Online Shopping for Camping and Boating

With the COVID-19 lockdowns, online shopping has become almost ubiquitous.  You can buy just about anything online and have it delivered right to your door.  Some online sellers, like Amazon even offer free shipping (Amazon Prime gives you free next day shipping on many items).   Sometimes you may have to pay extra for expedited shipping but it still save you a trip to the store, which is significant if, like us, you live 40-50 miles from town!  Many stores offer to let you shop online and then they will deliver your order to your car so you don't even have to go into the store.  Home delivery is also sometimes an option, either by the merchant or through one of the online delivery services like Grubhub, Ubereats, or Doordash.  Delivery charges may apply but the added convenience and the extra protection against COVID-19 may be well worth it if they are available to your address.

Online shopping works well for things you don't need to try on.  You may be able to make informed choices for shoes and clothing if you know your sizes but always check the return policy in case things don't fit when they arrive.  Most manufacturers follow pretty commonly accepted sizing practices but some items run larger or smaller than normal.  Be aware that shoe sizes are very different between U.S. and European sizing.  Conversion tables are available if you need them.   Less personal items, like tools and appliances that don't require fitting are good candidates for online purchase.  That being said, personally I find the way a tool feels in my hand is kind of important so if how something feels is important to you, you might want to make sure you can check it out in person before buying it or the the seller has an acceptable return/refund policy.  Keep in mind it is fairly common for you to have to pay the shipping costs for returns and you may have to pay re-stocking fees so returns are not always free!  Sometimes it is better to just buy your new item and hang on to the old one in case you find a use for it or can resell it online or at a garage sale.

One good thing about online shopping is it is usually pretty easy to check around to make sure you are getting the best price and the best product.  Some websites, like Amazon, even offer alternate sources.  Ebay usually has an option to sort your search results by lowest Price+shipping so you can at least see if there is a better price from another seller on ebay.  There are also many online price comparison websites that will search the web for you.  Just Google "online price comparison" to get a long list of candidates.   Being able to compare products and prices can help you get the best products and the best value.  It is a lot easier to check multiple sellers online than it is to drive around town checking products and prices at various retail stores.

Many of the items we need or want to support camping, RVing, or boating can be purchased online and usually don't require personal fitting.  Many of the tools and pieces of gear we use are readily available online and usually don't require any hands-on fitting make them excellent candidates for online purchasing.  You can usually find several possible sources that can help you make better choices whether you complete your purchase online or at a retail location.  Online sources for camping, RV, OHV, and boat items include websites for retail stores and online retailers like Amazon.com.  I often find what I need on ebay.com or craigslist,org.  I have been quite amazed at the extensive variety of products now available on Amazon.com, many with free shipping if you have Amazon Prime.  Amazon Prime started out at $99 a year but now I think it costs $129.  It includes free shipping on many items on Amazon.com and access to many streaming online programs.  Many items that qualify for Prime are even available for next day delivery!  Keep in mind that free shipping has to be paid for somehow and sometimes it is added into the item price so very often it can pay to do some comparison shopping.  Always compare the total cost, including shipping and handling, not just the item price!

When shopping on line you won't be able to do the kind of hands-on quality checking your would be able to do at a retail store.  That isn't a problem if you are buying brand name merchandise you are already familiar with.  For other items, consider the reputation of the seller and look for product reviews by other buyers.  If you have any doubts be sure to check return policies.  If how a clothing item feels is important to you or you have any concerns about how it fits, make sure you check it out at a brick-and-mortar store before buying it online unless you already know how it is going to feel.

Country of origin might be of concern to some shoppers.   Made in U.S.A. is often used by American manufacturers to promote their products.  Today's global market place has largely erased the differences between countries of origin.  I remember, way back when I was a kid, that "Made in Japan" had very negative connotations.  For a time you would sometimes see things labeled "Made in USA", note that was USA, not U.S.A.  Japan actually named an island Usa so they could play that name game!  You might remember a little exchange about "Made in Japan"between Marty McFly and Doc Brown in Back To The Future.   In Doc Brown's 1955, it was a slur, but in Marty;s 1985 "all the best stuff comes from Japan".   I also recall an amusing comment by a Russian astronaut in the movie Armageddon where talking about computer components he quips "Russian parts, American parts, all made in Taiwan!"   Country of origin might affect shipping times and is sometimes, but not necessarily always, a factor in quality or durability.  That being said I am still a big fan of anything "Made in the U.S.A."

