Steve and Linda write a regular column for SetSailors from wherever they happen to be. Join in as they cruise the world and discuss topics of interest to sailors everywhere. Here you’ll find their articles dating from 1996 to the present.
We’ve been working with 3D supremo Ryan Wynott now for an intense year and a half, yet we’ve never met. So with a demanding schedule and tasks at hand requiring the closest collaboration, Ryan left his Canadian winter sanctuary for an arduous trip to the Sonoran desert, where we are presently moored. Read the rest »
After a very busy week in Whangarei, Todd and I were treated to a home-cooked meal and a walk on the beach yesterday evening.
Yesterday Todd took Buffalo Nickel‘s owners over to Marsden Cove for some close quarter maneuvering drills. The day was a success. Read the rest »
Todd and I landed in Whangarei yesterday morning – where we were greeted by FPB 64-7 Buffalo Nickel‘s proud new owners, Stan and Valerie Creighton. Read the rest »
Having grown weary with and needing a break from a long and arduous design cycle, a meeting of the executive committee was called and a weekend away to clear cobwebs was deemed prudent. In olden days this would have indicated a sojourn afloat to a bucolic hideaway known to a relatively few enthusiasts, say Catalina Island. Presently bereft of personal watercraft, Read the rest »
It is that time when the real fun begins, the execution of which separates men from boys, and where the wheeling is now in earnest.
We like the matte gray unobtrusive looks of an aluminum hull that has been exposed to sea water for a year or so. But occasionally after a season of roughing it and sharing the odd harbor rafted to commercial or government vessels,
Some of you know that I’ve been swimming through the seas of the music world for quite a while. Blame my parents for bringing me up on a boat with lots of great music: Janis Joplin, the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Bob Dylan, Stevie Wonder…Today I’m proud to say I’ve just added a new album to their collection. Read the rest »
Are you caught up in the global warming debate? There is another theory, less-talked-about, that suggests we could soon be entering an ice age. Glacial ice core samples show that the onset of cooler weather may happen quickly. Consider this alternative, starting with the photo above. And those which follow.
Being without a boat to think, dream, and plan about is a condition we try to avoid. But since this is the current state of affairs, we’ve been hard at work on all things FPB, Read the rest »
What’s it really like coming to grips with a new yacht? Read the rest »
Big things are happening in the Far North of New Zealand. Moving day for FPB 64-8 has arrived. Hull number eight in this series has been moved out of its shed leaving additional room Read the rest »
Want a taste of the FPB cycle? The following video gives an idea of the birthing process… Read the rest »
One of the lessons we learned early in our cruising careers is that it is the people – land based, and cruisers – rather than the places, which make this lifestyle so wonderful. This post is about a special couple who are the modern definition of iron crews in wooden ships, and their remarkable yacht, Sina, shown above in a storm off Cape Horn.
Dean Gunson, Operations Manager at Circa, is showing off a test section of rolled aluminum plate. Read the rest »
Sandy and John Henrichs, the owners of FPB 64-5 Tiger, are experienced cruisers who have filled their FPB 64 with interesting details, a few of which you will see here.
At the risk of being repetitive, we thought you might like another look at the highest form of engine room art, this time FPB 64-6 Grey Wolf. Read the rest »
Even after all the hours spent working with the Wicked FPB 97 to date, we were not prepared for the scale impact when viewing 97-1 in person. Helping us adjust to this new sense Read the rest »
Yesterday evening we were aboard the sixth FPB 64, Grey Wolf and thought a few of her details might be of interest. Read the rest »
We’ve been wrestling with how to make SetSail more user friendly for both longtime SetSailors and newcomers. Sarah, our technical Guru (amongst other duties), has been working with this for the past year. The new look is the result of those labors. We are not yet ready to share, but the new year will bring new exciting FPB developments with application Read the rest »
Your SetSail team will be reporting next week from Down Under. If we find ourselves with spare time we’ll see if we can get a look at the 72s trialing on Auckland harbor. This America’s Cup promises to be the most interesting ever. Read the rest »
Over the years we have had many tools with which to predict performance, some more accurate than others. Read the rest »
The long awaited fourth edition of Bob Beebe’s Voyaging Under Power is now available. Read the rest »
In order for search and rescue authorities to respond in a timely fashion your EPIRB(s) must be correctly registered Read the rest »
We’ve been inundated with year end paperwork Read the rest »
Ian Beveridge shot this image a few hours ago Read the rest »
We’ve always looked upon the holidays as a time for reflection. Read the rest »
As the holidays approach (Hannukah ended last night for those of you lucky enough to get eight nights of presents!) Read the rest »
From some of the most difficult uphill conditions we have ever seen to extremely powerful rain squalls, the past 52 hours have afforded us a wide array of conditions. The uphill sea states previously discussed gave us valuable insight into hull shape optimization for minimizing discomfort, and while we have an excellent handle on this with Wind Horse, the FPB 64s, and the Wicked FPB 97, we are always looking for ways to improve.
