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You’ve weathered COVID and you’re ready to book your charter to paradise. You’ve done some homework, but your float plan’s also got some blank spots.
St Vincent and the Grenadines is open to tourists and Horizon Yacht Charters are looking forward to welcoming our Canadian friends, old and new! You can fly from various locations in Canada via Barbados and then to St Vincent on InterCaribbean Airways or FlyOne and there are direct flights from Toronto with Air Canada on Mondays.
In Part I, Sheryl Shard ended the story at June and the start of Hurricane Season when they were once again joined by friends. This time it was Noel and Tracey Dinan, whose new shallow-draft Allures 49.5 was in build at the time, we headed north from the Exumas across the expanse of the Great Bahama Bank, dodging coral patches as we sailed to Eleuthera then Marsh Harbour, Great Abaco.
You likely aren’t quite ready to travel yet, but we have our fingers crossed that we can all fly soon. If that turns out to be during winter charter season or around the BVI Spring Regatta, you might take the opportunity to what you’ve long wanted to, fly direct to Beef Island.
I leaned my head back into the water and floated easily. Having spent my childhood playing in freshwater lakes in Ontario’s Cottage Country it always surprises me how buoyant one is in salt water. And this water was warm. I could get straight in. No dipping my toes tentatively and inching myself in for a “refreshing” dip.
St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) never officially shut its borders to tourists and remains open for business, poised to welcome visitors once they are permitted to travel from their respective countries.
NASSAU, Bahamas, July 19, 2020 – Due to the continued increase in COVID-19 cases in the United States, as well as an uptick in cases in The Bahamas, Prime Minister, The Most Hon. Dr. Hubert Minnis, has made the difficult decision to close borders to international commercial flights and commercial vessels carrying passengers from the United States.
Dream Charters has opened new Caribbean base at Compass Point Marina, St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands, in partnership with Virgin Islands Yacht Charters.
We’ve just weighed anchor off Thatch Caye, a tiny island nuzzled by Caribbean waters flowing between the world’s second longest barrier reef and the mountainous coast of Belize to our west, and now we’re navigating a serpentine course through a crowded congregation of coral heads.
On Monday, May 6 a flotilla of power and sailboats cruised along Havana’s waterfront in a celebration of the city’s 500th anniversary.
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Boat Reviews
Video Gallery
Viko S35 – A sexy, affordable racer-cruiser
By Katherine Stone
I am lucky to have the opportunity to helm many types of boats. I am even more lucky to sail boats on champagne fall days when many boats are either being hauled for the winter, or are already under shrink-wrap.
Not only are there great winds – usually offshore, but welcome sunshine and open waters with few boats out enjoying the last days of September. Joining me for the test sail of the Viko S35 was the former publisher of Canadian Yachting, Greg Nicoll, and the Canadian Viko Yachts representative, Eric Beauregard, who had driven down from Montreal.
Four Winns H4
By Andy Adams
The well-known Four Winns brand is now a part of the international boatbuilder Groupe Beneteau and the new H4 is a great example of how the design and engineering resources of Beneteau can up the game even for a brand like Four Winns that has a long and distinguished history.
The Cadillac Michigan-built H4 is a brand-new design this year and we think it's especially handsome. The vertical stem bow is all new and innovative. It is a design feature that was chosen to give Four Winns and the H4 a sense of modern and contemporary look while the stern remains more traditional.
West Side Story
by Jennifer M. Smith, drone photos by Alex Nikolajevich
It was the last day of August and we were in Little Current heading south. Our Lasalle winter haul out was still over a month away. The question was: where to now? Friends in Meaford often suggested we sail in for a visit. We never had because we’d always moved north-south on the east side of Georgian Bay. This year we were up for something different. This was the perfect opportunity to cruise the west side of the bay.
We made the 10 a.m. bridge out of Little Current and motor-sailed east southeast in light northerlies. We’d often sailed past Snug Harbour, a nearly land-locked anchorage on the north side of Lansdowne Channel because the chart suggested we’d never make it in there with our six-foot draft.
Lifestyle
By AMY HOGUE
What to look for and ask about as you plan your vacation times. You’ve invested thousands and thousands of dollars into your boat so naturally, you want to find just the right spot for her to live, and where you can enjoy her to the maximum. Marinas and yacht clubs are just like people, no two are completely alike and finding the one that’s perfect for you, may make you feel a little like Cinderella – searching for the shoe that fits just right.
It’s okay to take your time on this search because the marina you choose is arguably as important a decision as the one to buy your boat.
Read More
DIY & How to
Repair and re-paint your deck or cockpit floor
by Marc Robic
After 27 years of sun and traffic, the cockpit floor on Aquaholic was starting to look faded and had many small pinholes and minor surface cracks. These pinholes are mostly caused by small air pockets that lay just below the gelcoat surface. Of course, this is exacerbated by particles such as small rocks or debris under shoes, dropped winch handles, etc.
Luckily, Catalina Yachts is still very much in business and are very helpful when owners have questions or need parts. I ordered a small quantity of original formula Catalina grey and white gelcoat for my model and year.
Marine Products
Thrusters can make docking easier
By Andrew McDonald
Corners like it’s on rails. You can almost see it. A car with a low centre of gravity takes a curve. The driver shifts through the gears and exits the bend with speed and grace. Stops on a dime. That same vehicle smoothly downshifts and comes to a complete stop as though hitting an invisible barrier.
Most of our sailing metaphors evoke thoughts and feelings of strong winds pushing a sleek racer faster, or perhaps the crew tacking or gybing around a mark. We don’t seem to have the same colourful expressions to describe the movement of a power or sailing vessel at slow speeds.
SailGP, the international racing series featuring high speed F50 wingsailed catamarans, is partnering with RS Electric Boats – sister brand of sailboat manufacturer RS Sailing – to use the Pulse 63 electric RIB as chase, coach and support boats.
RS Electric Boats will supply SailGP with four Pulse 63s, which were designed to be electric boats from the outset. The unique aerodynamic hull form is designed to support the weight of the batteries while allowing rapid acceleration, functional speeds up to 23 knots and ample range.
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