It can be helpful to check out customer reviews if you have any questions, but reviews are not always accurate or honest.  Less ethical sellers may post multiple positive reviews of their own products and dishonest competitors might most unfavorable reviews.  You can sometimes detect fake reviews by unusual grammar or very similar or even identical wording.  I like to look at a number of both positive and negative reviews to try to get a balanced picture of what other customers have reported.  Sometimes you can track a particular reviewer's other reviews to get an idea of their personal bias too.  I have noticed that people are far more likely to spend time bitching about something than acknowledging good products or service so I tend to take at least some of the negative criticism lightly.   Also consider the total number of reviews and the ratio of good to bad reviews.  A few bad reviews among many good ones will not deter me from making a purchase.  I often find reviews tell me a lot more about the reviewer than they do the product!

Always check your shipping and handling charges before submitting your order.   Sometimes you will find bargain prices are offset by excessive shipping and handling fees.  While some high fees might be legitimate, there are some sellers who deliberately under price their products to suck you in then make it up on high shipping and handling charges.  If you question shipping and handling costs you can usually use size and weight of your package to verify legitimate charges from the seller to your zip code.  You should be able to get online estimates from UPS, Fed EX, and the United States Postal Service (USPS).  Be aware that some large items have to shipped via commercial trucking companies and that can be quite expensive, but most of our online purchases qualify for normal shipping via UPS, Fed Ex, or the USPS.  I have seen small items that were sent via First Class Mail with single postage stamp that sellers charged several dollars for shipping and handling! Somebody was charging a high fee for just putting something in an envelope and mailing it!  I recently found a small, $11 item online with a shipping charge of $23!  Suddenly the trip to town is looking more affordable!  When I had trouble finding a local source I went an entirely different route.

Another hidden expense that might pop up sometimes are local taxes.  Online sellers are at the very least required by law to charge sales tax if they have any physical presence in a state that charges sales tax.  Other taxes may also apply.  Note, even if YOU are located in a state that has no sales tax but you send a gift directly shipped to someone in state that does have sales tax, sales tax will be added to your purchase, but the sales tax may be cheaper and certainly faster than re-shipping the item from your home.

Online Search Engines like Google, Yahoo, and Duckduckgo can be used to find alternate sources for most items, allowing you to track down the best price and/or fastest or lowest cost shipping.  You can also compare similar products from different manufacturers to read product reviews to make sure you are getting the best value and that the product you choose will meet your wants and needs.   Positive reviews can strengthen your confidence but even negative reviews can sometimes provide valuable insights into a product.  Personally I tend to be a little wary of extremely negative reviews and often find the reports say more about the reviewer than they do the product!

Online price comparisons can help you find the best overall price. Here is a link to the results of a Google search for ''online comparison shopping''.  There quite a few options that can help you track down the best price.

Some popular online websites that I have found useful for getting things for camping and boating include craigslist.org, ebay.com, and amazon.com.  Craigslist is handy because it has local listings.  Ebay is "the world's biggest garage sale" and has a wide variety of new and used items, some of which are often hard to find anywhere else, and I am frequently surprised by the wide selection of things on amazon.  You can also find online shopping for most large retail stores and many of your smaller local outlets. 

Online shopping can be an convenient way to get things you need or want.   If nothing else you can use online shopping to compare brands and prices in preparation for a trip to the store.

Shop line and enjoy it!

Useful Rope Knots for Camping and Boating

Rope and twine are both very useful tools for camping, sailing, and many other outdoor activities.  For the most part to be able to use them effectively, you need to know how to tie them together and to objects you want to secure or move.  You can use ropes to secure loads on your truck, trailer, RV,  boat,  ATV, UTV, or side-by-side.  You can use ropes and twine for guy lines on tents and awnings and to tie things to your pack or keep your sleeping bag or tent from unrolling in storage and transit.   You can use ropes to move heavy objects.  Pulley systems are especially helpful in moving heavy objects as they can provide a mechanical advantage.  Basically that means with a pulley your can lift or move heavier objects.  To do so means you have to pull the rope 2 or more times the distance you are moving the object.  To move a 100 # load 1 foot with a single pulley attached to the load you would have to apply 50# of force for 2 feet.  By the way, a fixed pulley doesn't add mechanical advantage, it only changes the direction of the pull, which is sometimes very useful.  A pulley attached in the middle of the rope so it moves with the load adds mechanical advantage.  To calculate mechanical advantage count the number of ropes attached to the pulley(s) that move with the load.  In any case, the ropes will need to be fastened securely.  For this you need to know how to use knots and hitches.  You also need to know some basic rope terminology.