After sending off the post last night, the sea state became even more contumacious. Read the rest »
With all this boat building on SetSail recently, and before that bucolic cruising in Maine and down the IntraCoasal Waterway, you may get the impression that we have become soft in our old age. Read the rest »
Pete and Debby Rossin own FPB 64 Iron Lady, and write a very interesting blog about their travels and goings-on. Read the rest »
We are headed out to have Thanksgiving with the family in Atwater Village, California. Read the rest »
“Against the Wind…With his new powerboat design, world cruiser Steve Dashew continues a lifelong pattern of challenging the status quo.”
–Soundings Magazine
Since launching, Wind Horse has comfortably chauffeured us well over 50,000 miles.. Read the rest »
We’ve put together a live web view of Wind Horse‘s “vital stats”, to track how she is doing as Hurricane Sandy passes by while she is hauled out at Triton Marine in Beaufort, North Carolina. This data comes from the Maretron N2K View system via their Cloud Server.
Many of the yachts traversing the ICW use it as a hide out from the vagaries of ocean passaging. Read the rest »
As reported earlier, we have been using Maretron’s N2K View aboard Wind Horse to get up to speed on this product, which may be seeing more sophisticated implementation in the FPB fleet. Read the rest »
With all the election talk and debating going on here in the good ‘ol US of A recently, we got to thinking: how could we get in on the fun? Read the rest »
Our starboard engine has been running a touch cooler than the port, so we pulled the thermostats to check them.
When we see frontal clouds like this it gets us to thinking. Read the rest »
When we started with the solar panel project on Wind Horse, we were 100% certain we would use the panels only in flat mode, unless they were in storage configuration at the dock (in the past we have always thought that tracking was not worth the effort). We have previously reported that substantial increases in output were recorded when the panels were squared to the sun. Now, with the Maretron N2K view data available on our iPads, we can play with tilting/angling the panels and see results as we adjust.
Nope, I’m not talking about the movie – beautiful blue color in the above shot by Carol Parker notwithstanding. As a matter of fact, your genial author couldn’t make it through the unbelievably tedious sci-fi re-telling of Pocohantas. No, we here at SetSail are big fans of The Avatar Logs, the blog and photo site of Carol Parker and her adventures with husband Mike aboard FPB 64, Avatar. Read the rest »
We’ve been out the past few days, testing the latest NAIAD stabilizing software on Wind Horse. We’ve had 20-to-30 knots blowing straight into Narragansett Bay with opposing and slack current, so a variety of sea states: from steep to “holy cow, look at that!” As you can see by the track above, we have been taking the waves at all angles, from dead ahead, to on the stern, and everything between. At the end of this post there are a couple of short videos.
We had a heads up this morning that the end of the season Windjammer Jamboree, a get-together of all the working sailing vessels in the area Read the rest »
We’ve known Ed Dubois for a long time, since before he made his name with early mega sailboats like Aquel, Read the rest »
Most of the Maine windjammers don’t have an engine, which is the way things should be in the best of all possible worlds. They maneuver in and out of some very tight harbors–Camden comes to mind–fitting their unwieldy hull shapes and tiny (in scale) rudders into some surprising situations.
For the most part they maneuver with the aid of their long boats, most of which are used pusher fashion, as you would a tug on the seen of a barge.
