Labor Day Weekend Boat Shows?

There aren't any. At least, not in the US. But there are a couple of events worth mentioning...

With Labor Day on Monday, and the annual back to school ritual happening in the United States this week and next, there are no boat shows to report here at home. There are, however, a couple of major nautical events outside the US.

And that's enough for us to do our weekly nautical event round-up!

Read on for (both of) this weekend's boating events, or jump right to the FirstBoat.com boat show calendar...

Pica: Rules For Sailing and Rowing

Vin Pica discusses the boating rules affecting wind- and paddle-powered vessels...

Guest blog by Vincent Pica
Chief of Staff, First District, Southern Region (D1SR)
United States Coast Guard Auxiliary

Photos © 2012 Nautical Sites Media / Kate Canepari

As you can tell, I have been using this rainy and dreary morning in here to dig deeper into the Rules which govern our behavior on the creeks, bays and the open sea. As Ishmael said in “Moby Dick”,

“Whenever it is a damp, drizzly November in my soul, then I account it high time to get to sea as soon as I can.”

Since it is damp and drizzly, let’s labor on and know that better days will arrive – Summer isn’t over yet…!  As you’ve noticed, these articles have focused largely on powered vessels, as do the COLREGs themselves.

But what about those vessels that are powered by the most ancient of power sources – wind and human muscle? 

Read on, sailor.

The Boat Galley On Rusty Cans

This week, the Boat Galley is checking the bottom of all the cans stored on your boat...

Tips From The Boat Galley, by Carolyn Shearlock

Photo by Carolyn Shearlock

Carolyn Shearlock, author of The Boat Galley, appears weekly on the Daily Boater with tips for getting the most out of your boat's kitchen. Download a free sample of her soon-to-be-published The Boat Galley Cookbook. 


Ever reach for a can and notice a bit of rust on it? Most likely, on the rim? And the question hits you...

Are Rusty Cans Safe to Eat From?

Isaac Hurricane Warning

The National Weather Service reports that Tropical Storm Isaac is currently (as of 11:00 am) about 80 miles east-southeast of Key West, and is moving toward the west-northwest at just under 20 mph.

The NWS goes on to say that the center of Isaac should move near or over the Florida Keys late Sunday and into the eastern Gulf of Mexico on Monday. Maximum sustained winds are near 65 mph and Isaac is expected to strengthen and be at or near hurricane strength when it reaches the Florida Keys.

Marine Product Review: The essential sailcloth bag

This week’s Marine Product Review puts a fashionable sailcloth tote to the test

Sailcloth is great for bags for on or off the boat!

In the latest installment of the Daily Boater's weekly Marine Product Review, Mark Sutton of MarineProductReviews.com tested the Ella Vickers Yacht Club Tote, which is made in the USA out of recycled sails. 

(Are you interested in having your product or service featured in a future Marine Product Review on multiple boating websites? Get the details here or contact Nautical Sites Media for more info.)

Read on for our review of this beautiful sailcloth tote bag...

The All New Recreation Dot Gov

Revamped government site aims to fuel economy by helping people to discover America's Outdoors...

Photo courtesy of the all new recreation.gov website.

Ken Salazar is the United States Secretary of the Interior, which means, somewhat ironically, that he's in charge of America's great outdoors. He reports right to the President of the United States.

So when Secretary Salazar sends us an unsolicited email, we usually open it. This happened about an hour ago, and this time it was something worth sharing with our audience of recreational boaters. It was about a newly re-tooled website called Recreation.Gov...

Boat Galley - Storing Glass on Boats

This week, the Boat Galley looks at ways to safely store glass on your boat...

Tips From The Boat Galley 
Carolyn Shearlock
Carolyn Shearlock, author of The Boat Galley, appears weekly on the Daily Boater with tips for getting the most out of your boat's kitchen. Download a free sample of her soon-to-be-published The Boat Galley Cookbook.

Photo by Carolyn Shearlock

How do you store glass bottles, wine glasses and other “breakables” on a boat?  What started as a wine rack on Que Tal turned out to be perfect for so much more...

