Excellent new weather website
I just came across this new type of weather website and I am thoroughly impressed with the many options available to view weather history and forecasts. Here is what the site says about its new service: "WeatherSpark is a new type of weather website, with interactive weather graphs that allow you to pan and zoom through the entire history of any weather station on earth. Get multiple forecasts for the current location, overlaid on records and averages [...]
What your broker probably didn’t tell you
We've been shopping for a larger cruising/live-aboard boat for a couple of years now and just last weekend we were told about soldboats.com. This website is a part of yachtworld.com that is only accessible to brokers and contains the prices of all boats listed on yachtworld and what they SOLD for! A broker can also look at the ads of the sold boats and get some idea of the condition of the boat and the options that [...]
Sold down the river!
Last weekend we sold Webfoot to a family from the Oregon Coast. It was a bitter-sweet day. We had some great times on Webfoot but are ready to finally find our big boat. Back to boat shopping...
Cruisers Once Again!
As of last night my parents are officially cruisers once again! For the second time in their lives they sold nearly everything and moved aboard a sailboat to see the world - only this time without me. They report having slept great and my mom even said she noticed herself smiling all morning. Congratulations! We can't wait to visit! Follow their blog here. Their new Hunter 45CC Prana under sail Mom and Dad
California Dreaming
We just got back from a two week trip to California. We drove straight through on the way south to visit my folks in San Diego. After a week there we drove back up the coast slowly - mostly on Highway One - making lots of stops along the way.
100,000 hours!
This old boat - on display on the boardwalk in Coos Bay, Oregon - had put more than 100,000 hours on its (Cummins) diesel before retirement!
Christmas Eve Cookies
We're all ready for Christmas. I even made some flour-less chocolate chip cookies today. They turned out great, so here is the recipe. Merry Christmas everyone! 1 cup sifted coconut flour½ cup butter, melted1 cup brown sugar4 eggs½ teaspoon vanilla⅛ teaspoon salt1½ cups grated or flaked coconut¾ cup semisweet chocolate chips Mix together butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla and salt. Stir in coconut, chocolate chips and coconut flour. Drop batter in spoon-sized mounds 1 inch apart on greased [...]
Boat Parade
Watched the Christmas boat parade this weekend after a great dinner in a restaurant on the 30th floor with amazing views of downtown Portland, the bridges, the river, and beyond..
The challenges of navigation
Knowing the boat’s position in relation to the sea-floor is important. But how about what is above you? How will you know that your mast will clear the bridge coming up? Throw in the dynamic mediums of water and air through which the boat travels and the answer to the equation may not be so easy to solve for. The video below shows how technology made things easier when the newest ship in the Royal Caribbean cruise [...]
Happy Halloween!
Last night I made these "Deviled Eyeballs" I saw on GalleySwap for a Halloween potluck lunch we had at work today. They were a hit!
It’s Your Watch!
My mom found this drawing in France not long before our Atlantic Crossing. Now it hangs in my kitchen and makes me smile every morning. You can just feel how happy the guy in foulies is to be going to bed after a long, wet night watch. Not to mention how the other guy is about to feel when that drop of water hits his slumbering face. It makes me remember all those long nights of watches [...]
Multnomah Channel to St Helens
Thinking of the soon to come winter we decided to spend a relaxing weekend on the boat. We started it off right on Friday night by grilling up some steaks on our trusty Magma grill. Of course, we had potatoes on the side as well as some fresh leek that we had purchased at the farmers market. After a leisurely morning dockside, we set sail. The clouds made way for a warm October sun and a light [...]
Free Event: NOAA Science in the Pacific Northwest
This fall, at Pacific Science Center's Eames Theater, discover what NOAA scientists know. Learn more about the important work of NOAA and how it impacts you everyday. October 20th: How Much Will It Snow? October 27th: Healthy Oceans and CoastsNovember 3rd: Ocean MappingNovember 10th: Ocean AcidificationDecember 1st: Oil Spill in Puget Sound? To reserve your FREE tickets and to learn more about the lectures please check out the following website: http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/seminarseries/NOAA_lectures_2010.htm
TIP: WM Low Price Guarantee
While West Marine may have changed their formerly awesome return policy they have not changed their Low Price Guarantee. I recently came across the PFD I've been pining after for nearly one hundred dollars less at Defender! Now I'm going to walk into WM with a print out of the Defender deal and will get the Defender price! And I save the shipping cost! A few months ago I went to WM and bought two C-Strobes at [...]
Happy Fall or, Time to Check Your Compass
It's officially fall! I just read a great blog post by John Vigor about checking your compass today - on the autumnal equinox.Read this very interesting article by National Geographic about the autumnal equinox.Check out this website to calculate solar position for any time and place on earth:http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/grad/solcalc/Here it is for my location today. Note that the sun's azimuth at 19:08 (our sunset) is 270° - due West!
TIP: Shaken, not stirred
If you don't like clumpy powdered milk just SHAKE IT! A Nalgene bottle is great because it has units on the side making measuring easy when we make our favorite powdered goat milk. It comes in a handy can with pop top and plastic lid which keeps it contained after popping open the can. Of course if you are not lactose intolerant regular powdered milk is a lot cheaper - it also is a lot more frothy. I've been [...]
Sunshiny Seattle Siesta
Our tiny boat doesn't provide much protection from the elements and since the the weather report was calling for rain in Portland we decided to head up to Seattle. We had made appointments with several brokers to look at boats which all turned out being disappointing. But there was also the swap meet, boat show, and farmer's market to entertain us. Trying to be frugal as always, we had planned on sleeping in the 4Runner. We have [...]
Government Island Circumnavigation
Summer returned to Portland for the weekend and we had a great time on the boat. After going to the farmer's market Saturday morning we packed up a few things and headed to the marina. We sailed up to the old dock on Government Island and cooked our farmer's market oysters and tuna on the BBQ. On the old dock looking east at sunset On the old dock looking west at sunset Sunday we awoke to sunshine [...]
The motherland
I just got back from a one week trip to my birth-country of Germany. I hadn't been there in 11 years, so my grandmother's 95th birthday celebration was a great excuse for a short vacation across the big pond with my parents. After staying in Oma and Opa's home town Bad Pyrmont for nearly a week we did some quick sightseeing in Düsseldorf before heading back home. Der Hyllige Born (The Holy Well) Mom tasting the mineral [...]
TIP: Laminating made easy… and cheap!
It's always nice to keep things dry on a boat, so if you don't want to buy a laminating machine and the expensive pouches that go with it, go get some clear contact paper. Then simply put the paper you want to protect between two sheets of the sticky stuff. Trim it to leave a quarter to half an inch of contact paper around the edges. I use it for our marina emergency card that used to [...]