General

Dear Fellow Boaters,
We have provided you with this information before, but here it is again: USCG Local Notices to Mariners and Light Lists are available in a new format which was finally launched on December 6, 2024:  https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/msi .  Updated information will be available to anyone at any time. There is a guide to how to use this at https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/msi/MSI_UserGuide.pdf.

It is easy to add your position on your phone or computer and to search the area around you or where you plan to be on the water. We hope that you will take time to become familiar with the new system and make sure that you use it before you go boating. The LNM information will be updated every 15 minutes, the Light List every 24 hours, so you won’t have to wait a week for the LNMs, or two weeks for East Coast Alerts. But it’s up to you to use it!

It has been our pleasure to present East Coast Alerts to BoatU.S. members for the last twenty years. We hope it has helped improve your safety on the water.
It’s now up to you! We will miss you.

Happy Boating, have fun and be safe, Mel and Tom Neale
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The below announcement from the 7th District Coast Guard provides an excellent summary:

Published Dec. 13, 2024

MIAMI – The Coast Guard recently updated the user interface to the Local Notice to Mariners and Light Lists in an effort to modernize and improve the accessibility, accuracy and overall user experience for mariners and stakeholders.
This update was released the week of Dec. 2.
The upgrades are designed to improve accessibility, accuracy, and efficiency for mariners and stakeholders by providing real-time, customizable marine safety information.
Beginning in January 2025, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Coast Survey will discontinue the production of paper charts. Due to this change, the Coast Guard transitioned from the traditional, paper-based files, which were inefficient and posed challenges for mariners needing timely, accurate information.
“The modernized Local Notice to Mariners creates access to the most up to date Marine Safety Information available, in a customizable, chart-based and interactive format,” said Cmdr. Nicholas Seniuk, Waterways Management Branch Chief for the Seventh Coast Guard District. “The data can be presented graphically on the interactive map viewer, in tabular format on the Coast Guard Navigation Center website, as a document, or rendered within certain geospatial information software.”
Coast Guard District Seven collaborated with the U.S. Coast Guard Navigation Center to redesign the LNM and Light List platforms.

Key actions included:

• Transitioning from static, paper-based charts to interactive maps using official waterway names.
• Implementing real-time updates: LNMs refresh every 15 minutes, and Light List data updates every 24 hours following verification.
• Creating features for users to customize, filter, and print maritime safety data tailored to specific voyages.
• Eliminating weekly files, including LNMs and Light List corrections, to focus resources on delivering accurate, up-to- the-minute data.

The updated platform provides mariners with unparalleled access to critical navigation tools:

• Near real-time updates ensure the most current and verified safety information is always available.
• Mariners can now access Marine Safety Information in a format of their choosing, including online, printable, or geospatial software integrations.
• Customizable features allow users to generate tailored safety information lists, streamlining voyage planning and improving operational efficiency.

Key changes for Mariners:

1. Transition from Paper Charts: As NOAA phases out paper charts, the Coast Guard is adopting official waterway names for navigation references.
2. Interactive Maps: LNMs and Light Lists are now displayed on a user-friendly, interactive map.
3. Real-time Updates: LNMs update every 15 minutes, and Light Lists every 24 hours.
4. Customizable Access: Users can create and print lists tailored to their voyages or download the entire LNM.

For a user guide and more information, visit the U.S. Coast Guard Navigation Center. Questions can be submitted through the Contact Us page by selecting ‘LNMs or Light Lists’ from the dropdown menu.

This modernization represents a significant leap in maritime safety, aligning the Coast Guard with cutting-edge navigation technology to ensure the safety and efficiency of mariners worldwide.

Someone once said “the best hot dogs are the ones with a baseball game in front of them”.  I’ve had a few of those and, admittedly, they were pretty darn good.  Most people would be surprised to learn that I have literally had only three or four hot dogs at only two or three major league baseball games in my lifetime.  This arguably shocking statistic is not because I don’t like baseball, it’s because I am a boater.  When “the boys of summer” are beginning their season, I’m busy getting my boat ready.  To me, the perfect baseball game viewing-venue would be the cockpit of an Islander 36 while sailing past Giants Stadium on San Francisco Bay.

During my 50+ years of boating I’ve had a lot of hot dogs.  Many of them have been served with marina views.  I’ve had them at pristine, professional marinas and I’ve had them at run-down “mom & pop” boatyards.  I’ve had them at well-run yacht clubs with great managers, yacht clubs with terrible managers, and yacht clubs with no managers.  I’ve had hotdogs that have been cooked for me, and ones I’ve cooked myself.  All of them have been good and all were served with great views.

These days, I’m not eating many hot dogs.  In fact, I’m not eating any at all.  However, my first mate still does.  “I just need one a year”.  Fortunately, we’ve found one of the very best hot dogs, with some of the very best views, served by some of the very best people in the boating industry.

Safe Harbor Bruce & Johnson’s Customer Appreciation Day.

It’s nice to be appreciated!

We had the wind and current with us as we sailed from Branford to Stonington.  Nine hours later we were comfortably secured to a great mooring at Dodson’s Boatyard.  Sitting in the cockpit while watching the sun setting is simply the best!  We are looking forward to our next venture this season.

We keep Blue Mind at Dutch Wharf Marina on the Branford river for the summer.  The last couple of years we have moved the boat to Herrington Harbour North which is south of Annapolis because our son has a rigging business their. We spend the month of November on the boat and then leave the boat for the winter so some work can get done.

The trip is quite and adventure. Sometimes we even take a couple of students that want to experince a longer sailing trip.

This last time we stopped at City Island NY, Manesquan NJ, Atlantic City NJ, Lewes NJ and Summit on the C&D Cannel.

Check out the pictures:

 

In our beginning courses, we are happy just to get the boat to move.

As we get more experience we might notice that other boats are sailing better than us.

Some people say that if there are two sailboats in sight of each other they are racing even if one of them doesn’t know it.

If you want to know the final (yea I don’t think so either) word on sail trim this is your book:

Performance Racing Trim (North U)

 

Many beginning sailors dream of someday sailing the world.

If that is your dream you are going to want to know what countries to go to and in what order and at what time of the year. “World Cruising Routes”  by Jimmy Cornell is the defacto place to start your research.