Rope terminology:  basically a  rope has two ends, the standing end (which is the long middle part of a rope not in the knot) and the working end (which is the part in the knot).   The working end is also sometimes called the tail.   A bight is a bend in a rope that does not cross back over itself.  A loop is a bend in a rope that does cross back over itself.  Knowing these terms will be helpful in understanding how to tie knots and hitches.

 
Knots and hitches are often thought by novices to be interchangeable or  just subtle variations of the same thing but there are technical differences.  Knots hold their form on their own.  Hitches fasten around an object.  Without an object, a hitch does not keep its form.  Knots connect two ropes or two parts of a rope together.  Hitches connect a rope to an object.

There are several commonly used knots and hitches that can be useful for camping and sailing.   Most are fairly easy to learn to tie.  There are many Youtube videos you can view to teach you how to tie knots so in this post I will mostly identify knots I have found useful and let you use Youtube to learn how to tie them.  And, yes, I realize they say there are no ropes on sailboats (only lines, sheets, and halyards).  However, lines, sheets, and halyards are all made of rope so it is reasonable to talk about tying knots in ropes on sailboats as well as when camping.

Initial learning is only the first step.  In order for knots to be useful you will need to practice them until you can tie them easily without giving it a lot of thought.  Some knots have little memory aids, like the rabbit, hole and tree used for bowlines, but they may or may not be useful.  I tried to learn the bowline, including its silly rabbit/tree memory trick way back when I was in Boy Scouts.  I finally learned how to tie it when I became a volunteer firefighter a few years ago.  But it wasn't until I got a sailboat and needed to use it frequently that I finally mastered it enough to be comfortable tying it.

Here is my list of common useful knots.  Click on the link for each name in the descriptions below for a Youtube to learn how to tie it.

• Overhand Knot
• Square knot
• Sheep bend
  
• Bowline
• Figure 8 knot
  
• Taughtline hitch
• Half hitch
• Clove hitch
• Cleat hitch 
• Stopper Knot
  

On overhand knot is about the simplest of knots.  It is the first step in tying the bow knot on your shoes.  It is not a very secure knot but it is useful as a safety knot to secure the loose end of a rope after tying another knot.  A Safety Knot doesn't hold any load, it simply secures the end of the rope so it doesn't get caught on something or come loose.  An overhand knot is  easy to untie.

The square knot is useful for joining two ropes of the same size.  It is kind of like two overhand knots stacked on top of each other but you have to make sure each end goes the right way each time you wrap the ropes around each other.  When it is properly tied a square knot looks like two inter-locking loops.  A square knot holds pretty well but not well enough to be used on life safety line.

Sheep bend is primarily used to join ropes of two different sizes together.

Bowline is used to make a secure loop in the end of a rope.  It is often used by sailors to secure a line or halyard to a sail or to tie a docking line to a pier.  It can be tied around a tree or other stable object as an anchor point for rope systems or around tools to hoist them to a roof.

Figure  8 knot  is another knot that is useful for making a loop in a rope.  There are several varieties of figure 8 knots including a simple figure 8, a figure 8 follow-through, and a figure 8 on a bight.

Taughtline hitch is a great knot for tent campers and for securing awnings on RVs and loads on trucks and trailers.  It has two distinct advantages.  It allows a kind of mechanical advantage to help tighten the rope and it is fairly easy to adjust if the rope needs to be tighter or looser.  A variation of it is also know as a "truckers haul" or "trucker's hitch".  When I first started dirt biking I didn't have any tie downs so I had a trucker friend show me how to tie a trucker's hitch and it worked really well.  Having the mechanical advantage to help cinch loads down tight is a very real advantage.  Here is a nice video on using it as a guyline hitch for tents and awnings.  The taughtline hitch does not use any pulleys for mechanical advantage -- it uses a loop in the rope as a pulley.  Doing a lot of pulling on that loop may cause the rope to wear and weaken but for how it is normally used it should last a long time.  If you see your rope beginning to fray where the two ropes rub together, replace the rope before it fails.

