Celestial Navigation For Yachtsmen - Reviewed

Links below at bottom of post

Book the Captain has snoozed upon:  
Celestial Navigation For Yachtsmen, by Mary Blewitt  

How do you use a sextant, take a noon site and do all those calculations to find out where on earth you are?  


Just after WWII, Mary Blewitt (past Secretary of the Royal Ocean Racing Club and then Chairman of the Royal Yachting Association Racing Rules Committee) summed it all up in 50 short pages - concise, clear, down to earth. 

Her work is considered the gold standard on celestial navigation.

If you're thinking of crossing an ocean, it may be the best investment you make. (Well, that and buying a sextant...)


Conclusion
One of the best cruising 'texts' the Can Opener ever bought. The info is timeless.  


Ever read Celestial Navigation For Yachtsmen, by Mary Blewitt? How did you find it? Any good recommendations for other books for the sea library?

--Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

Book Reviews

Previously: Sail Away!
Next: RYA VHF Radio text - Reviewed!
 

Mediterranean Delivery

The Can Opener and I will be joining a crew to deliver a 40 foot catamaran from Spain to Greece. 

The owner wants to reposition his yacht to Greece, so that he and his family can explore the waters around Greece and Turkey for the next little while.

The video above gives a view of a Nautitech 47 catamaran - it looks similar to the one we'll be on.

We can hardly wait!

--Captain Cat 

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

Sailing Season Begins!

The regular Sailing Season Begins!


As we celebrate the opening of yet another sailing season with a tasty gourmand event at the Red Tabby, it's also a signal that the delightful winter season of feasts is winding down.

Last week, I escorted the Can Opener to a wholesome meal at the club trough.  

We dined in cheerful company and were treated to a diminutive though sturdy admiral's oration detailing a lifetime of achievement.

An admirable admiral, though sadly lacking in any sort of catnip about his person or pockets.

I know. I checked*.

--Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can opener)

* Stealthy check executed during dessert course - a quick reconnoitre by means of scaling the admiral's leg, inserting an exploratory paw in his pocket and abseiling back to ground is but the work of a moment for a nimble feline such as myself. 

Though initially unsuccessful - not to worry. Upon seeing my disappointment, Prince 'A' secretly slipped me some of his own stock from his silken purse, and I high-hoed it back from the Head Table to the Can Opener (who it must be noted, upon closer inspection appeared rigid with shock).

The Red Tabby Yacht Club
Previously:  It's Official!

What's The Cruising Kitty Dreaming About?

What's the Cruising Kitty dreaming about?

He's all over the map!

He's dreamin' about...

• The Mediterranean 
• Cruising in Greece: Pluses, Minuses & Quirks
• Greece
• Croatia 
• Spain 
• More Spain  
• La Dolce Vita
• Mallorca
• Menorca
• The Cruising Irish
• Gran Canaria
• The Azores 
• Barbados
• Bermuda   
• Cruising in Oceania

--Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

 

A Big Bunch of Cruising Book Reviews

The Cruising Kitty's Book Reviews

Here's what the Captain has snoozed on and reviewed so far (and that were subsequently assigned to and read by the Can Opener as well).

Cruising Texts / Book Reviews

• Cost Conscious Cruiser

• Capable Cruiser

• Self Sufficient Sailor

• Maiden Voyage

• How to Sail Around the World

• Twenty Small Sailboats to Take You Anywhere

• Psychology of Sailing

• Care and Feeding of the Sailing Crew

• Bryan Willis, The Rules in Practice

• World Cruising Survey

• Sell Up & Sail

   

   

  --Captain Cat
  
  
  (transcribed by the Can Opener)
  
  Cruising Texts
  Next: What's on the First Mate's nightstand?

Cruising Progress Report

Cruising Progress Report: How are we doing?

Here are the key areas in my master plan to get the Can Opener ready for blue water cruising...