We are anchored in Rockland Harbor, Maine, it’s blowing near gale force and raining of course, courtesy of what’s left of hurricane Issac. A speck on the horizon grows rapidly in size, as a schooner fore-reaches towards shelter. Outer and inner jibs drawing, main and foresail taut, gaffs beautifully twisted off, she is a sight to behold.
We were cruising down Maine’s Eggemoggin Reach, having a Skype conversation with New Zealand regarding the exhaust system on the FPB 97, when we noticed a cool looking roach profile heading towards us. Having just spent several invigorating days watching working schooners with gaff rigs and topsails, an early platform not too far from the most modern high roach mainsails, we thought “Wow, look how similar these are.”
As the profile drew closer it turned into a rig we knew well, the Sundeer 64 cutter. This was the yacht we’d earlier noticed moored in Smith Cove, a sistership to Raven.
Last night it was blowing a gale, raining of course, and we moved to the southern (windward) end of Rockland Harbor. Read the rest »
Yesterday was supposed to be a quiet day, one in which we could regain our equilibrium, which had been overwhelmed by the previous evening’s sunset. The day started off well enough.
We’ve got high pressure to our west generating northerly winds, so the solar panels are facing south, an ideal situation for a little angle on the panels. With the sun due to arrive over the equator in a few days we eyeballed 45 degrees. The results were immediate and positive.
We have been witness to wonderful sunsets over the past 35 years of cruising. From Cocos Keeling in the Indian Ocean, to Fatu Hiva in the Marquesas, Prince William Sound in Alaska, to Greenland’s Disco Bay, we’ve been thrilled, chilled, and awe struck. But nothing compares to what we just experienced here in prosaic Smith Cove, in the state of Maine, USA.
Hurricane Leslie is forecast to give Maine a wide berth, and make a direct hit on the eastern corner of Newfoundland. But keep a weather eye peeled. This is a complex weather scenario and it would not be unheard of for Leslie to shift course more to the west.
We have a stack of work to do for the FPB 97, an article due today for a magazine, our accountants need data from us with which to take care of taxing matters, and we are faced with a dilemma. When we should be hard at tasks on the critical path, the light is distracting us from our responsibilities.
We are back in Camden for Windjammer Weekend, and to meet up with cruising friends. The harbor is crowded, with all manner of traffic coming and going.
It is a lovely Saturday evening in peaceful Pulpit Harbor. There are a few folks out for a row, two kayaks are paddling nearby, and a trim cutter has dropped her hook to windward of us. Although there is 100% overcast, the sun has created enough illumination to cast a golden sheen on the calm water, with just a hint of ripple from the dying breeze.
And then there is this “Picnic” boat blasting out of the harbor, throwing a substantial enough wake to roll Wind Horse, and really get our smaller neighbors going. This is exactly the type of behavior sailors expect from powerboat drivers.
Of course there are a few other things under the heading of bad manners, or perhaps lack of knowledge, that get more polite mariners exercised. Now, we know that no SetSail visitor would fit into this category. But you may know someone who does, so in an effort to educate the lower classes of yachting, we offer the following suggestions.
Southwest Harbor, Maine, and a new experience for Wind Horse. Having now covered close to 60,000 miles, this is her first acquaintance with a mooring ball.
We are at anchor, it is quiet, just three other cruising yachts in this bay, and the sun is shining for a change. With the sun now dropping towards our neighbors in the Southern hemisphere, or the earth tilting if you prefer being accurate, the sun’s angle to our flat solar panels is less than optimal. But is it worth adjusting the solar array angle?
We are anchored in Roque Island Sound, a large, almost enclosed bay with a long beach, about which guide book writers and locals enthuse. But for us it is the sunsets and sunrises more than the beach that get the juices flowing.
If you look carefully, you will see short bits of red wool attached at various places around the aft end of Wind Horse. We are using these to give an indication of air flow when apparent wind is on the bow, and to see if the air flow can be modified by angling the solar array. Although we were using woolies 40 years ago on our sails and superstructure as flow indicators, and more recently on glider wings, we didn’t think about this for the boat until last week.
It is no secret that one of the things we enjoy most about cruising are the wildlife experiences that come our way. Having become temporary inhabitants of Pulpit Harbor, we have taken more than a passing interest in the efforts of the osprey parents to get their chicks into the air. Several times a day a parent would land at the rock nest which guards the harbor entrance, and vigorously flap its wings, setting an example for their progeny. There had been no takers, until today. We have now had the immeasurable pleasure of watching a young osprey experience the joys of aviation for the first time.
