We all dream of carefree cruising but the reality of boat maintenance and trip prep can get in the way of that. Three things that greatly lessen the stress for us.
When You're Underway
Life underway is full of excitement and fun, but can be challenging too.
Here's some of our "standard operating procedures" that reduce the stress and increase the enjoyment.
Boat Maintenance: O-Rings
Why replace o-rings annually, even if they don’t appear to be cracked? Contaminated fuel and engine damage are only a few of the problems you’ll avoid.
Cruising & Plans
Cruising plans are often said to be written in the sand at low tide. It took us a couple of years to understand what that really meant.
Boat Communication Headsets: The Marriage Savers
Good headsets transform the most stressful moments aboard. Here’s why they’re essential gear and what we actually use.
Stop Rattling Doors on a Boat
Got a door that rattles when underway — or even when a wave hits at anchor? How we stopped one that drove us nuts!
LED Bulbs for Our Nav Lights
Want to change your boat’s navigation lights to LED bulbs? Confused about where you should use cool white, warm white or colored bulbs? Here are the answers.
Quieting Vibration Noises
The fire extinguisher rattling on the wall whenever the engine was running was going to drive me nuts. A 30-second DIY solution that’s almost unnoticeable!
Emergency Motor When Traveling by Boat
Your dinghy motor can get the “big boat” to a safe place . . . not very quickly, mind you, but it’ll do it with these two techniques.
Having Back Up Plans When Boating
We’ve learned to ALWAYS have back up plans. If we’re lucky, we don’t need them. But sometimes we do . . .
Guide to Boat Navigation Markers
How do you know what all those markers mean? Keep this downloadable PDF next to the helm and you’ll be able to quickly find anything!