Will I be a target for theft?

[guyrj33]

my good old boat has been broken into twice in 30 years, and she's moored on Boston's north shore.
You can be a target anyplace.

[Junk Viking]

I'm not saying that theft doesn't happen and I'm probably influenced by being Danish and thus rather trusting.

However, I think the best security is to be well know by the locals.
Take the bus and chat with people, buy as much from the locals as you can (from road stands, pop-up BBQ's and the lady with eggs and chickens from her home).
People in the Caribbean are mostly very nice and helpful, chatty and good company.
This obviously works better in smaller places and when you stay longer or come back often.

But being generally nice, trusting and respectful of the local population benefits us in so many ways.
And why travel at all, if we are not willing to meet the locals at equal footing?
Or as equal as it can be under the circumstances.
Respect is a currency that should not be underestimated!

An example of the benefit of tapping into the local network:
I was once tasked with selling the boat (school ship) I was sailing.
It was sort of stranded in dire need of maintenance in Tyrell bay, Grenada.
It was an old Danish North Sea fishing boat - quite a challenging old lady to restore back to her former glory.
I mentioned this to the locals I met and on the bus into Hillsborough and different buyers popped up all by themselves and I could quickly make a sale to somebody with the right passion and knowledge.
This now restored grand old lady: Vendia - Traditional Sailing Boat Tours in Grenada

So yes - chain your dinghy and outboard, remove your chart plotter, lock your boat and have your documents, cards and cash in a safe, just like you would any other place.
But also treat others the way you want to be treated.
Have time to talk to the old lady in the market for an hour, and see the world through her eyes.

It makes for a better life and a better experience IMO.
Likely less of a target as well ;-)

[Nicholson58]

We are beginning year five in the eastern Caribbean. Very little and nothing of high value taken. COMMON SENSE will be your friend. Also be street smart and research where you plan to go and when.


Dinghy OB bar lock.
Chain locked to the bar lock
Chain through gas can handle
Chain locked to the dock for shore visits & to the boat at night
At night, raise your dinghy. Use davits or a bridle and spare halyard. Also prevents bottom growth.
Invest in all SS key locks and keep them oiled.

Local unenforced rules require a PFD in the dinghy. Almost nobody does. We wear old ski vests and leave them hanging from the OB tiller while visiting shore. These have never been taken. Don’t get a hot SS anchor, too attractive. Crappy galvanized. We have a loose dry-box (bucket & lid). Also never touched but nothing special ever left inside.

Wear a inch lightweight backpack on shore. Groceries and hand radio.

Don’t leave easy to take stuff in sight. Binoculars, radios, phones, tools, spare parts.

Pay attention to where you anchor. In addition to safety and security at sea, check Noonsite.

We do not visit St Vincent. In temporary stops in St Lucia we do not leave the boat. Rodney Bay is the most likely place in the entire Caribbean to loose a dinghy. Dominica is fine in Portsmouth under watch by the PAYS Boat boys. Anchor along many coastal features along Dominica’s shores but Roseau is not boat friendly or a place to wander at night. We don’t care to dinghy after dark so we are aboard generally by 6:00 PM. There are some islands we consider highly safe. Antigua is pretty civilized and caters to boaters.

Dinghy lifted and locked to the mast. It takes about two minutes. We used to clean the dinghy bottom twice per season, four hours. It now is always clean.

[skipgundlach]

Originally Posted by seriousailor

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An intrusion alarm with lights/loud sound will deter the roque opportunists and keep you safe while sleeping. As a lone female you will attract attention, you should "lock in" at night, have companionway bars made so you will sleep easy. Make it obvious that you are serious about your safety and security.

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Just a note to think about another aspect of your safety.

A well made set of bars won't interfere with your opening and closing your hatches/companionways.

But they'll keep you in equally as well as keeping intruders out should you need to vacate quickly, for whatever reason, but in particular fire.

Be sure you have a means of releasing those bars to hand, but out of reach of even my 38" sleeved arms. That may well save your life in the event of a fire or hull breach, particularly if you've been sleeping until that event is well under way, but still keep intruders out...

PS the folks who keep others behind bars have researched and found that no more than 7" should be left open, as humans can get through that space if they're either small or flexible enough...

So the bars should be on 7" centers if not squares...

[ShinyHappy]

Originally Posted by OS2Dude

Thieves are opportunists. Make it hard for them to just jump aboard and grab a handful of stuff...

