Problems in 'Paradise' :-(

[zeehag]

he sayeth "meuw a ti."...

[zboss]

Why isn't anybody setting up a honey pot? Set the thieves up, arrest them when they steel the boat, and throw them in jail. This is no different then stopping auto theft in high crime areas in the US.

[captden]

Wow this is terrible news. We are planning to go to St Martin in a few weeks, this was one of our favorate islands back in the 80s-90s. always felt safe there.
Anyway just have a couple of questions, what size chain and how long would you recomend? I've been using steel cable but from what I read here chain is better. Also is this happining on both the French and Dutch side? Where would you say is the most protected place to stay short term?
Thanks
Captden

[Kinkajou]

Im just wandering if anybody ever tried a wildlife camera??? they take picture everytime there is movement and they work at night too and without a flash....
Used that at my fishing cabin and it worked great....just print the pics of your thieve and put them everywhere down town....in no time his friends are gonna sell him to get the reward....worked for me!! im planning to do that as soon as I get a dingy

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by captden

Wow this is terrible news. We are planning to go to St Martin in a few weeks, this was one of our favorate islands back in the 80s-90s. always felt safe there.
Anyway just have a couple of questions, what size chain and how long would you recomend? I've been using steel cable but from what I read here chain is better. Also is this happining on both the French and Dutch side? Where would you say is the most protected place to stay short term?
Thanks
Captden

LOL... it was happening in 2000... always will happen... everywhere.. when someone needs quick cash..
At least they're not cutting the sterns out of boats with chainsaws to steal O/B's like they did for a while in Poole, UK..
Stop being so paranoid... **** happens... even in 'Protected Places'.
Thats life.. Thats sailing..

[captden]

Originally Posted by boatman61

LOL... it was happening in 2000... always will happen... everywhere.. when someone needs quick cash..
At least they're not cutting the sterns out of boats with chainsaws to steal O/B's like they did for a while in Poole, UK..
Stop being so paranoid... **** happens... even in 'Protected Places'.
Thats life.. Thats sailing..

Thirty in a month sounds like a lot of **** to me. Not being Paranoid just being cautious.

[callistov42]

We have kept Callisto in St Martin off and on for 12 years.
Stay away from the French side marinas and be careful in the Marigot anchorage. (Anchor watch on board). We keep our boat in a wonderful, French marina (although now operated by Radisson) at Anse Marcel. Safe and well protected but a bit out of the way.

Dinghys have been being stolen in Grand Case and Merigot as long as I can remember.

Come on down, stop in Anguilla. St Martin is very nice.

[manitu]

nah, just tie the dinghy with the normal rope , well visible..
But.. allso use a 4mm steel wire, say 20 feet or so (?)). Connect it to the outboard , other end connected to the mothership and a trip-switch for a floodlight/alarm.

.manitu

[bobconnie]

Takes me less then 10 minutes to hoist my dink in place and lock it and the motor so that they would have to have a step ladder and a hell of a set of big cutters !! just sayin hook her up before the sundowners !!

[John Galt]

I agree. It's just a matter if being disciplined enough to make it part of your nightly routine. Sorta like good ground tackle. I sleep better knowing my dink and motor are hoisted up and soundly locked.

[atoll]

dinghy thieves should be treated as they did horse thieves in the wild west and lynched publically...................

[Zanshin]

I still hold the record at Budget Marine for the shortest ownership of a dinghy and outboard.

It started in the BVI, at Soper's Hole, where I woke up in the morning to find my dinghy line cleanly cut and no dinghy in sight. Several hours later, after filing a police report and finding out that my old Caribe dinghy wasn't the only one to go walkabout, I decided to sail to St. Martin to get a replacement.

Upon arrival I anchored outside the Dutch bridge, did my clearance and purchased a brand new 9.8 Tohatsu outboard and mid-sized dinghy. I asked about crime and they said it was bad, so I got some chain and, with a bit of gas from Budget Marine, I dinghied back to the boat at about 5pm. I was quite tired, so all I did was tie the dinghy on and drape the chain to make it look secured. At midnight I awoke and went topsides to find the dinghy GONE.

The next day I cadged a lift and spent over a half day trying to get a police report done but the Dutch side officials weren't interested in taking a report and Budget Marine loaned me a runabout to let me search the outside and inside lagoon areas to see if the dinghy might be abandoned somewhere. No luck.

I purchased yet another 9.8 outboard but no dinghy, sailed back to the BVI, went to Sunsail and bought their oldest, most beat-up but still functional and watertight dinghy and then never bothered locking it in the BVI; I beat up the engine cover on the new outboard to make it look old and abused.

In St. Martin, Marigot, at the ferry terminal dock I learned to also run the chain through the gas tank, since one night my engine cut out halfway back to the boat and it took me a bit to realize that the tank had gone AWOL and I learned that rowing a Caribe dinghy in winds is no fun.

Conclusion - Lock it or lose it

[zeehag]

i am with atoll on this, but, in reality, do not fail to lock dinghy even in places that do not seem to have crime...is a good habit to keep.

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by zeehag

i am with atoll on this, but, in reality, do not fail to lock dinghy even in places that do not seem to have crime...is a good habit to keep.

+A1.... I use around 5metres of chain and 2 locks...
Chain starts by going through an eyebolt on the transom.. nut super glued... I then lead it through the O/B handle.. the fuel tank handle then locked on itself... the remaining 4 metres is in a canvas sleeve and fed through the grab handles down one side and then down to the bow ring... this leaves around 6ft .. couple of tight turns round the dock/pontoon cleat then lock it as tight as you can.
Never lost a dinghy/outboard/tank yet...

[zeehag]

so far i am fortunate -- i have great emergncy room ears and can hear engines below waterline in my boat for loong time--so i can get to deck while buttheads are thieving, or even during the casing the boat phase--as i did in ensenada...remember the thread la noche de los bandidos??
th ebest way i have found besides locking everything with separate locks and making it really difficult to get, is to be vigilant--observant and ready. have your weaponry at your hand and be awake and functional during the attack...bright lights and loud sounds do work. cameras work great also--they have a nice bright light whenye take the pic of the perps for port cpt. and police. spreader lights turned on while thieves are working is also a great idea.
i am truly surprised no one stands an anchor watch in troubled areas, just for this kind of event..neighbohood watch--a community based anchor watch....