...and a quick check on how he's progressed through that plan since August 2011:  

1. The Plan to Get Fit - done!
   
2. The Plan to Get Social - done!
3. The Plan to Get Trained - ongoing!
4. The Plan to Find a Boat that Fits - in progress!
5. The Plan to Get a Boat 
6. The Plan to Refit the Boat 
7. The Plan to Blast Off

 

Will we achieve our goal to get long term blue water cruising by September 2014?

Even the best plans are revised continuously en route. But having a plan in the first place is the best way forward. 

This is our plan. And we're making progress.

--Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

Sail Away! - Reviewed

Book the Captain just finished snoozing on:  
Sail Away! *, by Paul and Sheryl Shard



How do you provision and collect inventory to prepare a yacht to cruise - and what's the cruising life really like? 



Topics Covered

• secrets of successful cruises
• the cost of cruising
• outfitting
• provisioning
• maintaining inventory
• cooking at sea
• personal comfort

Best Part
This book is not set up as an inflexible 'to do' list, but rather as an 'adapt it to you' list. The Shard's realise (for ex.) that everyone eats differently and simply using someone else's shopping list is unlikely to leave you happy. 

So they describe in very useful detail how they tracked their own preferences ashore, and how they created systems to adapt those preferences to life on a boat. 

Then they teach methods to create your own systems that are geared to suit you best. 

Makes sense. We like it!


Wishes
While reading this, we wished we could have copies of the Shard's lists anyways as a good point to start from. Then we would adapt those lists for ourselves.

And lo! They made that possible. There's info in the Appendix on how to order disks with their lists on it/them... 

...but booo! They meant floppy disks. 

It seems this book has not been updated since 1998. A quick check at the publisher's website does not list this book. So it doesn't look like you can still buy these disks, floppy or otherwise.

The book itself, however, is still available on Amazon, and it's info is timeless.



Conclusion
This was the first cruising 'text' the Can Opener ever bought. It's still one of his favourites.



Ever read Sail Away! by Paul and Sheryl Shard? How did you find it? Any good recommendations for other books for the sea library?

--Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

* (not to be confused with Sail Away - no exclamation point - by Nicole Rodriguez...)

Book Reviews

Next: Celestial Navigation For Yachtsmen
Previously: Sell Up & Sail - Reviewed 

Ocean Passage Making

Ocean Passage Making presentation at the Red Tabby

Can't go under it. Can't go over it. Can't go around... 


The First Mate and I tripped lightly last week down to the Red Tabby, eyes aglow, to listen to a presentation chock full of ocean crossing tips. Here are the...


...Highlights


Charts 
You need to have:

• tons of paper charts for the region you are cruising (for an around-the-world race you need an amazing 380 (approx) paper charts on board - which is legally required)
• electronic copies of same
• Broadcast Schedules of the Weather Forecast
• Nautical Almanac - 1 per region
• Pilots 

It costs 1000s £/$ to get all this, so look for as much as possible online - where you can often download it free (and make both paper copies and electronic copies). More and more stuff offered free online every day.

Self-Sufficiency

• On a good boat:
• everything has a back up
• everything is redundant
• eg. backup halyards - alternate tension between 2 halyards every 12 hours to reduce strain.

• Don't rely on water-makers or refrigerators.
• Plan not to rely on them - treat them as an added bonus if you have them and they happen to still work.
• Use baby wipes to keep clean and save water! 

• VHF range is only 25-50 nautical miles max - how will you get info/data, communication outside this range? Make sure you already have what you need before you go.

Preventing breakdowns - Attention to detail

• Constantly do checks - prevention is better than cure.
• Go through scenarios and plan for emergencies 
• what if the rudder breaks? 
• what if a shroud snaps?...
• Build tools and spares inventory with this in mind.
• Prevent chafe on metal, sails and lines before it happens.
• There's lots of chafe on trade wind routes!
  
• Get rid of metal to metal connections - eg.. use spectra lines to tie on shackles to boom.
• eg. Use cable ties or seizing wire to secure shackle pins.