This week's topic: Glass Storage!

Pica: More Lights and Shapes

Vin Pica continues discussing navigation lights and the boating rules you need to know...

Guest blog by Vincent Pica
Chief of Staff, First District, Southern Region (D1SR)
United States Coast Guard Auxiliary

Continuing our focus on Lights and Shapes in the “Lights and Shapes” Section of the Rules of Navigation (Rules 21-31), let’s dig in a bit since, if you go outside the bays, this knowledge is expected to be known by you by the men and women driving the “1,000 foot’er’s” loaded with cargo from places far away...

Failure to understand what these leviathans are “saying” to you can be, frankly, catastrophic – and it won’t be them that come to grief if there is a collision at sea between them and your Grady White...

Bag It Up With The Boat Galley

This week, the Boat Galley looks at the most convenient storage solution on your boat...

Tips From The Boat Galley 
Carolyn Shearlock
Carolyn Shearlock, author of The Boat Galley, appears weekly on the Daily Boater with tips for getting the most out of your boat's kitchen. Download a free sample of her soon-to-be-published The Boat Galley Cookbook.

Photos by Carolyn Shearlock

Whether your boat has an actual refrigerator or a cooler, I'll bet that there's never enough space in it. And when you want to cool something, or keep leftovers, it's a jigsaw puzzle to figure out how to fit it all in. I finally decided to...

Bag It!

Maritime Festivals, Cowes Week and More

This weekend's nautical events include Cowes Week, maritime festivals in Vermont, Canada and more...

Photo Copyright Rick Tomlinson / Aberdeen Asset Management Cowes Week (pic from last year's event)

A couple of boat shows, a couple of maritime festivals, and the start of Cowes Week in the UK.  

Got plans this weekend? It's time for this week's nautical event round-up!

All of this weekend's boating events below; and, as always, we invite you to jump ahead to the FirstBoat.com boat show calendar for a quick look at the lineup of boating and fishing events this weekend and beyond...

World on Water 84

Watch the latest edition of World on Water, Episode 84, for August 10, 2012...

Pica: Light It Up!

Vin Pica explains what all the required navigation lights are on your boat, and on the one heading towards you...

Guest blog by Vincent Pica
Chief of Staff, First District, Southern Region (D1SR)
United States Coast Guard Auxiliary

There are a couple of Rules that just say “the next set of rules deal with ‘x’.”  Rule 20 is one of them.  It says that all the Rules in the “Lights and Shapes” Section of the Rules of Navigation (Rules 21-31) are governed by a few common factors and that you need to see each separate Rule for specific matters as they relate to the vessel or circumstances. This column will start to get these important facts and circumstances out in the open...

Free Boat Galley Cookbook Sampler

This week, the Boat Galley gives you more than just tips for cooking on your boat...

Free recipes and more!

Tips From The Boat Galley 
Carolyn Shearlock
Carolyn Shearlock, author of The Boat Galley, appears weekly on the Daily Boater with tips for getting the most out of your boat's kitchen.

How often do you get something free for your boat that’s actually useful? Here’s your chance!

Today’s Topic: The Boat Galley Cookbook PDF Sampler...

Marine Product Review: AeroPress Coffee Maker

A review of a must-have product for boaters who love coffee as much as we do...
 

Coffee loving boaters know that options for getting your morning cup can be challenging on several fronts when on your boat. In many harbors, going ashore to get a cup isn’t practical even if there is a coffee shop nearby. Onboard, options for making coffee can be messy and quality is often sacrificed.

In the latest installment of the Daily Boater's weekly Marine Product Review, Mark Sutton of MarineProductReviews.com tested the Aerobie AeroPress and found it to be an exceptional coffee maker for boaters. 

(Are you interested in having your product or service featured in a future Marine Product Review on multiple boating websites? Get the details here or contact Nautical Sites Media for more info.)

Read on for our review of the Aerobie AeroPress...