Most people who go cruising will only be on one boat for the majority of the time. Sundowners don’t count as “being on another boat”! To truly experience another boat, you need to live on it and travel far and long on it to really get the feel for it.
we have been offered this opportunity just recently to cruise as guests on an Amel Super Maramu, a 53 foot ketch that was designed to be the perfect cruising yacht.
I must say, it really does live up to its expectations! We are sailing from El Ejido in Spain to Ibiza over the next several weeks.
Having been cruising for three years on our classic Morgan 45 from 1968, we fins this opportunity to be unique and rewarding.
We know what Cruising is like with a traditional boat with an electric motor, now we get to see what it’s like on a modern boat with a diesel and roller furling sails.
Update on How We Are Doing
Hello everyone, I haven’t had much internet access as of late, and I’m about to have a whole lot less internet for the next month.
We had our little van adventure that took a different turn by the global Corona Virus pandemic, but we are now safely back at the boat in the marina. We have been working like crazy to get ready to shove off and sail to Cape Verde on the Atlantic coast of Africa, but first, we are about to embark on a different journey.
A friend has offered us passage on his boat into the Mediterranean Sea to Ibiza and Formentera. This is an amazing opportunity for us, but it will be a month of “cruising life” as most people typically experience.
Our trip so far has been about traveling and sightseeing, while getting there solely by the power of wind, as our electric motor does not have the range to set out and motor towards a distant destination. We are going to be passangers/crew on an Amel Super Maramu fitted with a very powerful diesel motor. Since the Mediterranean weather is so fickle, the plan is to motor from one harbor to the next at full speed on the days when no wind is present, then hide when the winds return and punish any sailors who were still out on the waters in the Mediterranean!
There will be no sightseeing or traveling, instead we will be relaxing in anchorages and enjoying sundowners with other cruisers who are moving along as a pack. This is going to be a very different experience for us and we are very excited to experience “the cruising life” for the first time in 3 years of full time cruising!
What does this mean for you guys? While I will be collecting photos of the trip, I will not be able to regularly upload posts to the website for a while. Once I am back and have a little down time from projects, I will be right back on the keyboard bringing you great posts of our adventures!
Boating With A Baby: What Should I Bring On A Yacht Trip
Bringing your baby with you on a boat trip can be a challenge, but there are also rewards for doing it properly. Safety should be your top priority when traveling with your baby, and it applies not just to boat and sea transportation, but all modes of transportation as well.
If you plan on going on a yacht trip with your baby, there are important things to bring to ensure a safe and worry-free trip with your baby. For your peace of mind, the parenting experts recommend bringing one of the best baby monitors with you, so you can keep track of your baby even when you're not around, especially when it's a big yacht. Aside from this, there are some essential travel tips here for you and your baby as you read along.
Bring a Life Jacket
Always have a life jacket ready for your baby. Do not rely on the available life jackets inside that yacht, as they are most probably designed for adult passengers. When choosing a life jacket for your baby, make sure that it is appropriate for infants. Also, make sure that the life jacket fits snugly to your baby by wearing it on them before purchasing. Check the strap tightness and overall fit by lifting your child’s two arms. The life jacket shouldn’t hit your child’s chin or ears, nor should it be hard to raise their arms. Remember to do a practice fitting on your baby before the travel commences to reinforce your memory on how to wear a life jacket on your baby.
Bring Insulating Clothes
Boat travel can be quite breezy, and there are possibilities of sudden gusts of wind. Weather can be unpredictable out in the open sea and temperatures can dip dangerously low for your baby. To avoid the risk of hypothermia, you should ensure to bring a blanket, a baby jacket, or a dry towel with you. If you notice that the baby has goosebumps or seems cold and shivering, immediately wrap them tightly with a blanket or dry towel. As a preventive measure, change your baby’s clothes into something warmer, especially during the late afternoon, if your travel requires an overnight stay in the yacht.
Bring Lots of Baby Food/Milk
Always ensure that you have more than enough supply of baby food or milk during your sea travel. There is a possibility of a prolonged stay due to travel delays and your baby might be hungrier than usual while adjusting to the travel environment. Even though it was not included here, you also have to bring lots of water to keep your child hydrated, as temperatures can fluctuate dramatically in different parts of the day. As such, babies may sweat or pee a lot more than usual, so make sure to replenish the water in their bodies.
