Here's an interesting video I found on youtube of the worst sail EVER. I can honestly say I'm glad I wasn't there.

Check it out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXuzy0k9mZQ&feature=related

I knew we had GUN shows here....shoot, the stock show is even going on right now. I guess they decided to throw a little water on the cowboy scene and hold a boat show in Northern Texas.

http://www.dallasboatshow.net/

Anyone going?

I've always wondered about the dolphin (and whale) thing! That's amazing! What about fish though... do they just go to sleep and float around?

perfect

Which types of anchors should you use for which situations, i.e. mud, sand and rock? And are any of them good at multitasking?

Not a book how to boat or boat safety, but a great book about all things of the sea: Do Dolphins Ever Sleep?

Answers questions such as:

   Why is ice clear but icebergs are white
   What is the "green flash"
   Why tides are larger in some areas than others
   Why some people get seasick and others don't

Haha, just a medium-sized terra cotta pot with a few varieties of edible/legal plants.

Thanks, i'll try all the suggestions!

I have never had problems on boats before, even after going years without being on them. I do, however, feel unbelievably unstable and jelly-like when returning to land. I wonder if this is the same sensation that seasick people get while on the water?

I've never heard of hypnosis for seasickness....I wonder if that would help!...and if I could convince him to do it, haha.

Does anyone have any natural remedies they have tried? I have heard that ginger can really settle and upset stomach but I can't say I've tried it.

My parents boat up in the San Jan Islands of Washington state, and each summer they head up North to Desolation Sound. This, of course, involves crossing into Canadian waters and dealing with Customs.

For Canada, the drill is typically an easy one. No open liquor bottles, no fruits, no veg. and you're pretty much good to go. ...Unless the camera at the marina entrance spots a terra cotta pot on your deck and asks your mother what it is and she responds, "a pot," quickly confusing and complicating the situation. BUT, the point being, that after your pot is recognized as a small herb garden, you are free to continue on.

Lesson learned in Canada: don't tell them you have a pot, of any kind...but what about crossing boarders in Central and South America? What about Europe? Anyone have any tips?

My significant other REFUSES to go sailing with me and, honestly, having been on but one brief ferry ride with him, I can see why. The guy can't handle the motion and has tried everything: wrist bands, pills, watching the horizon... but all to no avail. Is there a cure?

Having never chartered a boat, I am hoping that some of you out there will be willing to share your experiences and recommend specific characteristics I should look for/avoid in a charter company.

I am specifically interested in hearing about the BVI's and the Med, but any tips would be great!

Sailing Magazine has an annual photo contest and I believe it's time theboaters had our own. I know you all have amazing shots of yachts and dinghys alike....so post your best one here. After one week, be sure to log back onto the forum and vote for your favorite photo. Your prize shall be better than monetary; you will reign supreme in theboaters world until we deign to become interested in another forum and allow your celebrity to fall to the wayside. .....Ok, start posting....NOW!

Despite popular belief, this giant slab of land is not land-locked. Though hundreds of miles of sprawling hill country and norther planes bode badly for sailors, there are actually hundreds of fabulous places to boat in the Lone Star State. The Gulf is an obvious place to start, but I am talking about the lakes. They practically litter the land and are home to power and sail boaters alike. Being only a transient Texan, I've seen only three of these lakes: Texoma, Eagle Mountain, and LBJ. And I must say, from what I've seen, boating on Texas lakes is more than a hobby, it's an obsession. It's a four-day-weekend of drinking, bbq-ing, and general merry-making.

My hope is that people on this forum share their favorite Texas lake....and their favorite Texas lake story.

The Seattle Boat Show is Under Way!

Qwest Field Event Center and Southlake Union Jan. 24- Feb. 2 http://www.seattleboatshow.com/

I, unfortunately, cannot attend and would love to live vicariously through those who do. My parents will be going later this week and I'll try to get some pictures from them to post here. In the mean time, all you Northwesters let us know how it is!

Does anyone have any pictures of the rooms in these places? I'd love to get a better feel for them before dropping all my money!

Does anyone know of any on the West coast that are available to stay the night in?

Aye, I really just got chills down my spine. Never had anything happen to me (yet), but I've heard so many similar stories!

The perils of the sea have insured us a lifetime worth of ghost stories. Share away!

OH, I love a good ghost story! Do tell.

Actually, fish tacos are my favorite of all Mexican foods. Not sure about the Taco Bell seasoning however, haha. That might be sacreligious down here!

