First time cruising, what should I have on board?

[mowerandy]

unless you are confident of the condition of the fuel you might want to take some spare, empty fuel cans as well as fresh fuel - I recently had to dump half a tank of fouled diesel at sea in order to get fresh stuff in, and still suffering from guilt over it - yuk! Was running fine in the marina, but as soon as we put out to sea and the tank contents got mixed, the motor died...so enough old garden hose to make a siphon and some empty cans - if you have the time, fully drain the tank and inspect the fuel before you go. If its all good you can simply put it back in and leave the empty cans behind. I used plastic wine glasses to compare the tank fuel to the new - the stuff that wouldn't run was yellow and smelt like turpentine in my case, the new was lighter in colour, with a bluish sheen and smelt like kerosene. I suggest if you can pick a difference at all, you ditch the old...
I am guessing motors vary quite a bit in this respect, but you might not need to "bleed" by formal process in a fuel emergency. I have an old Yanmar which I was stupid enough to run out of diesel in the most precarious position once, at the foot of high cliffs in calm conditions. As the pacific swells pushed us closer to the bricks with each wave ( from about 20metres off) I chucked some fuel in the tank real fast, decompressed the engine and cranked it at full throttle for about 30 seconds before dumping the deco lever - and it fired up thank goodness. Without time to bleed the next step was to be to launch the dinghy and try to row off - oi ve'
As an old mate once said to me, "never motor anywhere that you can sail out of, and never sail anywhere you cant motor out of". I hope he didn't tell me that before the above misadventure, but thankfully, I no longer remember which came first :-)

[La Porte Rouge]

One of those things you hope you don't need, but a swim mask is very handy if you have to untangle a stray crap trap or something from the prop. Its happened to me a couple of times.


meant to say crab trap

[JPA Cate]

Quite right about the swim mask or even goggles, you can see more clearly through them under water. I know lots of us like to eat crabs, but crab traps can sure cause a lot of trouble... There's a thread ongoing now written by a guy that got a wrap on a saildrive, with extensive damage.

Your 18 lb. Danforth will probably hold you in case of emergency. All we had on Jim's 30 ft. Yankee was a 20 lb. HT Danforth. And we used mostly rope rode. I would not use rope rode where the waters are coral infested, but I don't know how far north on the East Coast of America the coral grows. Coral can chafe rope rode through very fast. If your planned anchorages are mud, sand, and shell, unless it's really blowy, you should be okay. If you have rode for the second anchor, setting it, too, could be done, if you've thought it out. We have done this occasionally, with our big Manson out in one arm of a "V" shape, and the old Danforth for the other.

Stugeron works very well for Jim and me, and I can take it and have it be effective even if I've left it a little late. IMO, Bonine is good, but for me, Stugeron is better. However, everyone's a little different, which is why we have experimented so much.

I imagine you will try towing your dinghy at some point. I suggest you use floating line for the painter. Lots of people wrap their own dinghy painter round their props when they reverse to set the hook.

Have a great time, guys.

Ann

[sparrowhawk1]

I've been thinking about your post a lot in the last day. I think you been given excellent advice. Good ground tackle, filters for your engine, plenty of clothing, comfort food that you don't have to prepare, more water than you could possibly drink in separate containers. After that the first thing that comes to my mind is proper tools. I don't know what you have but "unusual" things are pipe wrenches to tighten up your stuffing boxes, proper spark plug wrench for your outboard. your dinghy can be used to move your boat if your main engine fails. That said with your choice of doing 30 mile days you should have a great trip.

[Stu Jackson]

Originally Posted by RadioZ

I was told that Stugeron is the best, so I ordered a couple boxes on eBay (apparently it's not available in the US). Is Bonine better?

Everybody's different.

Do a search on "seasickness" and read for years.

Good luck, happy trip.

