Using my boat all year round, I tend to see all kinds of conditions and on one particularly dark and windy February night, when I found myself coming up a buoyed channel, things got a bit awkward. I couldn't see a great deal but it won't be a problem, I thought.
I'll just stay away from the edges of the channel on my plotter and use the lights on the channel markers. Then all of a sudden, there was a bang as I hit a glancing blow on an unlit port marker! The marker was fine and there were only minor scrapes on my boat, but it was at this point that I realised I had to do something to make dark winter cruises that bit safer.
LIGHTING OPTIONS
There are plenty of alternatives available if you need extra visibility at night. They span everything from a pair of torches connected to the handrails with bicycle handlebar clips (about £20 all-in) to thermal and low-light cameras linked to your MFD for between £1,000 and £4,000. But could I really justify that kind of cost for night nav when it's generally something I try to avoid? Probably not, so I adopted the middle ground and looked at spotlights instead.
Denne historien er fra July 2024-utgaven av Motor Boat & Yachting UK.
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Denne historien er fra July 2024-utgaven av Motor Boat & Yachting UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT YACHT TRANSPORT
As the name suggests it's a means of having your boat moved professionally from one location to another. It might be as simple as hiring someone to tow your RIB a few miles down the road or as complex as shipping a superyacht halfway around the world.
HANDLE A SINGLE SHAFTDRIVE BOAT PART 1
Single shaftdrive boats are relatively rare these days but the reduced costs of buying, servicing and fuelling such a simple but reliable drivetrain does mean they are making a bit of a comeback.
COCKWELLS MOTOR LAUNCH
There can be very few boats that have appeared three times at the Southampton Boat Show and been sold off the stand each time.
INSTALLING AN AUTOPILOT
Rick Channon makes solo boating simple with a Raymarine Evolution Autopilot
GOOD AS NEW
Why fit a brand new engine when Volvo Penta's remanufacturing service can rebuild you an old one to the same standard for a fraction of the price?
BENETEAU SWIFT TRAWLER 54
Alex Smith heads to France's Beneteau HQ for a UK exclusive on what might just be the best Swift Trawler yet
ΧΟ EXPLR 44
Can XO's all-new aluminium flagship really make it big in the Med?
BUYING OUR FIRST CLASSIC
Instead of whiling away their retirement playing bowls, Rob and Shona Adams decided to invest their time and money in a classic Silver gentleman's yacht. Would the gamble pay off?
PRINCESS S65
Torn between the V and F Class flagships? The new S65 might be the boat you've been waiting for...
FERRETTI INFYNITO 90
Ferretti Yachts is diversifying into the long-range fast-displacement market. But can its debut model justify the hype?