Choosing Crew

• Are they medically fit? Do they get seasick?
• Know and confirm the experience and skill level of your crew in detail.
• Can you rely on them to keep a proper lookout?
• Are they reliable?
• Do they have a long attention span?
• Reliability is more important than navigational ability.
• It's helpful to choose crew with useful, different backgrounds eg medical, mechanical, communications experts...

How will a medical emergency be handled? 

Effective helicopter range is 200 miles offshore - this leaves a big gap in the middle of the ocean where you have to handle medical emergencies on your own.

• Get pre-passage medical training - first aid, wilderness first aid, wilderness dental, pet aid, survival training...
• Choose crew with medical backgrounds, as above.

Clearly these lecture tips do not cover everything you need to know for an ocean passage. But they're good points to think about. It was an evening well spent.

Have you completed an ocean passage? What are some highlights and tips that you recommend?

Are you preparing for an ocean passage? What other topics are you researching?

--Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can Opener) 

Cruising Lectures
Previously: Cruising in Oceania

The Cruising Irish - Destination Dreamin'

Beware of people who dislike cats.

- Irish Proverb

Hmm. The Irish do seem like good solid cruising folk.

Destination Dreamin' of Ireland

And today seems like the right kind of day to consider great places to go sailing and cruising around... Ireland....

--Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

Destination Dreamin'
Next: France - Destination Dreamin'
Previously: Ibiza - Destination Dreamin'


 

It's Official!

The paperwork's done and it's official - we're now full members of the Red Tabby Yacht Club!

We joined in October as temporary members and loved the sailing events, opportunities and Welcome Cocktail Party. It's certainly a friendly crowd round here, full of enthusiasm and those who love sailing as much as we do. 

There's something about a mutual love of boats that really brings folks together.

I'm glad we joined (as I recall Furrball, at the time you emphatically expressed your doubts - something about how many smoked oysters the club fees could alternatively be spent on... No, dear Can Opener, your memory is flawed). 

In fact, I think I feel a song coming on. My rock 'n' roll duet mate, Prince 'A', would approve. I think he said he'd be in town next week... Must practice before we debut it to fans fawning about us at the club bar.

--Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can opener)

The Red Tabby Yacht Club

Next: Sailing Season Begins!
Previously:  MORE Cocktails!

Delivery Crew Team Building

This past weekend, the crew for the Spain-Greece delivery and their significant others met up at the skipper's 500 year old farm house for a spot of team building. I took the Can Opener.

We met, caroused and cooked together in a beautiful old kitchen. A bit of hiking (and a bit of teaching the skipper's odious dogs a thing or two). Some passage planning and a discussion of how the watches will run.

The Can Opener and I left optimistic, invigorated (you get great sleeps in the countryside!) and sincerely looking forward to the voyage and to meeting these guys again.

Not to be underestimated, team building makes a difference.


What kinds of events have you done to build team camaraderie before a voyage? Before any other kind of group work?



--Captain Cat


(transcribed by the Can Opener)


Team Building
Next: Regular Crew Team Building  
Previously: Passage Treats

Cruising Clothing Condensed

Steps in managing clothing inventory


How did this many pairs of jeans happen to the First Mate??
Short answer: Something about being a vegetarian (which he isn't). The Can opener's reply was a bit unclear and muffled through a mouthful of smoked mussels... 

In fact, I'm not convinced he really needs any clothes at all. 
I don't. 

However, the Can Opener seems adamant. What perverse motivation ignites this bizarre drive to adorn remains a mystery. 

Modus Operandi

• toss contents of one drawer or closet onto bed each day
• sort into categories:
1. fat clothes
2. hate it
3. totally worn out and should be rags
4. totally worn out but are sentimental
5. okay but need repair
6. okay

• consolidate like items 
• toss each of #1~5 into their own box and then:
1. recycle
2. recycle
3. make 'em into rags
4. send this box up to the attic/loft (sentiment is important and if you give it away, you can't get it back)
5. keep this box in a place that'll get in yer way till all repairs are complete
6. put it back in the closet, drawer, whatever

Sound easy? Sure. Sort of. But once again, it took time. More time than we budgeted for.  