[Idylles15.5]

Hey Radio Z, I see a lot of good advice on here, but most of it from people not from out area. All of this advice may overload and freak you out. I'm right across the sound from you. Actually was at the Crab Shell in Stanford Sat. This trip isn't really a big deal. You only need a days notice for weather and there are so many places to duck in either on the Conn. side or Long island side you'll be fine. I basically do this trip every year for my vacation. Takes me 14 hours to Greenport, then another 3-3-1/2 to Block. Once your in Block everything is at your fingertips. You can see the Newport Bridge at night. Your on the Conn side, so if you have good weather get up early and head to the Conn river. all day sail, but great new spa, bar, pool and marina with fuel right on the left side in Old Saybrook about ten minutes up the river on your port side, if that. Great place to relax, your wife can get a massage and you can have dinner and relax. From there your weather window is totally safe enough to make it to New Harbor on Block if you have a sunny day. Stay at Block for a couple days, grab a town mooring off the Oar and have a great time. From there you are home free. I totally agree with one point, because I did a delivery and had to stop 10 times to buy filters and bleed injectors (not something you want to have to learn, stalled by Fishers Island and the race or Plumb gut. Bring a can of totally clean diesel, if the engine starts to take a ****, first switch over to secondary Racor if you have that set up and change the primary filter, then switch back. If you still stall, go to the jug of fresh fuel. One last piece of advice I think everyone on here would agree with. When you get a chance at your marina tied up, pull a fuel line off and stall the engine to simulate a clogged filter. At the dock learn how to prime the fuel filters and crack the injectors to restart your diesel. You don't want the first time you try to do this under a stressful situation. Have a great time.

[TomLewis]

I would focus on safety gear, after all, a girlfriend is hard to come by, wouldn't want anything to happen to her. Make sure you have the required CG recommended safety gear. Also, not knowing the age of the boat, carry some bungs in case of a leak with your through hulls. Fair winds.

Tom

[rgesner]

Originally Posted by mowerandy

<snip> I am guessing motors vary quite a bit in this respect, but you might not need to "bleed" by formal process in a fuel emergency. I have an old Yanmar which I was stupid enough to run out of diesel in the most precarious position once, at the foot of high cliffs in calm conditions. As the pacific swells pushed us closer to the bricks with each wave ( from about 20metres off) I chucked some fuel in the tank real fast, decompressed the engine and cranked it at full throttle for about 30 seconds before dumping the deco lever - and it fired up thank goodness. <snip>

Is this a safe procedure or could this harm some engines?

How likely is this to work?

[deckofficer]

Originally Posted by rgesner

Is this a safe procedure or could this harm some engines?

How likely is this to work?

I can understand mowerandy's logic. By spinning his fuel staved engine without compression, it spins much faster as does the fuel pump. Without compression, current draw is much lower, so less battery drain, cranking motor heat, and electrical connection heat. At full throttle he is passing the greatest volume of air and hopefully after awhile, fuel per stroke.

I would have done the same thing in a time constraint situation. Or used diethyl ether starting fluid.

[Stu Jackson]

Originally Posted by Idylles15.5

At the dock learn how to prime the fuel filters and crack the injectors to restart your diesel. You don't want the first time you try to do this under a stressful situation. Have a great time.

Good advice, BUT....not all engines require one to crack injectors to bleed.

Learn how to do YOUR engine.

I can tell you how to do mine, but that woulnd't help you unless you have the same engine.

In that case, ask away.

BTW, mine's a M25 series Universal

[Don C L]

OK I could be blind, but I still haven't seen mention of what make, size and year your boat is. This helps with those tips specific to your boat to keep an eye on.

[sparrowhawk1]

Don, click on his avatar. Sabor 30

[dangerfield55]

Binoculars , high powered light for picking out buoys, LED headband light, quality foul weather gear. Really warm layered clothing , hat, water proof gloves and boots. Although spares are nice , a well maintained boat with a full tank of clean fuel is bullet proof. The enemy on the water is being wet and cold.


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[Tashtego]

A depth sounder will be helpful and confidence building. Near shore, with currents moving bottom sediments around, you can't always rely on the charts (paper or electronic) to keep you from touching the bottom. Calibrate it by knowing your draft and figuring out what the offset is from the water line to the transponder i.e., the transducer will be some distance below the waterline and maybe a couple of feet above the bottom of the keel.

[sparrowhawk1]

Yep I've calibrated a few depth sounders by slowly running the boat aground in a sand bottom with a shallow slope. Then noting the depth read on the sounder before backing up