We came across this boat during our 4th of July hike to Fort Whitman on Goat Island.
They were barely stuck when we first saw them, but within a few minutes it was clear they weren't getting off until the tide came back up. I can't imagine the port prop and shaft survived,
If this is you, our hearts go out to you, it must have been a rotten day. (make a comment, tell us what happened below, if you want to)
One of four gun emplacements at Fort Whitman on Goat Island.
Not too long ago I posted that I needed a new gps, but couldn't remember why I needed a new one. Sound familiar!
(update) I remember now, the curser quits moving while it redraws charts and sometimes it takes awhile to catch up, so its not really broken just too slow.
Anyway I've been shopping gps units and have been shocked and irritated at the manufacturers high prices and total arrogance.
This is the way I see it!
They sell us a product that does the same thing a highway unit does (mostly) for ten times the price.
They then make us buy maps separately because the pre-loaded chart shows the shoreline as a straight line, and small islands are skipped completely.
Then to top it off they quit supporting (selling chips) for older units forcing us to buy all new stuff, and start all over again.
And the stuff they make us buy are all in one units called mfd's (multifunctiondisplays) as if giving it a fancy name makes it a good idea. Well most of us have tripped and broken a few eggs and when they are all in one basket, you know what happens. If that was too to hard grasp, it means they all broke. It means when your mfd quits, you have lost your gps, your sounder, maybe your compass, certainly your chart. Why buy a paper chart when you have a $5,000 chart plotter. oh yeah your knot meter too, but who cares how fast your going when your lost. Did I mention radar, yeah for another 5k+ you can get it in the same basket.
They're laughing all the way to the bank while we just gobble up their over priced products.
And this is what I did:
I bought a gps antenna (usb) and chart plotter program for my laptop, total cost $99. Of course I already had a $350 lap top with a 15 inch screen BTW. (awesome detail)
it came with a dvd with every NOAA chart published
every chart is the most recent updated published
it works great and has all the detail the others choose to spoon feed us $350 at a time because NOAA is where the charts come from in the first place.
as a bonus I got chart number one (free online anyway) just a click away as well as tide prediction, coast pilot, all part of a full feature chart plotter navigation suite.
and even better I have a copy loaded onto my home computer with a 27 inch screen so I can cruise around when I'm not on the boat.
and if it quits, I can send it back to Dell (the lap top) or pick up a new one and load the program on as many computers as I want
Now here's the down side: (none) okay, it is not 3D.
I still need a separate sounder. (have two, that's a good thing)
and a stand alone compass. (got it) another good thing
I'm afraid I will be keeping my charts handy in case my laptop screen goes blue or battery's go dead.
redraw times are instantaneous, darn.
I still plan to keep my handheld, ( you know, eggs in a basket and all).
I'm worried someone will break into my boat thinking I have a fancy chart plotter hidden away.
I wont have any discontinued phone numbers for shore side businesses in my expensive discontinued chart plotter.
I'm sure there must be more negatives.
OK, here's one, my lap top is not designed for salt water use. Hmmm? you know it cost $350, and that's not counting converting to boating units. (I think the boat unit conversion is multiply 7X, or is it 10X.)
Installation was a snap:
Just plug in the usb antenna and set on ledge by window, open laptop and power up.
In about five seconds the red menu box turns black meaning satellites are detected and locked on.
One last point:
It works while in the car, but there are no detailed highway maps, only main highways on charts. I guess NOAA figures boats will stay in the water.
I am really excited about this new toy (I mean tool)(nav aid)(gps)(chart plotter)
$99 chart plotter, that's less boat bucks than, than, than, well its less than anything I can think of except an led bulb I just bought for $ 8 plus shipping.
This is the pixlated logo for the Sea Clear program
I think you can download the sea clear program for free if you're techie prone. (I bought what someone had put on a disk)
http://www.sping.com/seaclear/
Update, I have switched to a different free online program called "openCPN" It works fine and I am a happy camper again.
Click below for a satellite view of Cap Sante, Anacortes
I need some help, (opportunity knocks) I know our last cruise had some gps problems but I don't remember the specifics. All I really remember was that I decided I should get a new gps because my old Magellan could not be trusted or was failing somehow. Being a frugal boater and not having unlimited resources makes it difficult to shell out $400+ for a hand held battery eating device I only use in the fog or to measure distance to my next anchorage. I stopped by a web site or fifty and came away more confused after reading reviews from techies, hunters, hikers, and arm chair skippers. I wish I could just rely on someone to tell me what to buy after hearing my list of wants.
it needs to be battery powered, aaa or aa with a 12V helm plug in
rugged enough to be dropped once in awhile (water resistant too)
day light visible display about 2.5" or bigger (ok a lot bigger)
on board chart for my area (duh) and not an extra $200 fee, and they must include Canada's Vancouver and Gulf islands.
it needs to display nav aids at a minimum, just like my chart
I want a speedometer and bearing readout
I want it to work inside the cabin, or at least by the windows
it needs to boot up in less than 5 minutes
I like my nav aids in color, especially the red ones, but not if it's too many $$$
I want to have local level streets shown for hikes
it should fit in my pocket
it should be dependable, and last, and last, and last
I'm sure I have other wants, I'll add later, here is what does not matter to me (much) (maybe)
upgrade ability
connectivity to a laptop, or chart plotter
altimeter
emergency radio or locator beacon (if it costs boat dollars)
e-mail, forecasts or anything confusing that is more dollars
more memory for charts of other areas
phone numbers of business, etc if it's extra $$
mfd, multifunction display or depth or radar, (just go away, your too wealthy for this blog)
floating is nice, so is waterproof but I can pass if more $$
Are we getting an idea that costs are paramount to me?
