How Long Do You Have to Prep for a Hurricane?
The Boat Galley
When a named storm is forecast for your area, how long do you have to prepare your boat? Listen carefully for the tips few realize make the difference between being prepared and caught. Summary When your boat is in the path of a forecast hurricane, knowing how long you have to prepare is invaluable for good results. But you need some basic information to figure it out. First, understand that the National Hurricane Center refers to the eye of the storm when they predict arrival times. Gale-force winds will extend considerably farther. And you want to be fully prepared before they hit you. If...
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Making Sweet Potato Black Bean Tacos on your Boat
The Boat Galley
Sweet potato black bean tacos are the perfect boat recipe--ideal for when stores are slim. Versatile and easy to customize, one secret ingredient makes it really special. Summary When your stores are low and fresh produce is scarce, sweet potato black bean tacos are my go-to meal. Adding one secret ingredient takes it from delicious to over-the-moon fantastic. We never tire of it. Beans are a great source of protein. We don't have a freezer. Dried beans last a long time without taking up space. Add freeze-dried sweet potatoes (if you don't have fresh ones), aromatics, some...
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A Cool Way to Enjoy Happy Hour on a Boat
The Boat Galley
Cruising in hot weather? Why not cool off by enjoying happy hour in the water? Here are a few tips to keep it fun and safe. Summary Our cruising grounds exposed us to frequent high temperatures, sometimes over 100 degrees F. How did we keep cool? With lots of swimming. And not just throughout the day but when socializing with friends during happy hour. Sitting in shallow water off the beach or off the stern of an anchored boat is perfect for staying cool while visiting. Safety is key. A line off the stern not only gives visitors a place to hook their dinghies but also provides swimmers a place...
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Grocery Shopping in the Marquesas
The Boat Galley
Grocery Shopping, Marquesas-style. Here are three things to know about restocking your food supply in the Marquesas. Summary Before we arrived in the Marquesas, I worried about the ease of provisioning groceries. Yes, everyone eats everywhere. However, I had heard that stores were mostly nonexistent, had few items available, and what was found would be expensive. What was the reality? First, you'll find three types of "stores": magasins (small, department-store-ish businesses), green markets, and locals selling affordable produce from their gardens. Second, we found most of what we...
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Monitor Your Boat From Afar - Review Of The ROAM Device
The Boat Galley
If you have to leave your boat, are you confident all is well aboard? You can be with the Roam Device, an affordable and easy remote boat monitor system. Summary John Herlig from The Boat Galley team recently installed the Roam marine monitor hub on his 1967 Rawson 30 sailboat, currently anchored in Florida while he is away from the boat. He found the installation and setup of the Roam device faster and easier than expected. The device monitors vital boat systems and connects to a cell network to send data to the cloud. Users can access data from an app on their phone. The price is...
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No Foreign Land - A Great Cruiser Resource
The Boat Galley
Everything you need to know about this cruiser-based, crowd-sourced, social app. We rely on it every day! Summary When you've arrived at a new anchorage, how do you figure out how to find necessities? Especially if you're out of range of The Boat Galley cruising guides? After all, there are places where cruising guides don't exist. Luckily I have a great resource to share. Cruising is more than dolphins and beautiful sunsets. Sometimes, you gotta get stuff done, like buying groceries or diesel. Or maybe you're just craving a restaurant meal or want a fun day off the boat. You have...
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Best Marine Weather Apps
The Boat Galley
I'm frequently asked for the best marine weather apps. Cruising the Florida coast and Bahamas, I've found a few favorites. Summary Apps are helpful. But don't forget to look out the hatch to see what's happening in your area. If you need more information, here's what we relied on while cruising Florida and the Bahamas. Windy Windy is great for a color-coded, big-picture view of the wind, wave, and rain forecasts. The motion feature shows changes over the hours and days. We've found Windy pretty accurate. It does require internet access to use. RADAR Radar programs come and go. So I...
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How to Capture Rainwater from your Cruising Boat
The Boat Galley
Here's why you should collect rain water on your cruising boat, even if you have a watermaker. And a few tips to tell you how to do it. Summary Catching rainwater on the boat? Is it worth it even if you have easy access to water in your cruising locale? We think so. In the Marquesas, where we're currently cruising, we find taps providing water in every settlement's port. It's not always potable. But it's suitable for showers and laundry. We also have a small watermaker onboard. Even so, we still gather rainwater aboard Calypso. A heavy rainfall fills our collapsible water jugs in 20...
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Galley Straps on a Boat - Do They Help or Harm?
The Boat Galley
Some cruisers think galley straps are a great safety item. I disagree. Here's why. Summary An important feature of a well-designed cruising boat galley is safety for the cook--ensuring they aren't tossed around the boat in rough seas. Many cruisers think galley straps solve the problem. But I believe they can make things worse--particularly the ones I saw on my friend's boat. What are the major issues? 1) Straps confine the cook in front of fire and hot pans with no ability to move away. 2)Straps don't help if you need access to other areas like lockers or the sink. 3) You need two hands to...
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Doing Laundry in a Bucket When You Live on a Boat
The Boat Galley
When you need to do laundry on the boat and there's no laundromat nearby, one unexpected tool will make the job easier. Here are the steps to having clean laundry aboard--no washing machine required! Summary: As budget cruisers in the 1990s, we did nearly all laundry on board. Today, we intend to splurge on laundromats. However, not everywhere has them. Or the cost can be high, like in French Polynesia where we are now. So what do you need to wash clothes on board? My supplies include two buckets, cold water detergent, fresh water, and a clean (unused) toilet plunger. Here's my...
info_outlinePreparing for surgery when you live on a boat? Then we have some tips to help from when my husband Dave had a hip replacement while we were living aboard Barefoot Gal.
Summary
So how do you make arrangements when you live on a boat full time and have to schedule a surgical procedure?
There are three components important to consider:
1) How long will it take for you to recover from your procedure? You need to get a realistic assessment from your doctor. And remember, when you're asking questions, they may not understand what it's like to live on a boat.
2) Where is the safest place to keep the boat during recovery. Dave's surgery fell right during hurricane season. So hauling the boat and putting it on the hard was the best choice for us.
3) Can your emergency plan handle all the expenses? For us, this meant hauling and storing the boat. We also rented an apartment for several months (3 months longer than the doctor predicted). And we had to put items in storage.
Luckily, we had time to make a plan for Dave's surgery. But if you have a large enough emergency fund, even an emergency should be okay.
Listen to the complete podcast for more details or check out Managing Surgery When You Live on a Boat.
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Music: “Slow Down” by Yvette Craig