This is a rather amazing post from last summer. Fredrik Fransson aboard the yacht Maiken shares a series of pictures of sailing through a sea of pumice stones before coming upon an uncharted volcano. What an extraordinary experience!

Stone sea and volcano

Maiken cruising through a sea of stones

Source: Fredrik and Crew on Maiken: Stone sea and volcano

Running a line or two to shore so you can anchor securely in a great little cove is sometimes a necessity when cruising in Northern latitudes (e.g. the Northwest Passage or Patagonia). It’s also picturesque and cool. A convenient and compact way to carry long lines can be a little hard to come by, though. The Quickline Reel can hold up to 265 feet of flat, polyester webbing, and its rugged, stainless steel construction looks up to the job. It mounts easily on a stern or pulpit rail where it can be quickly deployed.

Quickline flat rope and reel is made of durable polyester thread that is mounted in a stainless steel enclosure. Once deployed, the line stretches as loads increase; this feature allows it to absorb hard sudden surges so your cleats don’t have to. Durable Delrin® reel bearings and Teflon® fairleads ensure smooth, lasting operation. Quickline won’t tangle because it’s mounted on a self-storing, high quality 316L stainless steel reel that dispenses line as needed. Simply let the line play out and crank it in - no fouling of the line. It’s that easy! Quickline is easily mounted to railing hardware or flat surfaces. The reel comes complete with a mounting kit, and a locking handle. Units come in three reel sizes, three line lengths and two widths. Use the chart below to choose the Quickline that is right for you. Another advantage to Quickline flat rope is that vermin cannot climb aboard because they can’t navigate the flat surface - they simply fall off.

Source: QuicklineUSA - Quickline Flat Rope & Reel

Want something to do to wile away the winter nights? Well, cozy up to the screen with a couple bits of line and work on your knots with the animated illustrations on this neat website.

I just love getting a demo of a great product idea from the guy who invented it—in this case the Stow-B-Low Crab-Pod. One of the pleasures of boating in the Northwest is catching crabs for dinner. While the season is on, you see boats speeding to their favorite spots, carrying piles of crab-pots strapped precariously all over the deck.

The Crab-Pod improves on this by making a collapsible trap that folds down instantly into a slim, 30 inch long bundle, which slides into an included carrying case.

Versions for prawns and lobster are promised soon.

Check out the Stow-B-Low website.

The Duogen convertible wind- or water-driven generator is one heckuva transformer. The unusual design caught my eye at the boat show, and it was a little confusing figuring out how it works. Many cruisers have set off with wind generators to increase their energy independence, only to discover that they make a negligible amount of power on passage, because the apparent wind on downwind routes is so light. Some have turned to water generators that make lots of power from an impeller towed behind the vessel, but these have some interesting issues, e.g. sharks seem to be attracted by the giant lure, and—I’m not making this up—bite them off the line! Duogen’s convertible looks to be a successful combination generator, but using a shaft driven prop instead of the shark bait impeller. (more…)

Traversing the Panama Canal can be kind of a stressful time in a smaller boat, and you’ll find plenty of accounts of the experience. But this has got to be the ultimate armchair sailor crossing ever: sit back and enjoy!

via: Bluewater Addiction

Over the last few months I’ve been seeing some blurbs on InoDesign’s Splicing Nut, and I’ve been a little skeptical of yet another marine product trying to replace tried-and-true nautical skills and techniques like knots and splices. But, we got to see it demonstrated by the inventor, Steve Brennan, at the Seattle Boat Show, and now I’m a convert. (more…)

Want to listen to the ol’ iPod while helming through the night? These headphones can probably survive the salt spray on your big voyage. The in-ear design is also good for reducing outside noise, and might save you and your sailing partner’s sanity when you just want to be in your own musical world. You could even wear them snorkeling, though I wouldn’t suggest the Jaws sound-track. And they come with a cute little buoy/cord keeper.

Aquapac Headphones, via Gizmodo

A specially-built catamaran with a massive bank of solar panels just completed an Atlantic crossing. Nice proof-of-concept of electric propulsion, without a drop of fuel used.

Basel, Switzerland, February 2, 2007
Today sun21, the solar powered catamaran developed and sponsored by the Swiss Transatlantic21 Association, arrived in the harbour of Le Marin, Martinique. The arrival at 3 pm local time is an historic feat and makes sun21 the first motorized vessel to cross the Atlantic without using a drop of fuel. The achievement serves as a powerful example of responsible energy use in practice. It also is impressive evidence of the suitability of solar technology for high-sea voyages. sun21 will travel on with its final destination being New York this May.

Source: transatlantic21 via autobloggreen