About gps and the San Juan trailer sailor.
In my opinion you can get by without a gps just like boaters have done for centuries, but it is a really handy piece of equipment, and fun to share info with others on board, and truly a marvelous aid in foggy conditions. What you can not do without, is a chart, a compass, a depth sounder, pfd's and all the other Coast Guard required safety gear.
Okay, lest I have mislead someone, I believe you need a gps in the fog but you could simply stay in port or go another direction. Boating blindly in fog with any current is a recipe for disaster.
In keeping with this sites mission, I thought just a few (all I know) bits of information are in order. If you're an old salt, skip right past this post, but first timers or part-time first mates may find something useful. Aids to navigation are the road signs of our waterways, and just like driving a car down the highway you wouldn't think of not knowing or understanding some basic safety rules. Consider a three year old driving toward you on the road, he can't reach the brakes, he can't read the stop sign, he doesn't know which side of the road to drive on. Now picture yourself driving your shiny new boat in a busy waterway or dangerous channel. No brakes, check!, confusingstriped buoys, check!, parallel park a boat, oops, check!. You owe it to other boaters to understand a few rules,or at the very least have lots of liability insurance. Speaking of insurance, does your insurance cover damage to your boat and passengers and the mega monster and passengers that you hit?
The three R's (3 aaarrr's) rrr. is a nautical mnemonic you should memorize "Red, Right, Returning"That's it, everyone knows it, everyone uses it, so should you.
Another cool nautical mnemonic for you is, "a good red wine is port"which will remind you that all boats running lights will have a red on the port side bow, which leaves green for the starboard side bow 3R's "red, right, returning"means to me, keep the red buoys on my right when returning from sea. So this means keep the green ones on your left. Returning from sea would also be heading up river. As a practical usage, one would approach and enter a strange marina keeping the red markers on his right. See, already you're keeping off the rocks. Of course there are a few places where local conditions dictate other rules. For example, Swinomish Channel has red buoys on the right at both ends of the passage. What good is knowing which side of a boat (or big ship) the red and green lights are on? I'll tell you why but first you need to turn off the sun and go boating at night, next when you see a red light coming at you adjust your course so you don't collide. OK, now what if its a green light is coming towards you? OK, now what if the green light changes to red and then back to green? What if the light is both green and red? I'm just a little confused and so are others. Out on the water these are the signals that boaters use to tell others what their intentions are, and there is no confusion if you remember a few rules. Remember this "a good red wine is port"It means the red light is on the left side (port) of the boat. Following normal rules of the road you would meet other boats keeping to the right, just like on the highway, so you pass each other red to red (port to port). OK when you see a red, then green, then red changing again, and again, it means they are turning back and forth. A steady red/green at the same time means the other vessel is more or less pointed at you. OK, now when you wander back and forth steering your boat like a drunken... you can imagine what message your lights are sending out over the dark waters. Some wisdom learned the hard way: When navigating in darkness and the lights you are watching go out (as in you can't see them suddenly) it may mean something is in the water between you and the lights, let's see what could be blocking the view. A headland, another boat, a reef or rock, a piling, your crews head. What it means is you better stop or slow down and figure out immediately why the lights are blinking. Just for fun I looked up some other sayings: When all three lights I see ahead, I turn to Starboard and show my Red: Green to Green, Red to Red, Perfect Safety -- Go Ahead.
Red over Red The Captain Is Dead Vessel not under command
Danger Signal: Blast quick five
To stay alive This is the danger signal, to be given if you think there is confusion or imminent danger of a collision. It's also the signal the ferry boat will blast at you if you're being stupid.
"I wonder if there's any red port wine left," OK, I got it now, red on left and port means left.
Below are a few buoys that need to be understood
The top band marks the preferred channel
Safe water, the above buoys may be passed on either side
Stay away, these buoy mark rocks and bad things.
(check your chart)
The below buoys are your sign posts,
odd numbers on green, even on red,
the same numbers are on your chart.
Red Right Returning 3rrr's
The above striped marker demands your attention, slow down or stop
until you figure out where you are.
Many times individuals will make a buoy/marker out of a jug or old fender.
Do yourself a favor and use caution, there is a reason for the marker, and watch out for a trailing line if its floating free, you don't need something wrapped around your propeller.
If you had a chart, you would be able to spot nav. aids on chart
and figure out where you are and what to do.
I use NOAA chart number 18421, it has an 80,000 scale. I prefer this chart because it shows most of the area I like to cruise on one chart. You may wish to have a larger scale and more charts
By the way, if you're using your chart for trip planning purposes you may like non navigation charts/maps better. We find a fish-n-map chart inexpensive and very useful.
Our favorite for planning is a full color waterproof laminated tourist map with topo lines, but does not show depth or rocks.
A warning some boaters don't heed,
Please don't take off anywhere with just your chart plotter or portable gps, iphone, or whatever gadget is popular today. You really need to have a hard copy chart or map. (and a compass too) If it just sits rolled up in the corner that's fine. You probably don't use your whistle, flares, pfd's, or any number of emergency items either, but you still carry them.
Click below for a satellite view of Rosario Resort