Bring Lots of Baby Clothes and Supplies
Aside from baby supplies for storing food and milk, bring more than enough diapers, and a change of clothes in your preparations. Unless there is a suitable space inside the yacht for your baby, it would be wise to bring protective clothing for sun exposure, such as long-sleeved footies, rompers and onesies, baby rash guards, and baby sun hats. Also, bring hypoallergenic sunscreen lotion for added protection if you wish to venture outside the yacht and see the beautiful sceneries with your baby.
Sea travel with your child doesn’t need to be difficult and stressful. Preparation, caution, and attention to your child are the keys to having a safe and enjoyable travel experience, even if your child is with you. Having happy memories with your baby and enjoying the entire trip are just a few of the priceless rewards for a job well done.
Sea travel with your child doesn’t need to be difficult and stressful. Preparation, caution, and attention to your child are the keys to having a safe and enjoyable travel experience, even if your child is with you. Having happy memories with your baby and enjoying the entire trip are just a few of the priceless rewards for a job well done.
What are the Animals that You Can Hunt?
Hunting season is one that is loved and revered by many Americans and within this season everything is on the cards. If you can hunt it, you can eat it. I will say now if you’re planning on going out and hunting, then do it for the right reasons. Use every bit of the animal you kill and don’t go out to kill just for the sake of it.
Hunting can save you a lot of money if you can store all the animals you harvest as you won’t need to go to the supermarket and spend a lot of money on pre-wrapped bits of meat.
Let’s take a look at some of the best animals for you during the hunting season.
Cervids
This is the correct name of the deer family and when we talk about cervids we are talking about elk, moose, caribou, and of course deer itself. These guys are a large family of animals and will take some skill to hunt, but will also feed your family for weeks! You can always tell a mature male as they will have complex, large antlers coming from the top of their heads. Through the growing stage of their lives, these antlers will fall off and re-grow every year becoming more complex as time goes by.
Females don’t tend to have antlers so it’s usually pretty easy to tell the difference before taking your shot. When it comes to these guys you have to have the right equipment to be able to take them down, there’s no point going hunting with a small rifle and expect to bring home a prized male Elk. You never want to be caught out, which is why doing your research on what you’ll need for an individual animal is essential to a successful hunting trip. In these situations, it’s best to get every aspect of your gear list ready so you can be fully prepared when you leave for your trip. Having consumer reviews will help you choose the best gear suited to you.
Wild Boar
These guys are super strong and hardy animals, hunting them will be no easy feat. Anything but a kill shot will leave you in danger of being charged at, and with their tusks could prove a nasty experience. There are plenty of places in the US where there is a huge amount of wild boars so there are no limits to the amount you are allowed to kill.
Cougar
When it comes to hunting a big cat, I would first think seriously about if it’s a worthwhile cause. Killing for trophies is no longer a thing that’s as widely accepted so unless you’re going to eat it you better not kill it. Having said that, you’ll have to catch them first! This will prove to be an elusive beast that will have you stalking it for days on end in some cases. Their whole purpose is to be sneaky, it’s how they hunt and how they live, so trying to out sneaks a cougar is going to prove difficult. Another thing to note is that if you don’t know the area, I wouldn’t bother hunting cougars at all, not unless you enlist the help of someone that knows what they’re doing.
Bison
Being the largest land-dwelling animal in North America, these beasts were once hunted to near extinction, but now they are back to a flourishing population and back on the cards when it comes to hunting. These guys are nearly 2000lbs and have a sporadic temper, combine this with the fact they can run at 35mph you best either have a decent hiding spot or very good aim.
Turkeys
Not the same as other game birds, oh no. This requires you to learn another skill, the turkey call! You’ll need to learn how to woo a turkey and get it to like you, this means it will come closer to your beckoning calls and you will then be able to strike. Thanksgiving dinner will taste so much better this year.
Hunting is a privilege and we should treat it with respect, if we overhunt animals then they won’t be around for us to hunt ever again. This is why certain hunting bans get put into place and it’s why we should respect them. We should also be hunting for the right reasons, to feed our families.
If you’re in the early days of your hunting career then make sure you get the right equipment for the right hunt, each animal will require something slightly different and never forget the orange rule! All hunters must wear bright orange when hunting to avoid becoming a target themselves, it's for your own safety!
