On Jul 27, 11:42 am, Chuck Gould wrote:
I'm writing a short item this morning about hand held bearing
compasses.

I carry one on my boat, and could find it in an instant. I suspect,
however, that in this age of electro-nav gimmicks I'm now in the
minority.

Three questions:

1. Do you carry a bearing compass?

Yes, I have one on my little boat, admittedly, I would probably not if
it were not given to me.

2. Whether you carry one or not, do you know why anybody would want
to?

In my case, it comes from my old hiking/camping days. I feel like if I
know which direction is north, I can find my way out of almost
anywhere. On land with a compass and a topo map, I could find my way
in too!


3. Do you have any charts aboard, or are you running depending
strictly on an uninterrupted supply of DC power and counting on 100%
reliability from your electronics for navigation information?

Mechanical compass. Has a light, and I have it on a dedicated circuit,
but can be used without power.

Chuck Gould wrote:
I'm writing a short item this morning about hand held bearing
compasses.

I carry one on my boat, and could find it in an instant. I suspect,
however, that in this age of electro-nav gimmicks I'm now in the
minority.

Three questions:

1. Do you carry a bearing compass?

2. Whether you carry one or not, do you know why anybody would want
to?

3. Do you have any charts aboard, or are you running depending
strictly on an uninterrupted supply of DC power and counting on 100%
reliability from your electronics for navigation information?


1. Yes, I do.
2. Certainly.
3. Yes, I have a chartbook aboard.

On Jul 27, 10:42?am, Chuck Gould wrote:
I'm writing a short item this morning about hand held bearing
compasses.

I carry one on my boat, and could find it in an instant. I suspect,
however, that in this age of electro-nav gimmicks I'm now in the
minority.

Three questions:

1. Do you carry a bearing compass?

2. Whether you carry one or not, do you know why anybody would want
to?

3. Do you have any charts aboard, or are you running depending
strictly on an uninterrupted supply of DC power and counting on 100%
reliability from your electronics for navigation information?

being a "lake boater" I have a hard mounted compass on both my boats,
but have no use for either. For what I do I have no need for charts
either.

On Fri, 27 Jul 2007 08:42:12 -0700, Chuck Gould
wrote:

Three questions:

1. Do you carry a bearing compass?

I do but rarely use it. The radar and/or chart plotter give me more
accurate answers in a few seconds.

2. Whether you carry one or not, do you know why anybody would want
to?

I used to use one all the time 30 years ago.


3. Do you have any charts aboard, or are you running depending
strictly on an uninterrupted supply of DC power and counting on 100%
reliability from your electronics for navigation information?

I carry a few chart books but rarely use them. The only exception is
the book of strip charts for the Atlantic ICW. Mrs B uses them to
follow along when we are underway.

Reliable power is not an issue for us given twin engines, dual
generators, multiple large battery banks, redundant charging systems,
redundant radar and chart plotter, etc. If it were an issue however,
I also have several handheld GPS units and a good supply of batteries.

That said, everyone should know how to navigate the old fashioned way
just to understand the principles and concepts. If you weren't in the
Pacific North Wet I'd also recommend that you study celestial but that
requires a clear view of the sky and horizon.

:-)

On Sat, 28 Jul 2007 07:21:27 -0400, Wayne.B
wrote:

On Fri, 27 Jul 2007 08:42:12 -0700, Chuck Gould
wrote:

Three questions:

1. Do you carry a bearing compass?

I do but rarely use it. The radar and/or chart plotter give me more
accurate answers in a few seconds.

2. Whether you carry one or not, do you know why anybody would want
to?

I used to use one all the time 30 years ago.


3. Do you have any charts aboard, or are you running depending
strictly on an uninterrupted supply of DC power and counting on 100%
reliability from your electronics for navigation information?

I carry a few chart books but rarely use them. The only exception is
the book of strip charts for the Atlantic ICW. Mrs B uses them to
follow along when we are underway.

Reliable power is not an issue for us given twin engines, dual
generators, multiple large battery banks, redundant charging systems,
redundant radar and chart plotter, etc. If it were an issue however,
I also have several handheld GPS units and a good supply of batteries.

That said, everyone should know how to navigate the old fashioned way
just to understand the principles and concepts. If you weren't in the
Pacific North Wet I'd also recommend that you study celestial but that
requires a clear view of the sky and horizon.

:-)

How's Martha's?

On Sat, 28 Jul 2007 11:37:25 GMT, Short Wave Sportfishing
wrote:

How's Martha's?

It's been pleasant for the most part. A couple of our sailing friends
from the old neighborhood drove out earlier in the week and have been
staying on the boat with us. It's been nice seeing them and having
the use of a car. Fishing has not been good however. We spent an
entire day trolling the east side of Chapaquidick which has always
been a hot spot for me and came up empty. We got one almost to the
boat but it broke off, and I lost the back half of a rubber eel but
that was as good as it got.

Now we're getting ready to head back to Mystic so we can leave the
boat there next weekend and fly out to Iowa for a party with one of
the new inlaws. Exciting [not].

On Sat, 28 Jul 2007 11:53:37 -0400, Wayne.B
wrote:

On Sat, 28 Jul 2007 11:37:25 GMT, Short Wave Sportfishing
wrote:

How's Martha's?

It's been pleasant for the most part. A couple of our sailing friends
from the old neighborhood drove out earlier in the week and have been
staying on the boat with us. It's been nice seeing them and having
the use of a car. Fishing has not been good however. We spent an
entire day trolling the east side of Chapaquidick which has always
been a hot spot for me and came up empty. We got one almost to the
boat but it broke off, and I lost the back half of a rubber eel but
that was as good as it got.

Now we're getting ready to head back to Mystic so we can leave the
boat there next weekend and fly out to Iowa for a party with one of
the new inlaws. Exciting [not].

You keeping it at Brewer's or the Shipyard?

Give me a shout when you get to Mystic.

On Sat, 28 Jul 2007 20:32:22 GMT, Short Wave Sportfishing
wrote:

You keeping it at Brewer's or the Shipyard?

Give me a shout when you get to Mystic.

Shipyard West. It may not be the best time to get together however
because we're on a tight schedule to get in and out, and already have
most of the time committed one way or another. I'll let you know if
something changes.