We’ve been fascinated by–and worried about–lightning strikes onboard since we saw the aftermath of a strike on an almost-new yacht in New Guinea. It had a piece of hull blown out below the waterline and lost most of its electronics/electrical gear.
This is not an easy subject to discuss, and there are many different opinions on preparedness. What follows are our thoughts after more than a few years of inquiry and observation. It is certainly not expert advice! We suspect that amongst our SetSail family there exists more specialized know-how, and we invite comments to educate us all on this subject.
This evening we have three yachts anchored with riding sails set. Riding sails being an important part of any cruising yacht’s equipment, and it being dark, we thought we’d combine a photographic test with some comments.
Pulpit Harbor, Maine is one of those destinations that can catch you in its web. There is room to anchor, it is well-protected from all but one direction, wild life a-plenty is in residence, interesting boats to study come and go, and there are friends new and old with whom to discourse. Add good communications to the outside world, and big city life in Camden and Rockland an hour away by boat, and you have an optimum cruising destination.
The big question with our solar power calculations has been: what would we see in the real world? The 320 Watts per panel (of which there are four) is the theoretical maximum. You then degrade for shadows, less-than-perfect angle of panel and sun, dirt on the panels, and clouds. We have assumed Maine would be an interesting test with its summer fog. The data has been surprising, and how it relates to the FB 97 assumptions even more so.
If there was ever a test for the re-modeled pilot house aboard Wind Horse, it would involve piloting in thick Maine fog. Between navigation, keeping watch for other vessels, and dodging lobster pots, it is essential for crew, visibility, and electronics to work efficiently together.
You will recall we added temperature sensors to the raw water pumps on the engines, and to the exhaust water injection elbows. The concept was that this should provide early indication of a cooling issue. With a five degree F delta shown above, we decided to check the port engine pump.
We’ve been hanging out on the hook in Nantucket, a bit to the north of the summer mob scene. In spite of dreadfully slow internet service on both AT&T and Verizon, this is a lovely spot. The sunrises, as you can see above, have been wondrous. And by getting up at 0445 for the start of the morning twilight show, internet bandwidth is available.
We’ve just completed our first passage in what seems like forever: Beaufort, North Carolina to Nantucket Island off the coast of New England. This gave us a chance to work with our newly installed NMEA 2000 (N2K) information system and Maretron’s software, as well as try out the newly enclosed flying bridge. The screen shot above was taken after rounding Cape Lookout, heading for Cape Hatteras, and doing a little surfing, which is always good for the soul after a long hiatus in the boat yard.
Mother Nature has been sending us a not-so-subtle message. “Enough with the boat testing and fine-tuning” she seems to be saying, “it is time to move on.” Having now completed a vigorous sea trial, and checked things back at the dock, we have a date with US Customs for clearance.
It turns out that Rigid had some quality issues with their first batch of marine LED spotlights, so ours have been replaced. This gave us the opportunity to change from the Rigid spots to floodlight design, as our initial testing indicated we wanted more light in close to the bow, and there was sufficient throw to be useful in lighting up an anchorage shoreline.
With the move to underwater exhausts, we have no visual indication of water flow in the exhaust system. We do have an electronic flow alarm on each engine, and temperature alarms on each injection elbow, but not seeing the water flow has made us uncomfortable. Thanks to Mark Fritzer we now have an answer.
We are still tied to the dock, fine-tuning new systems, playing with the exhaust, experimenting with new motor mounts, and delving into various and sundry minor electrical/electronic upgrades. When we started this last fall we were just going to do a bit of preventative maintenance, with what we thought was a perfect cruising boat. Then we got ambitious, and decided to trade a bit of cruising time for an enhancement in cruising effectiveness later on. We would never have gone down this road if it hadn’t been for the pleasant folks with whom we have to work, and the beautiful surroundings.
You are looking at what Ponce de Leon was seeking, the secret to long life. Think you we exaggerate?
The past week has seen the new Marine Air system working in a heat wave, with Wind Horse devoid of awnings or even hatch covers: a worst case scenario for sure.