A half hitch is essentially the first step in tying a square knot.  It is usually used to secure the end of a rope after tying another knot or to guide a rope, such as when it is used around the handle of a tool to hold it in place while lifting it up onto a roof or up a ladder, with the head of the tool secured by another knot or a clove hitch.

A clove hitch is used to attach a rope to a ring, hook, or object by taking two turns of rope around the object and passing the ends under both turns to form two half hitches.

A cleat hitch is used to secure a docking line to a cleat on the dock or on a boat.  A properly tied cleat hitch holds securely but can be easily unfastened when the time comes.  There are many Youtube videos that tell you how to tie a cleat hitch, but the in the link at the beginning of this paragraph by Captain Tom I have found to be the best.  A common mistake when tying a cleat hitch is to wrap the line around the cleat too many times.  If you follow Captain Tom's directions you can always form a secure cleat hitch that is also easy to undo when it is time to cast off.  And it looks good, like you know what you are doing!  A properly tied cleat hitch looks like a figure 8.

A stopper knot is used to keep a line from pulling back through pulleys.  A lot of people use other knots such as a figure 8 or even a simple overhand knot as a stopper knot, but this one is more secure and yet is very easy to tie.  The video shows how to use it as a stopper knot along with another knot on a climbing rope but you can tie it alone as a stopper on a loose rope.  In a way it is kind of like a simple overhand knot but using two initial loops instead of one.

Avoid "knife knots".   Really tight knots are sometimes called "knife knots", because you need a knife to undo them!  Sailors often have a "marlin spike"on their rigging knives to aid in loosening tight knots instead of cutting the rope but it is always better to avoid getting knots so tight you can't undo them by hand, mostly by using the right knots in the first place.

If you want to learn more knots, check out Corporal's Corner on Youtube.  He has a number of videos on useful knots.

Knotty but nice!

Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) for Boating and Water Sports

The primary Personal Protection Equipment for boating or activities around bodies of water are Personal Flotation Devices, also known as  life jackets or life vests.  Coast Guard regulations require boats to have a PFD for every person onboard and many activities, such as construction, require wearing life vests when working near the water.  The fire department where I volunteer requires everyone working within 10' of the water to wear a life vest.  However there are other pieces of equipment or apparel that can provide significant protection against the elements you are exposed to.

Some boats, such as canoes, kayaks, rowboats, and sailboats, require a significant amount of manual work handling paddles, oars, and/or ropes.  Gloves are needed to protect your hands against blisters, splinters, and rope burn.   Wearing proper gloves not only protects your hands against injury, they provide you with better grip, enhancing your control over the equipment you are handling and allowing you to use more of your strength if needed..

Almost any activity around water has to deal with a lot of sunlight.  Even on a cloudy day there is a lot of UV radiation both from the sky and being reflected off the water.  The two most common and useful tools for protecting yourself from excess sunlight are sunscreen and sunglasses.  A good hat is also useful.  A broad brimmed hat provides the most all round protection including your ears and neck but even skippers cap or a baseball style cap can help protect your face and eyes.

Deck shoes are advised on most boats.  Deck shoes have specially designed soles to give you better grip on wet decks.  You should not wear your deck shoes off the boat, especially on dirt, gravel, or asphalt pavement where they may pick up particles that will scratch and damage the deck when you return to the boat.

Rain wear is essential if you get caught in a sudden squall out on your boat.  For best results choose a light weigh, waterproof outer layer to keep you dry and add insulating inner layers as needed in colder temperatures.  Make sure your rain gear fits properly so it neither restricts your movement or interferes with your necessary actions around the boat.  The manual tasks on sailboats are particularly susceptible to loose clothing getting caught in running rigging and often contribute to quickly getting too warm if you aren't dressed right for both air temperature and level of activity.

Most boating activities occur during fairly warm weather but if you should be out during colder weather be sure to dress for it.  Dress in layers so you can easily adjust as either the outside temperature rises or your level of activity increases.  Be sure to include warm, water resistant gloves and some kind of head and ear protection.  My favorite cold weather hat is a Russian ushanka, or ear hat, with the fuzzy flaps that cover my ears.  It might be overkill out on the water but I sure like it in the snow or just cold desert nights.

