Month: May 2018

A Boater’s Guide To Marina Del Rey Yacht Clubs

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Southern California is recognized worldwide as an excellent vacation spot with stunning beaches, breathtaking amusement parks, and unmatched cinema attractions — but boaters have unique needs and interests than the average landlubber. Those who enjoy the open water have a different perspective on things.

There are six different Marina del Rey yacht clubs, each with different amenities, options, and functions: The California Yacht Club, the Del Rey, The Marina Venice, Pacific Mariners, Santa Monica/Windjammers, and The South Coast Corinthian. To find the ideal club for you, start by assessing your interests and then looking for the Marina del Rey yacht clubs that caters to your interests.

Sporty Spirits

Several of Marina del Rey yacht clubs offer sports activities for those who like to get their blood flowing after a jaunt on the sea. If you enjoy paddle tennis and rowing, the California may be the right choice for you. If swimming, basketball, and table tennis are more your style, you’ll find facilities and other like-minded enthusiasts at the Del Rey.

Yacht Club Socialites

The boating community is known far and wide as a very outgoing social group and Marina del Rey yacht clubs are no exception. Boaters can enjoy social dinner parties with the Santa Monica/Windjammers, club meetings at the South Coast Corinthians, Monday night football with the Pacific Mariners, or an elegant cocktail in the private club at the California. For younger boaters, children’s programs are offered at both the Del Rey and California Clubs.

Boat Repair Do-It-Yourselfers

Some people get distinct pleasure and personal satisfaction from caring for their boat themselves. If you are a DIY boater, the Marina Venice Club and the Pacific Mariners Club are your best bet. For larger boats, the South Coast Corinthian has a one-ton hoist at their self-service facility with 24-hour access.

Boaters with Kids and Teens

Both the Del Rey and The California Yacht Club offer activities for juniors. Junior activities at CYC include rowing and sailing lessons while Del Rey offers full boating courses for juniors. Kids learn everything from water safety skills, to how to care for a boat, to earning a healthy respect for nature and the ocean. Daily activities include chalk talks, water drills, warm ups, and other activities that promote self-reliance, competence, and cooperation.

Sailing And Cruising Adventures

Perhaps one of the greatest benefits of joining a yacht club is the opportunity to hit the seas with others that are just as obsessed with the water as you. All of the Marina del Rey yacht clubs organize social boating adventures — from sunset and dinner cruises, to dance cruises to snorkeling tours, fishing expeditions, and more.

What You’ll Need To Know About Marina del Rey Before Arriving

The Del Rey has over 300 slips, a hoist, and a Catalina Island facility. The Santa Monica/Windjammers offers a small boat hoist and 200 slips for your boating convenience.

Proper Anchoring of Your Trawler or Motor Yacht

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Used Trawlers, Used Motor Yachts, and Used Sailboats for Sale “>In a previous article we talked about the five categories of anchors and how to select the best one for your needs. Today we will review how to successfully use that anchor.

Logic would have it that dropping and setting an anchor is simply nothing more than lowering the anchor, setting out some line and kick back and start having fun. Not so fast!

To work properly, anchors must develop enough resistance in the sea bed to endure the environmental forces on the trawler-the wind and the tides. An anchor’s capacity to develop resistance is completely dependent on its capability to penetrate the sea bed. We will assume that you have aboard your yacht, the best anchor for your intended sea bed conditions . We will also assume you have enough rode, chain, rope or a combination, to play out the anchor.

As you near your chosen anchorage, always allow plenty of swing room. The tides, currents and winds will always swing the boat so be sure to allow plenty of room to avoid hitting other boats that may be anchored nearby. Be sure to estimate how far you’ll be from your anchor when it is set.

When you have chosen the best place to anchor, place the bow into the wind and or current and slowly bring her to a stop. Look at other anchored boats to get a feel of the tides if necessary.

On our trawler, the Patricia Ann, we have all chain rode. We have marked the rode every 25 feet with red string. The initial 25 feet is marked with 1 string, the second with 2 and so forth. This makes deploying the anchor with accuracy.

When you are in position, begin letting out the anchor rode. Your trawler will begin drifting somewhat with the current. When you have played out enough rode to place your anchor on the bottom, bump the engines into reverse to begin laying the rode out. We rather not have the anchor on the bottom with the rode piled on top of it to perhaps tangle. Do not keep the trawler in reverse; you just want to begin laying the rode out. When you have adequate rode out halt the trawler’s reverse speed.