The Summer Camp forum has vastly strayed to include the topic of visiting lighthouses and even staying in them. Having lived near the OBX, I am familiar with its famous lighthouses and would love to hear the suggestions of other coast-dwellers. Which are your favorite? Which have an interesting histories behind them? Which can you/have you stayed in?

I've been coming across some cruising-cookbooks lately. http://www.landfallnav.com/-bcp005.html

Does anyone have any suggestions for a cookbook they have actually used? I'd love some recommendations.

DFW...and I have no loyalty. Don't get me wrong, I love the enchiladas and margaritas, but I gotta get out of here!

Moving to NY in a few months....would love to have some suggestions on where to join in as crew in the area!

Cape H. is amazing. Try to hit up Ocracoke as well...the town around it is full of family friendly activities. You can rent anything from bikes to kayaks and there are campgrounds practically on the beaches.

That's just my point though! Texas is SUPPOSED to be warm. I feel betrayed by my state.

Wherever that picture was taken, I am jealous! I'm in Texas and I'm STILL freezing! Winter is not my season.

I found this link under the resources board and thought it might be interesting to those seeking info about teaching their kids/themselves to sail: http://www.womanship.com/

Does anyone have any recommendations on what type of on-board grill to buy?

If you live on the west coast this may not be of any help: http://lighthouse.cc/links/overnight.html but there it is.

I loveeee the idea of staying in a lighthouse! And if you can't STAY in one, you should at least hit up all the awesome lighthouses on the OBX. Fun little day trips and especially entertaining for kids.

These are all such great stories! I especially love the punny ones.

Let us know when you've decided!

Safety books ARE so important. How many times have we all born witness to stupid mistakes being made?

Ha! love the play on words.

When I was realllly little, I spent most of my time in our family dingy. As everyone knows, getting bruised up while boating is quite easy....getting bruised up while being a child boater is inevitable. Witty as I was, and proud of my first boating wounds, I named the dingy "Banana Legs."

Sometimes I enjoy the names with the most obvious meanings the best. We once owned a boat names Mischief and needless to say it was tons of fun!

Ahhh, I forgot the most important part of the book; the ultimate reason it is so great for teens to read: it was the tale that inspired Moby Dick. There, now you and your children will be enhanced both in a nautical and literary sense. Hooray.

I was first introduced to boating on the shores of a military base...which explains why my father named our current boat Semper Fi. It's a nostalgic homage to our past in both life and boating. It may surprise you then, that my father, the no-nonsense, tough-and-gruff marine, named our previous boat with unprecedented sentimentality: Magic. My mom always tells says that the first time they saw the boat, a Pacific Seacraft, my dad swooned, got a giddy twinkle in his eyes and declared that it must be bought because it was so magical.

Goes to prove that sailing can truly bring out an unknown side of a person....which is why it's better than power boating, ahem.

I mentioned this book before in a previous post, and it's not so much a book ON sailing as a true-life sailing adventure. The reason I mention it again is because one of you requested a book recommendation for your son. This is an absolutely amazing tale that would impress any teen. I've passed it along to several people now...all of whom loved it. Oh! By the way it's called The Heart of The Sea. Check it out!

Wow, I'm glad this topic really took off. I mentioned before that Seagull/Seafarer are top notch world-wide, but I forgot to mention that Eagle Mountain Lake in Texas also has a great day program. I have a friend that has worked there for years and has wonderful things to say about it.

I also noticed that some of you were talking about adult summer camps; you really should check out what Seagull/Seafarer have to offer. It is great for families who have just begun sailing or want to introduce sailing to their kids without sending them off alone for a month....or perhaps that's what you're looking for!

If you have a pool, you can start them off there as well by letting them get used to the water on the first step when they are puppies.

We had a golden once who loved the lake so much that he would swim in between the rungs of the dock ladder to rest just so he wouldn't have to get out of the water.

Calm down everyone, I did not mean to denounce hemp an all its wonders. I simply meant that I don't enjoy wearing it or having everything in my home/boat made of it just in an effort to be 'green.' It's just nice to see an eco-friendly bag made of something different now and again.

Love the IT pun....then again, I like all puns so Knot-a-Yacht is right up there.

Seafarer, the sister camp to Seagul, is equally amazing. Those are absolutely the best two I've ever heard of.

I'm living in Texas right now and I make it a policy to not eat salmon until I go home to Washington. Have you ever seen the salmon spawn in those rivers? It is absolutely amazing. There are usually HUNDREDS of bald eagles in the trees lining the river as well.

Have you ever tried Blau oysters? I think they are some of the best.