The Can Opener missed the Cameron Diaz movie we'd been looking forward to for days. (Those Charlie's Angels give you a lot of insight in foreign negotiations. I haven't let the First Mate downsize my wig collection yet - they will clearly be quite useful.)

Fortunately, I was able to report plot developments to him from the TV couch while he toiled on.


How are we doing?

Process ongoing.  


Next Steps

Open the next drawer (or closet) and repeat the process till we're all done. 

We'll be making an inventory list and figuring out what's missing. It'll be good reference for filling in the gaps and for 'clothes provisioning' a yacht later.

We're on our way...


Got any great tips for managing way too many clothes that we should add to our system?



--Captain Cat


(transcribed by the Can Opener)

Downsizing 
Previously: Managing Food Inventory

Sell Up & Sail - Reviewed

Links at bottom below post

Book the Captain just finished snoozing on: 
Sell Up & Sail: Taking the Ulysses Option, by Bill and Laurel Cooper  

How do you move from dreaming about cruising to actually doing it - and what's it really like to live aboard a yacht?


Best Part
The authors' dry delivery style is quite engaging. You get a strong impression of what having drinks at the taverna with them would be like - a lot of fun!

Though it does discuss repairs and some technical topics, really the focus of the book is on the stuff of 'life aboard'. With a palatable ratio of info-to-anecdotes that makes it an enjoyable read.


Wishes
The book we borrowed is copyright 2001. It looks like there is a 2005 edition on Amazon. Still, we wish there was a more recent edition.  

A more up to date and comprehensive tome to invest in (a real biceps builder) would be The Voyager's Handbook, by Beth Leonard.  It's got the soft stuff as well as a ton of technical detail too.


Conclusion
Sell Up & Sail gives a feel for what cruising was like 10 and 20 years ago - and how things have changed.

Apparently it's a lot more crowded and harder to find isolated spots in the Med these days. Since we won't know what we're missing, I guess we won't be too devastated.

But things have changed and up to date info is pretty crucial to get - for instance the Gulf of Aden is listed in this book as a perfectly fine route to sail. Of course, this just ain't currently so. Don't leave home without getting up to date info on crucial safety topics like this!

And the sections on communications equipment and electronics really speak of a bygone age. Technology and brand names have moved on, everything's changed.

So while it was a fun historical romp and we're glad we borrowed it to read, it's probably not the first investment to choose for an up to date cruising library. We'd look forward to looking at an updated edition of this in the future, however. 



Ever read Sell Up & Sail? How did you find it? Any good recommendations for other books for the sea library?

--Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

Book Reviews
Next: Sail Away! - Reviewed

Previously: World Cruising Survey - Reviewed

Ibiza - Destination Dreamin'

 Destination Dreamin' of Ibiza 

 

--Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

Destination Dreamin'
Next: France - Destination Dreamin'
Next: The Cruising Irish
Previously: Menorca - Destination Dreamin'

Managing Food Inventory

First steps in provisioning and managing food inventory


How did this many bottles of beans and spices happen to us??
Short answer: An unspecified number of failed attempts by the Can Opener to become a vegetarian...

You don't just buy the beans and rice, mate. To be a vegetarian, you have to eat them too.

Simultaneously, more than a few of our London friends evacuated to follow their next big dream job - leaving behind surprising amounts of dry goods in their wake. We became the beneficiaries of piles of duplicate bottles of spices and grains...

Yes, indeed. We are good for cinnamon, galangal, couscous and nampla for the foreseeable future.

Modus Operandi

A pretty simple process...

• consolidate like items
• toss/recycle a million glass bottles
• rank by expiry dates
• keep in handy cupboards the oldest of each to use up first (first in first out principle...)
• store back inventory in most difficult to reach cupboards
• and list what we have there

Sound easy? Sure. Sort of. But it took time. More time than we budgeted for. 