Some boating “experts” insist that it takes a scope of 7:1 rode to safely hold a yacht. That would equate to 7 foot of rode for every 1 foot of water depth. For example, to properly anchor in 10 feet of water, would require 70 feet of anchor rode. But we routinely anchor the Patricia Ann in 15 foot waters with a 35 lb. CQR anchor and 5/16 inch chain rode. We usually deploy 50 feet of rode and have never had a dragging anchor even in some 25-30 mph winds. I suspect that the more chain you use, the greater the holding power as the rode is pulling more horizontal to the sea floor and the chain further offers supplemental weight.

Now you have an appropriate amount of rode deployed, how do you set and secure it. We have an electric chain windlass aboard our trawler. Our windlass has no locking feature so chain will continue to be deployed if the yacht pulls it. Your windlass may be different but you must make certain that you can secure the rode so no more will be deployed.

I made up a bridle, consisting of a 5/8 inch dock line that we use to stop additional chain deployment and give some elasticity to it. A stainless shackle is attached to the line. The shackle is connected to the chain rode as it is lowered; the other end is tied to the king post. Be sure to use chafing gear where the bridle meets the anchor roller.

If you are using chain with a nylon rode, you’ll not need to use a bridle. If you are using a metal cable, you can use a cable or wire puller to fasten a bridle to it.

Once the bridle is secured, the trawler is backed-down until the anchor is set. You will know when it sets as the anchor rode will rise out of the water and the boat will stop.

Finally, the rode is lowered a bit more allowing the bridle to hold the boat.

Mike Dickens, the author, is a live aboard boat owner and owner/Broker of Paradise Yachts in Florida USA.

Paradise Yachts offers used quality yachts to customers worldwide.

Visit the Paradise Yachts website to view our selection of Used Trawlers, Used Motor Yachts, and Used Sailboats for Sale

Yacht Wedding

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When deciding on a location for your wedding, and the type of wedding that you will have, it may prove to be very challenging. If you are looking to have a very unique wedding that you and everyone that attends will truly enjoy and remember for years to come, you should consider having a yacht wedding. While many people enjoy having a wedding with the ocean in the background, beach weddings are starting to decline in popularity. More and more people have their wedding right on the ocean in a beautiful yacht with all of their friends and family members present. Many famous entertainment personalities choose to have a yacht wedding. These personalities include Pamela Anderson and Kid Rock.

There are many reasons why a yacht wedding is the way to go. From the future groom’s perspective, he can enjoy the great outdoors, and enjoy activities like fishing and swimming with his friends and relatives prior and immediately after the wedding on the yacht. The bride can enjoy preparing for her fairy tale wedding on the ocean amidst the beautiful scenery and landscapes that may be experienced while traveling. Once the wedding is complete, the couple may enjoy a lovely party aboard the yacht of their dreams while floating along the ocean.

Many people may not choose to even consider a wedding on a yacht because of the preconceived expense. However, there are many yacht services that are opening up the opportunity for many people to experience a yacht wedding by providing these services at a lower rate. The following will list a couple of opportunities that you may take in order to experience a wedding on a yacht for the fraction of the cost.

1) You can get a yacht wedding package through Boat Miami for little to nothing. You can enjoy a beautiful wedding on the seas that outskirt the State of Florida. There are a lot of water activities that can be pursued by planning your yacht wedding with this particular company. Before and after the yacht wedding, you can enjoy deep sea fishing, scuba diving, swimming, and water skiing. There are a variety of wedding packages that are available with this company that you can choose from. You can choose to have a nice little private wedding with just a couple of people onboard with you, or a yacht full of people.

2) If you fancy the scenery and hustle of activities in Las Vegas, you may choose to purchase a yacht wedding package through Vegas Weddings. Here, you can enjoy a variety of Las Vegas themed attractions on your yacht, a variety of water activities, and fun in the warm sun. If you want to have a wedding decorated in glitter and assortments of silver and gold, Vegas Weddings is the place to contact for your yacht wedding.

As you can see, experiencing a yacht wedding is not too far off in the distance. You can enjoy a wide assortment of activities, and a lovely wedding for practically nothing as far as costs are concerned.