For those of us determined to ditch the Tostitos and Velvita, here's an article on cooking afloat:

Two Burners, Five Stars The are real pleasures to be found in cooking onboard

by Chris and Rhea Caswell There are two schools of thought when it comes to cooking aboard your boat. In my younger days, I was a believer in the "quick-and-dirty" style, which mandates that nothing more complex than a peanut butter and jelly sandwich can be successfully created on board. Provisioning for a weekend ran heavily toward cans of soup, beans, hot dogs, the aforementioned peanut butter, and potato chips. My wife, Rhea, changed all of that. A gourmet chef who has owned several French restaurants, her attitude toward cooking aboard was that she could easily duplicate anything she normally prepared in a much larger kitchen ashore but, as she once pointed out, "the scenery is a lot better on the boat." Over the years, we've cruised aboard large and small boats, and I'm constantly amazed by what she's able to create quickly and effortlessly, even under the most adverse boating conditions. While preparing this article, she kept all of the food in an Igloo cooler, used the Origo two-burner alcohol stove, and didn't rely on any culinary tricks beyond the ability of the average cook. "I don't see any reason that you have to rough it when you're aboard a small boat," she says. "With a two-burner stove, an ice chest, and the usual pots and pans, you can delight your family with meals that rival those in fine restaurants. Best of all, it's quick and easy, so you don't have to be a galley slave. "Imagine a candlelit dinner for two or a tasty eye-opening breakfast for the whole family — they're simple and easy even on a two-burner stove. Over the years as a chef, restaurateur and boater, slaving in the kitchen or galley over a hot stove has never been my idea of a great time. So I've created some easy recipes using name-brand packaged foods that combine with fresh meat, fish and produce to seem like they should take hours to prepare. The best part is you can cook any of these meals in 20 minutes or less on a two-burner stove! So minimize the work, maximize the pleasure, and glory in the praise of your family and boating guests. With just a little planning, you can turn the ordinary into the extraordinary." On the following pages, we've prepared four meals — two dinners and two breakfasts — that should knock out your family without knocking yourself out. For the first night, we're starting with Shrimp Creole served on a bed of rice, and you'll have enough shrimp leftovers to use as appetizers for happy hour the next day. For the first breakfast, we're doing Eggs Sinatra which, according to insiders, is Frank Sinatra's favorite way to start his day. That evening, you'll be preparing Chicken Piccata served with a tangy orange salad, and the final breakfast is a zesty Omelette Veracruz with ham on the side. With meals like this, you'll have trouble getting your boating guests to leave.

Click here to continue reading: http://www.boats.com/news-reviews/article/two-burners-five-stars

I don't know much about baby boat seats, but I do think there is something to be said about catering to the cruising-family. I've found a few products that boating moms will love. Here's the trite "I'd rather be sailing" slogan revved up a bit:

http://www.milestonesmaternity.com/store.php?fcterm=sailing&fcprodid=189

Along with my passion for sailing, comes a passion for dogs: Golden Retrievers to be specific. My family has always had one of these high-strung, drooling, whining pups along on the boat, but beyond struggling them into a doggy-life jacket, we know little about the do's and don'ts of boating with animals.

I came across this article in Cruising World that answered many of my questions. Hopefully it will help other pet-owning boaters as well. Does anyone else have any other tips or suggestions?

Sailing Friends of the Four-Legged Kind Making pets feel at home on board is a matter of ensuring they have their creature comforts

Aug 1, 2007 By Bill Lindsey (More articles by this author)

Many animal lovers don’t cruise with pets because they don’t believe animals could be comfortable aboard. In many cases, though, their owners simply need to know how to look after them. For the most part, that means taking the same steps to protect your pet—and to protect your boat from your pet—as you would at home. A few extra precautions, though, are in order.

Bringing pets aboard raises many of the same concerns as you’d have for any nonsailors: making sure they don’t fall overboard, being able to get them back in case they do, preventing seasickness and heat exhaustion, and being prepared to handle an accident.

Basic Safety Properly fitted and sized, pet-flotation devices (PFDs) work just as well for cats and dogs as they do for the rest of the crew. The trick is to find one that fits your pet snugly, that won’t constrict its movement, and that the animal will actually wear. Most marine stores will allow you to try the PFD on your pet, as long as the device stays clean and dry. Once you’ve found one that your pet will wear, give it the dunk test. Let the animal get used to how it feels, then walk it into a calm, safe body of water to see how much support the PFD provides. Related Resources Animals Hows and Whats Pets and Food

To keep track of a pet after dark, attach a light to its harness or PFD. A red light won’t affect your night vision, and it makes your pet easy to spot whether the animal’s in the water or romping along the dock. I’ve used a Pelican Flasher (Pelican Products; 800-473-5422, www.pelican.com), a compact, 2-ounce light that will flash for up to eight hours when powered by two AAA batteries. (This light has been replaced by the Mini Flasher, a flashing LED lamp that runs off two coin-cell batteries for 130 hours and makes Fido visible for up to half a mile.)

