navigation
Study Books for: Coastal Skipper Exam
I’ll probably order some more practice exercise books later too. Serious review starts now…
- Day Skipper for Sail and Power, by Alison Noice
- Yachtmaster for Sail and Power: The Complete Course for the RYA Coastal and Offshore Yachtmaster Certificate, by Alison Noice
- Reeds Nautical Almanac 2012: With Marina Guide 2012 by Andy Du Port and Rob Buttress
- RYA Weather Handbook – Northern Hemisphere by Chris Tibbs and Sarah Selman
- Coastal and Offshore Navigation, by Tom Cunliffe
Book reviews coming soon!
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?
(transcribed by the Can Opener)
Previously: Sail Away!
Next: RYA VHF Radio text – Reviewed!
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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.
Are you preparing for an ocean passage? What other topics are you researching?
Cruising Lectures
Previously: Cruising in Oceania
Study Time
Can Opener: Pretty hard to miss the Team Racing Dinner, Furrball, but… I was thinking the same thing meself…
Can Opener: That sounds incredibly painful.
Can Opener: Hm……… Righty-ho.