How to maintain your shaft seals
There are many factors to maintaining shaft seals that can be used to ensure you don’t have to replace them too often. These tips can assist you in getting the most out of whatever you have to work with and…
Cruising
Dedicated to Cruising the world under sail including destinations, navigation, sailing tips, safety ideas, yacht & multihull reviews along with stories and insights for the sail cruising life in the Mediterranean, Caribbean, Europe, Australia and New Zealand.
Boatie, 84, survives Marcia in a wet suit while boat sinks
The Morning Bulletin. By Melanie Plane. LYING in the grass waiting for Cyclone Marcia to pass, Hugh Hunter prayed for survival. The 84-year-old had taken refuge on the banks of the Fitzroy River after his damaged boat the Mustang started…
Public are asked to search for missing multihull online
News24: Johannesburg – The public can help search for a missing South African catamaran crew through an online tool, their families said on Wednesday. The families fear for the yachtsmen's safety, as they last made contact via satellite phone on…
Winter in America has been particularly harsh this year
You may have seen the images of the cold freeze that has been affecting most of the United States this northern winter. It has not only been much colder than previous it has also hung around for a longer period…
Solo yachtsman runs aground near Ardrossan in Scotland
Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald. A solo yachtsman had a lucky escape on Saturday morning after his vessel ran aground near to Ardrossan Harbour. The Ardrossan Coastguard Rescue Team was alerted to the incident shortly after 11.30pm when they were paged…
Yacht Club Costa Smeralda runs regattas on both sides of the Atlantic
Milan, 27th February 2015. With the start of the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda's sailing season just a few short days away, the Club's busy 2015 calendar was presented to journalists and sponsors at a press conference in Milan's Four Seasons…
My State Australian Wooden Boat Festival over achieves once again
Twenty years after a bunch of friends decided to celebrate wooden boat building the My State Australian Wooden Boat Festival now ranks as one of Tasmania's top tourist drawcards. Over 200,000 visitors to this February's edition of the festival means…
Race across the roof of the world in new Arctic Race
A new yacht race, planned for 2017, will take competitors through the North West Passage from New York to Victoria, British Columbia. The race website claims: Starting in Summer of 2017, STAR teams will sail six race legs with stopovers…
Rottnest Island gets set for the annual Festival of Sail
Picturesque Rottnest Island in Western Australia is the ideal backdrop for a weekend of yachting and social activities. Now in its fifth year, the two day Rottnest Festival of Sail will be held over the weekend of 28 and 29…
Tasmanian arts company highlights seafarers' plight
ABC News reports of an ambitious multi-art production in Hobart focussing on all things maritime. Following on from the many yacht races to Hobart over summer and the My State Australian Wooden Boat Festival, the message behind the production by…
Preparing for long-term offshore cruising
24 to 12 Months from Departure This series covers what it takes to prepare to live aboard a yacht long-term, travel around the world, and live life confidently at sea. We start two years from your departure date, but in…
Reports claim Indonesia is to ease entry permit procedures
A news item on the Indonesian Antara news site is stating that Indonesia will ease entry permits for foreign yachts. This is welcome news for the myriad of yachts that visit those cruising waters not far north of Australia. My…
My State Australian Wooden Boat Festival
The day started cold but the sun shone through shortly after the Red Devils performed its fly past and Hobart turned it up for the second day of the My State Australian Wooden Boat Festival. The Princes Wharf building houses…
Indonesia to ease entry permit procedures for foreign yachts
Antara News. By Aditya E. S. Wicaksono. Batam, Riau Islands (ANTARA News) – Indonesia plans to ease the processes involved in the issuance of entry permits for foreign-owned yachts, to boost the yachting tourism sector. Tourism Minister Arief Yahya said here…
Marion to Bermuda Race organisers dangle America's Cup carrot
Marion, Massachusetts — February 8, 2015: Racers entering in the 20th Marion to Bermuda Cruising Yacht Race that starts June 19, 2015 will earn priority status at the Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy Club (RHADC) to experience the 2017 America’s Cup being…
Ambon is again the destination in September 2015
“The best sailors in the race – the ones that win on handicap” Congratulations to skipper John Mulkearns and his crew aboard Gameset placing 1st on handicap, 2014 Darwin to Ambon Yacht Race and Rally in the racing monohull (IRC)…
Plenty happening on the last day of the Wooden Boat Festival
Kids events continued, including the hilarious fun 'Quick and Dirty Boat Building Race’, boats were pulling down their flags and heading out for the final sail past, pipers piping, buskers of all varieties busking; all set with a backdrop of…
NZ couple fear their 14m yacht may have been stolen and sailed overseas
NZ Herald. By Matthew Theunissen. A $145,000 yacht has vanished and its owners fear it may have been sailed overseas. Retired Whangarei couple Carol and Stephen Holland have owned the 14m cutter Harlech for 13 years and taken it on…
Abrolhos continues to shed light on horror story of Batavia shipwreck
ABC News is reporting a new grave has been discovered on Western Australia's Abrolhos Islands, almost four centuries after the Batavia was wrecked on Morning Ree. The wreck of the Batavia in 1629 led to one of the most horrific…
New sailing regatta for the Gulf of St Vincent in South Australia
A new sailing regatta called the APC “King of the Gulf” will be held on the flat racing waters off Port Vincent in the Gulf of St Vincent in South Australia. This new regatta for both monohulls and multihulls involves…
2014 report on Caribbean crime against yachts published
The Caribbean Safety and Security Net (CSSN) has published its 2014 report on crime against yachts in the region. This year there were 69 incidents reported, the top two being theft and burglary and the top three areas were:St Lucia,…
Satellite imagery better utilised to find missing yachts
Maritime Executive reports that three organisations have figured out how to utilise satellites more effectively when searching for missing boats or even airplanes. A space scientist at the University of Leicester in the U.K., in collaboration with the New Zealand…
US Coast Guard rescues 10 people in two separate incidents
PORTSMOUTH, Va. – The Coast Guard rescued five people Friday from a sailboat after the sailboat’s mast broke approximately 200 miles off the coast of North Carolina. Watchstanders at the Coast Guard 5th District Command Center in Portsmouth received notification…
Entries open and NOR released for Sail Port Stephens 2015
The Notice of Race is online and entry open to owners of eligible cruising and IRC boats looking for the perfect fusion of sailing and family time at Sail Port Stephens, April 13-19, 2015. With the Audi IRC Australian Championship…
How did the Clipper Cup get from Hawaii to Port Douglas?
