A Lot of GPS Drop-Outs

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by boasun

I've found that people with little or no experience with a sextant are always putting them down. The Acturacy comes from the skill of the user and not from the unskilled useless nah-sayers.

Ummmmmm who says I don't have experience with the damn things?


Mark

[osirissail]

When it comes to discussions involving either politics, religion, sex, or sextants there is no way that you can escape the discussion without being slandered or slammed.

[Kettlewell]

I'm old enough to remember the days groping around New England in the fog using nothing but a depthsounder, a compass, and DR, plus noting things like how hard the current is flowing by the lobster pots. We always managed to get to where we wanted to go. Went to Labrador and back that way. I've also made landfall with nothing but a sextant, some tables, and a chronometer. If you need to you can get most places by just taking noon shots to get your latitude, and then sailing down the latitude to your destination, which eliminates the need for tables and the time even. If the depthsounder poops out there's the lead line. If the compass dies you can still take relative bearings on prominent landmarks.

[dacust]

Originally Posted by MarkJ

... a sextant that at best can ever only be used one a day.

Originally Posted by MarkJ

Ummmmmm who says I don't have experience with the damn things?

Well, it would appear that if you ever used a sextant, you limited yourself to only taking noon sights.

-dan

[veprjack]

Osiris wrote: "When it comes to discussions involving either politics, religion, sex, or sextants there is no way that you can escape the discussion without being slandered or slammed."

Which may explain things like Road Rage and the sham known as the Mideast Peace Process. Normally, I'd put "lol" here, but somehow...

[RTB]

Originally Posted by David M

I was using my GPS all day Friday, no problems.

I use GPS constantly in my job. No issues from 9am-10pm yesterday, Saturday. I did have an issue about two weeks ago. No GPS for about 20 minutes. I'm not sure if it was my location, equipment, or something else. Thanks for the info Chuck.

Ralph

[s/v 'Faith']

Originally Posted by Kettlewell

Even when the GPS is working well it is worth it noting down your position on a paper chart or at least in the logbook every few hours just in case everything goes kablooey when you're offshore.

SHHhhhhuuuuuussssss!

QUIET everyone! I believe that I just read 'the voice of reason'.

Look, no one is telling you to throw your chartplotters overboard, but I believe that Chuck and Kettlewell are advocating a reasonable precaution...

... I will be doing this next week on the delivery I will be on...

Of course it will not matter much for some in this thread... but beware, the solar flares (could) affect your internet access.

[Kettlewell]

When I was in the Bahamas a panicked voice came up on channel 16 asking for help as his radar overlay on his GPS chartplotter wasn't matching up with the chart and he wasn't sure of his position. After a few questions on the radio I determined that he was approximately 2 miles from Marsh Harbour, and since it was a perfectly clear sunny day I suggested he go up into the cockpit and look up ahead and he could see the harbor and sail in. In most of the Bahamas you don't really need a depthsounder either--just look over the side. The Mark I Eyeball is pretty useful still.