— These days, many modern VHFs, whether handheld or built-in, are enabled with Digital Selective Calling and are associated — when properly registered — with your boat's unique MMSI number. In addition to boat-to-boat calling features via special frequencies, they can send out mayday alerts specific to your exact location when the unit has built-in GPS capabilities. Decades ago, all this would seem like sci-fi fantasy, but today such units are commonplace, and relatively inexpensive. Plus, many handhelds are waterproof and float. (Both our built-in and handheld are made by Horizon.) InReach satellite device — These compact, handheld units have been mentioned often in Latitude, as they offer an incredible combo of functionality in a waterproof device the size of a pack of playing cards. Although our unit's ability to serve as a mini-EPIRB may be its greatest attribute, it can also be used to send and receive simple text messages via satellite, receive detailed offshore weather forecasts, and even navigate in a pinch.
Page 90 •
Latitude 38
• March, 2018
JULIE TURPIN
SOUTHBOUND SHAKEDOWN —
We did almost all installations ourselves. But we were thrilled to have our buddy Gustavo fit the new radar while berthed at Sugar Dock.
(InReach is now owned by Garmin.) Other major purchases we made prior to leaving the Bay included a suit of Hood Sails (made in the USA!) that help us go faster and point higher, a
vertical Muir anchor windlass powerful enough to dead lift our Rocna anchor and all 250 feet of chain, a 400-watt array of (Solarworld) solar panels, and a 500-amp-hour bank of AGM batteries that holds enough juice to keep our new Frigoboat fridge chilled 24/7 and run Otto the autopilot for hours without recharging. Conspicuously absent from this list is an item we anticipate will become one of our most valuable 'crewmembers': our Hydrovane self-steering device, the pieces of which we actually carried all the way to Puerto Vallarta in lockers. But it's next on the list for installation.
C
ompared to our freewheeling days of bare-bones island-hopping, when we navigated by line of sight and dead reckoning, we feel as if we're on the cutting edge of gear and gadgetry these days. Even so, by some assessments we're probably still not thoroughly prepared. But what the heck, we're ready enough for the next adventure. — latitude/andy