The Clipper Cup was once contested on the waters of Hawaii. Now it's the prized trophy at Port Douglas Race Week in Far North Queensland. How did this valuable lump of silverware make such a journey? The yacht race that…
Swiss expedition to study trash in world’s oceans
Swissinfo.ch A Swiss-led, state-of-the-art trimaran yacht will set sail on March 15 as part of a research expedition to study the impact of plastic pollution on the global marine environment. It will focus on five trash ‘vortexes’ located in three…
Dates announced for 80th Round Barbados Race Series
Bridgetown, Barbados (28 January, 2015): Following the success of the Mount Gay Round Barbados Race Series that concluded last week, the dates of next year’s event have been confirmed for 16-24 January 2016. With overseas competitors from 11 nations representing…
AMSA working to increase Indian Ocean search and rescue capability
The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) commenced its search and rescue (SAR) capability partnership program this week with counterpart agencies in Sri Lanka, the Maldives and Mauritius. This program is being delivered as part of the Department of Foreign Affairs…
Bay of Islands charts to blame for loss of yacht says owner
The Northern Advocate. By Imran Ali. An experienced boatie who was rescued off the Northland coast after his yacht struck rocks and sank has blamed poor navigation charts and lights that failed to identify hazards at sea. The historic yacht…
Labour of love as pair restore beautiful wooden boat in Hobart
936 ABC Hobart. By Fred Hooper. Tied up at Constitution Dock in Hobart is the 1942 tall ship Rhona H, the self-confessed labour of love and life-changing project for a former Queensland resident. Julie Porter moved to Tasmania in 2010…
New boat harbour at Cape Leeuwin makes cruising Western Australia safer
Cape Leeuwin, the south-western point of mainland Australia, is one of the three great southern capes, along with Cape Horn at the tip of South America and the Cape of Good Hope in Africa. For cruisers attempting to circumnavigate Australia,…
Croatia First regatta and rally for Michael Coxon
Positioned between a grand prix overseas regatta and a cruising rally is a brand new limited entry one design event due to start from the town of Split in Croatia on June 13, 2015. In between Australian offshore seasons and…
Magnetic pole shifts, Deckman publishes software correction
In case you had not noticed, the north magnetic pole has been shifting lately. So much so that B&G have published an update to the Deckman world magnetic model. You can check your Deckman magnetic variation at any time relating…
Vee Ess 70th anniversary reunion details announced
The Vee Ess Association in conjunction with the Vaucluse Yacht Club are hosting the 70th reunion on the evening of March 7th at the V.Y.C. All current and former V.S. sailors are invited. Entry is $20 per person at the…
Win an action camera and join the video phenomenon
The video recording market has been a growth market for quite a few years now. While some products stand out as the best known, there is a number of products that provide the same video and still photography but at…
Last minute dash for start of Mount Gay Round Barbados Race Series
Bridgetown, Barbados (16 January, 2015): With teams continuing to arrive all day in time for the start of Mount Gay Round Barbados Race Series tomorrow, the Bajan party scene kicked off early this evening with a steel band and Mount…
The size of gigantic sea creatures may have been over-estimated, study says
The Utah People's Post. By John Wilson. A new scientific paper reveals that most giant creatures lurking in the world’s oceans may have never been accurately measured by past research. The new paper also provides a set of more up-to-date…
Happy crews enjoy Antigua after Christmas Caribbean Rally
A successful end to the second Christmas Caribbean Rally (CCR 2014) sees elated crews and their shore support teams enjoying Antigua to the full. Eight boats and almost 50 crew safely completed the 2850nm crossing from Marina Rubicon in Lanzarote…
Shipwrecked Australian yacht crew helped by Indonesians on remote tropical island
105.7 ABC Darwin. By Emilia Terzon An Australian yachtsman who lost a treasured boat at sea has described his rescue off a remote Indonesian tropical island as a “sweet and sour experience”. Cairns man Shaun Sims and his French…
Mount Gay Round Barbados Series prepares for a start
Bridgetown, Barbados (8 January, 2015): With just over a week until the start of 2015 Mount Gay Round Barbados Race Series (16-24 January), the party atmosphere on the beautiful Caribbean island of Barbados is beginning to heat up. Organised by…