Racers use harnesses and life lines to secure themselves to a sturdy anchor point on the boat to prevent them being thrown or washed over board.  Most pleasure boats and related activity don't require such stringent procedures but you should definitely make sure you are secure whenever you are moving around on a boat.  I once did some work for the Union Pacific Railroad and one their standard safety procedures when getting on or off railroad cars or equipment was to maintain at least three points of contact at all times.  I find that a good practice on my boat as well.  Handrails and lifelines are good places to get a grip.  Sometimes I use the shrouds that support the mast on my sailboat but I find the rather thin steel cables don't feel as secure as a handrail.   Some shrouds are coated in plastic that makes them more comfortable but they are still kind of small to get a good grip on.  You might want to invest in harnesses and life lines even if you aren't racing.  If you have small children or passengers with disabilities or other weakness that might put them at risk, harnesses might be well advised.  You never know when something like the wake from a passing ski boat or tour boat will cause your boat to suddenly lurch, putting everyone on board at risk.

General apparel for boating and other aquatic activities often includes swim suits or shorts.  While this is often the most comfortable when it gets wets and dries faster than wearing something with greater coverage, there is a trade-off between freedom from wet clothes and protection from sunburn.  Of course swim suits are in order when you are swimming, water skiing, snorkeling, or diving but you might be better off wearing a light weight long-sleeved shirt and light weight pants on the boat.  Not only does that provide better protection against sunburn, it will usually feel cooler since it shades your skin and allows perspiration to evaporate to cool you down.  Consider that the nomads who live in hot deserts dress in loosely fitting robes rather than skimpy clothes.

Be save on and around the water!

Personal Flotation Devices

 If you are into any kind of boating you will need Personal Flotation Devices (PFDs).  The most common PFDs are life jackets and life vests.  Water skiers sometimes prefer life belts, but life belts do not provide the same amount of protection as life jackets or life vests.  Life belts give added  buoyancy but life jackets and life vests are designed to keep your face out of the water, even if you are unconscious while life belts do not.  If you are knocked out in a water skiing accident a life belt will NOT help keep your face out the water and you will drown!  Life belts are NOT Coast Guard approved and are NOT LEGAL for water skiing.  Water skiers should be wearing an approved Type I, Type II, or Type III life vest, as should everyone on a boat.

Personal Flotation Devices come in several different types, with each having its own rating and purpose.  For a complete description of the different types see Personal Flotation Devices: Guidlines.  In general a Type I or Type II device is appropriate for most boating activities, with Type I being rated for off-shore use and Type II primarily for near shore or inland operations.  Type III devices are considered flotation aids intended for general boating or specialized activity that is marked on the device (such as water skiing, canoeing, kayaking, hunting etc.). These devices are best for calm inland waters or where there is a good chance for fast rescue.

All pleasure boats are required by regulations to have life vests for every person on board.  Regulations do not require the vest to be worn at all times but for optimum safety you should always wear your life vest.  You just never know when something is going to happen.  Even on a calm day on a gentle, inland lake you might get hit by surprise with the large wake from a passing boat that might cause you to lose your balance and fall over board.  I must admit that I find wearing a life vest cumbersome while at the helm of my 25' sailboat, but I will put in on at the first sign of a storm or squall.  I insist that children and non-swimmers wear their vests at all times.  Approved life vests for most boating should be Type I or Type II, with Type III OK for some activities such as kayaking, canoeing, water skiing and hunting (around lakes and rivers).  Anyone working (or playing) near bodies of water should wear life vests if they are within 10 feet of the water.  Here are some examples of life vests:

                                                                   

Note the difference:  the orange one fits around your neck and can help keep your face out of the water if you are knocked unconscious.  The blue one will help keep you from sinking but probably won't do as much to keep your face out of the water.  While the blue one may appear a little more fashionable and might be less constraining of movement, I would rather have the extra protection of the support behind my head!            