For traveling to strange ports, get your pet an identity tag, including your boat’s make and model, name, registration number, and a contact number. Some countries also require pets to have a microchip implanted that carries coded information about the pet, its vaccination history, and its owner.

Carry a photo of your pet to show around in the event it goes missing.

Comforts of Home To keep pets comfortable, you have to provide them with food, water, protection from the elements, and a safe place to rest. The Kuranda Dog Bed (Kuranda USA; 800-752-5308, www.kuranda.com) is used by many kennels and also works well on boats. To keep pets dry, its nylon mesh surface is suspended like a hammock from an aluminum or poly-resin frame. The inverted-cone design of the Buddy Bowl, available in specialty stores and online, will prevent water from spilling, even if Rover flips it over.

Seasickness If you’re uncertain how your pet will react to a long sail, take it on a few short trips. Bring favorite toys, blanket, food, and water from home—waters elsewhere may have a different mineral content, which could trigger diarrhea.

If you find your pet suffers from sea sickness at the start of a voyage, don’t feed it for six hours before setting off. If possible, don’t give it water for two hours before. Feed and water it as soon as it gets its sea legs. If your pet gets seasick during the cruise, wait until its stomach has calmed sufficiently to hold down liquids, then give it a small amount of milk to settle it further.

Travel-induced stress can cause constipation, and if your pet shows signs of this, add a daily teaspoon of vegetable oil to its food (but don’t forget to walk it every time you touch land!). Many dogs won’t soil their dens, and if yours perceives your entire sailboat as its den, it might become constipated. If you’re planning an extended journey, it’s therefore vital to first paper-train the animal.

Click here to read the rest: http://www.cruisingworld.com/capable-cruising/living-aboard/sailing-friends-of-the-four-legged-kind-201846.html

Speaking of green sailing: I just came across a site that offers eco-sailing tours.

http://www.ecotourdirectory.com/ecotours/greece/wildtalesecosailingtours.php

Has anyone been on anything similar trip? Would you recommend it?

These days it seems that everyone is taking the extra mile to "go green," including boaters who are taking their earth-friendly mantra out to sea. Exhibit A: Resail's tote bags made from re-purposed sails.

http://www.poshyachting.com/image_lib/totes%20numbered%20xl.jpg

And while this may be more of an effort to be sailing-chic rather than earth-friendly, I have to applaud the effort. I'm personally glad that re-usable products are backing away from hemp and taking a step in the more fashionable (and boat-friendly) direction.

I'm curious to know, how do other boaters out their keep their vessel green?

What other sort of events like this exist outside of FlA?

High altitudes ARE worse. People tend to remember sunscreen only when it's warm out but in the San Juans where the breezes keep things cool, the atmosphere is dangerously thinner. People need to remember that it's not a matter of heat OR season.

I can't say that I do a lot of fishing, but up in the San Juans we are quite big fans of crabbing. It's so easy to just drop a pot of the side of your boat and forget about it, only to pull it up an hour later to find dinner inside!

Peruse the travel section of any Barns and Noble and you'll see that books on boating are easy to come by. Just about anyone who's traveled or experienced any kind of boating misadventure these days feels the need to scrawl their story into novel format. Well, poor souls like me have read their cookie cutter stories and have become all the wiser to the ways of boat-writing. I now choose my reading material carefully, and usually only venture forth after being giving a glowing recommendation.

And it is a glowing recommendation I have for all of you impassioned boaters: read The Heart of The Sea by Nathaniel Philbrick. It's the story of the whale ship Essex who's harrowing tale inspired Moby Dick. Of all the true boating tales I've heard, this one is the most epic. READ IT.

What boating books has everyone else read that come highly recommended?

Summer is still a few months off, but it's never too early to start planning ahead. I attended a sailing camp for eight years in North Carolina while growing up and truly believe that this is where I gained most of my sailing skills. Does anyone have any recommendations/experiences from other summer sailing camps around the country?

My mom recently told me she made homemade pizza and pasta dough in her tiny galley. How do all the other food-obsessed boaters stay gourmet while on the water?