The Can Opener missed the first two scenes of the Bruce Lee movie we'd been looking forward to all week.

Fortunately, I was able to carry on supervising him from the TV couch while he finished up.


How are we doing?

Done. 


Next Steps
Now that we know what we have, we can eat down the insane amounts of stores we're sitting on.

We could have made it through the winter under 2 metres of snow and no hope of exiting the windows! Not that that'll ever happen. What with the daffodils pushing up in January and all this year...

The Can Opener should be able to munch through even this gargantuan stockpile by the end of the year. And so he will. Neither of us believe in waste.

We'll be maintaining the inventory lists and noting what and how much we eat this year. It'll be good reference for provisioning a yacht later.

We're on our way...


Have you ever maintained food stock inventories? On land or at sea?
Got any great finetuning tips for managing food that we should add into our system?



--Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

Downsizing
Next: Cruising Clothing Condensed
Previously: Downsizing Books - Can It Be Done?

Downsizing Books - Can It Be Done?

What are we doing?

Here's the decision tree I'm training the Can Opener to use on his books...

1. Has the Can Opener read the book?

• If, yes... 
• is it sentimental?
• childhood book
• gift
• favourite book
• or actually written by a friend? 
• Or is it a reference text?
• sailing
• finance
• language text or dictionary
• travel guide
• ...

• Sentiment and reference, he can keep.
• All else gets donated to the library (or if they won't take it, the local youth hostel).

2. Has the Can Opener EVER read the book?

• If not read... -- whaaaaaattt???? Why has my hard earned catfood been spent on this??!!!
• Will he ever read this?
• If yes, then go to 1.
• If no, then it gets donated. End of story.

Progress
You'd think I'd asked the Can Opener to put wax on his legs and then rip it off before he went cycling again. 


But despite all the yelping and anguish, we are making progress.


And it feels good to donate to the library. Our local biblio-rama is desperately in need of more business tomes and books of every kind.


I even plan to donate my beloved Encyclopedia of Feline Karate Bo, by Sensei Hiro Nekko. I've already learned all the foundation moves anyway and am working on the 'Intermediate' sequel.




It's aaaaall got to fit in a boat that's 30 feet or less. We're on our way...



--Captain Cat


(transcribed by the Can Opener)


Downsizing
Next: Managing Food Inventory
Previously: Downsizing Papers That Breed

World Cruising Survey - Reviewed

Links at bottom below post

Book the Captain just finished snoozing on: World Cruising Survey, by Jimmy Cornell


Who goes cruising and where do they go? What do they sail?
What's it like to participate in the Atlantic Cruising Rally?


Best Part
It's always good to hear from experience and this book is a survey of the experiences of hundreds of cruisers surveyed on just about everything you could possibly want to know about. 

It's got surveys on cruising routes, engines, communication and the tech to do it, first aid, personal prep, safety gear... all laid out - charted, graphed and analysed. And loads of illustrative examples/anecdotes.


Wishes
This book is copyright 2002. We wish there was an up to date version.  

You can find more recent objective surveys on equipment and safety gear put out by the Seven Seas Cruising Association though. And apparently, Practical Boat Owner magazine is good for this too. 


Conclusion
An interesting read. The theory of course is timeless. 

But a lot of the surveys deals with tech and equipment - engines, communications equipment, electronics, safety equipment - and the technology and brand names have moved on, everything's changed.

So while it was a fun historical read and we'll keep it on the shelf, it's probably not the first investment to choose for an up to date cruising library. We'd look forward to seeing an updated edition of this in the future, however.

Ever read World Cruising Survey, by Jimmy Cornell? How did you find it? Any good recommendations for other books for the sea library?

--Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

Book Reviews
Next: Sell Up & Sail - Reviewed

Previously: Bryan Willis, The Rules in Practice - Reviewed