As the saying goes: 'Locks exist to keep honest people that way'. No lock will keep someone out who REALLY wants in.

That's good advice for everywhere you are whether at land or at sea.

To that end, looking at boats with a sugar scoop stern and the more recent trend of drop down swim platforms, I wonder if the swim platform you can close at night is a little more secure just from the ease of access consideration.

[jmschmidt]

The Caribbean is a big sea. Some places are good, some are bad.

[ussvdharma]

UIt is the middle of the night, you hear someone up topside, you have no gun, what do y ou do......you grab your trusty fire extinguisher (the one with black band around it....loaded with super hot cayne pepper) and give them a good spry....they leave or fall overboard.


tAKE a medium fire extinguisher (empty) and purchase super hot cayyne paper from SF HERB CO...san francisco on line and have a fire extinguisher shop load it up for you. they will do it when you explain why you want it. Then put a band of black tape around the midddle of the extinguisher to remind you IT IS NOT A FIRE EXTINGUISHER, BUT A BOARDER REPELANT.

[Cpt Mark]

I was living on Provo in Turks and Caicos. Buddy who was cruising asked me to go check his anchor. Went down, followed the long chain and there was no anchor! Probably stolen by a cruiser who nobody had trusted but who knows.

Lock up tight and get to know your neighbors who can help watch your boat while you're out having fun.

[Cpt Mark]

Originally Posted by Allied39

My advice is to always think that you are likely to be a target.

One example is haviing an alarm on your boat. I did not find one that met my requirements so I built one. Super easy, cheap and really no need to be an electrical engineer. You can hook it up to a siren, spreader lights...both...whatever your heart desires.

This is answering the OP, I do not care to argue or deal with the trolls

Care to share more of your requirements, design?

[Dogscout]

Everybody who has More that others is a target for theft. Make common sense choices and minimize your risk. Don't look flash.

[ussvdharma]

Of course you are subject to theft every where, even here in the USA. My boat ( topside) looked like hell...do not look rich be poor, splash all kinds of paint on your dinghy and outboard...easily recognizable and hard to re-paint. Down below that is another matter If in thailand you cah hire a guy to be onboard your boat during the day topside Companionway hatch locked....they are usually reliable and inexpensive


Remember someone who spread thumbtacks on deck at night. If you are anywhere near alaska....GEAR SPRAY is invaluable as a "get rid of people" Belive me it works. take you DINGHY OUT OF WATER AT NIGHT AND PUT IT ON DECK P E R I O D ! You will be glad you did.

[Clivevon]

When I bought a new dinghy I immediately stuck several puncture repair patches on it. Not sure if it did any good but I still have the dinghy...

[Nicholson58]

People think it’s the dinghy that is stolen. It is a convenient vehicle to get the motor. Island thieves have no interest in the rubber boat. They drive Pirogues. The motor has value, not the inflatable.

Paint the OB horrible ugly colors. Make it look like crap. Make it easily identifiable at great distance. Make it more easy to take somebody else’s stuff than to deal with your junk.

[garychurch]

The dangers of theft in the Caribbean are rather small. Does happen to those who make it easy for thefts to occur. Be prudent. For example, anchoring in an isolated spot and close to shore may invite someone to swim to you boat to “take a look” and if open invite them to take a “five finger discount” on whatever is lying about.

Seems dinghy thefts occur more than not at a dinghy dock when people fail to lock their dinghy or use a painter easily cut by a knife. Fuel tanks can also easily disappear at those docks.

I spent 18 months in the Caribbean, not once did I ever hear of any cruiser stealing anyone else’s boat or belongings.

Good luck.

[joelhemington]

Originally Posted by KelseyB

Another thing is, if I am able to detach my chart plotter, do you think it's important that I bring it inside at night? It's obviously very expensive, probably the only expensive thing on deck that's really steal-able, but is it a hot item? I feel like they would be hard to sell. Anything else important that sometimes gets left on deck and isn't there the next morning?

You really need to get them off your boat ASAP before they decide that your anchor and other things could be hawked. A cheap motion activated flood light should deter most thieves. As a single girl, I'd also keep a taser in the cabin. Since I'm not a single girl, a baseball bat works well. You want to avoid carrying lethal weapons as local authorities will frown on that. Flare guns are not considered to be lethal weapons but can be quite lethal at close range. The idea is not to kill anybody - just let their bad karma catch up with them someplace else.