds wierd but something you should put in the
First Aid Kit is a couple of condoms... NO not for quickies but for serious
injuries, heavy bleeding.. they're sterile.. Can use them as a turnequette, or
they stretch over a finger, hand or an entire limb even a leg if necessary. They
hold water or ice. Military kits all carry them.
Hot and Cold Packs that activate
Benedryl is a must, both tablet form and ointment
Doug and I carry a Ditch Bag on the hardtop passenger side of our boat, It's a
backpack carried above my head and removes easily. In it we have packets of H20,
dehydrated food, wind up radio, solar blanket, portable first aid kit, flares,
butane lighter, whistle, mirror, folding knife, fish hooks and line, portable
GPS, we'll be adding a 2 way radio before the trip north, it's easilly removed
and off to the dingy we go..
My Admiral gets seasick
so we definitely try to avoid sloppy water. Interestingly, some women get less
queasy as they get older. This is somewhat true for her too. She can tolerate
rough water alittle better now than 15 years ago. Several summers ago we left
Poulsbo and traveled to Everett. The sound was 2-3 foot whitecaps with 20 knot
wind. She was starting to get sick when I had her take over the helm. It really
helped her nausea.
She's tried scopalamine patches, ginger, meclizine, and Seaband wrist bands.
Meclizine and wrist bands seem to work the best, but she still get's a nasty
headache and dizzy. I use to get seasick a lot but since she started using
the electronic band for motion sickness, she has NEVER gotten sick again and I
get into some real rough water once in a while... The one below is exactly the
one she has used since around 1997-98... battery replacement is easy and they
last a couple of years of use... No more pills and sleepiness... The price below
is a bit high as I have seen them just over $100.
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgu...icial%26sa%3DN
WOW, found it for $79...
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgu...icial%26sa%3DN
< click image to visit Roche Harbor Website
This is a regional trick that was passed to me. It works well!