Type IV are throwable devices.   They include life rings, buoyant horseshoes, and throwable cushions.  They are not designed to be worn but are thrown from a boat to someone already in the water who needs assistance but should be secondary to a wearable PFD.   Both the throwable and wearable devices should be readily available for emergency situations and everyone on board should know where they are and how to use them.  Not all cushions are suitable for throwable safety devices so make sure you know which ones are and where to find them on your boat.  Throwable flotation cushions are designed with straps you can put your arms through for stabilization.  In an true emergency I wouldn't hesitate to use ANY floatable cushion but a qualified throwable safety cushion should always be your first choice.  Cushions rated as throwable safety cushions will have appropriate straps that can be used as hand holds and will have sufficient flotation to help support a man overboard.  They will also resist getting water logged, which may happen all too fast with other cushions as they soak up water.  A soggy cushion might actually make things worse, pulling the victim down instead of keeping them afloat!

PFDs are used in other situations as well, such as waterfront construction work, ship building and repair, life guarding and entertainment, and enforcement and rescue operations.  My volunteer fire department requires us to wear a life vest whenever we are within 10' of a lake or river whether we are actively involved in a water rescue or not.  Fishermen and hunters around waterways should consider wearing PFDs.   They are also a good idea when ice fishing or even skating on lakes and ponds.

 "Water wings" and other plastic floatation toys are not valid PFDs.  Any child on a boat or near the water should be wearing a properly fitting Personal Flotation Device.  Children's life vests will be labeled to indicate the weight range they are designed for.  Always make sure your kids are wearing the right PFDs.  One that is too small will not provide adequate buoyancy and one that is too large will not fit right and may slip off.  Inflatable plastic water toys and air mattresses can be a lot of fun for kids of all ages but are definitely not proper floatation devices for life safety.

                                                  

Like many types of Personal Protection Equipment, life jackets and life vests may not be the most fashionable or most comfortable to wear but they WILL provide the protection you need!   I once heard some say they wouldn't be caught dead wearing an ugly life jacket -- but consider that they could very well be caught dead NOT wearing one!

Stay afloat!

Sail Ties

No, sail ties, are not novelty men's neck wear!

If you have a sailboat, you are going to need sail ties.  Sometimes sail ties refer to strings or ropes that actually tie the mainsail to the boom, but in this post I am talking about sail ties that are used to secure a sail when it is not in use.  They tie a lowered mainsail to the boom or can be simply tied around a loose jib to keep it from flapping or being blow overboard between uses.  Some sailors tie the jib to the lifeline or fore stay for extra security.   I also use mine to secure the rolled up sail for long term storage.  Sail ties can be useful for securing gear on other boats or in camp too.  1" nylon straps are typically rated at about 4,000 lbs so they are usually more than adequate to fasten loads on deck, in cargo areas, or on packs.   The first couple of outings in my sailboat I used bungee cords for sail ties and soon figured out real sail ties would be a much better option.  Sail ties are easier to use, hold more securely, and put less chaffing on the sail fabric than ropes or bungee cords.

A second possible use for sail ties is to secure the mainsail when reefing.  When the wind picks up you need less sail area.  Reefing consists of lowering the mainsail partway.  Sails built for reefing will have cringles (grommets) at one or more reefing points.    You can't really reef a sail without reefing points because there is no place to wrap a tie around the stacked sail without cringles.  You usually have a line already attached to the cringle nearest the mast that is used to pull the sail down for reefing but may need to thread sail ties through other cringles along the sail to secure it to the boom so it isn't flapping in the breeze or hanging down blocking your view or getting in your way.  Some reefing ties are permanently attached to the sail so they are always there when you need them but sometimes you may have to thread a tie through each cringle to secure the reef.  NOTE:  if you have to thread the ties through the cringles you may want to use an appropriate size rope that will be faster and easier to get through the small holes.  Nylon straps could be used for permanently attached reefing ties.

There are several options for what you can use for sail ties.  Some guys like to use bungee cords.  Some just use pieces of rope or paracord.  But one of the easiest I've used are nylon straps.  They have a loop sewn in one end so you can get a good hold on them to yank them tight.   The loop is usually sewn with a twist in the strap so it is easier to open to get your hand into it.  Bungee cords elasticity makes them useful in that they can be stretched around different parts of the sail and contract to hold it tight.  The only downside might be the hook chafing on the sail or gouging your hand or other parts of your body if they slip while you are trying to fasten or unfasten them.  They also tend to take off into the water when they unexpectedly come loose or you lose your grip on them when taking them off.  Nylon straps are easy to install and tighten, easy to tie, hold securely, and are easy to remove when the time comes.  And they don't put deep creases in the sail that might lead to chafing.

                                       

In the photo note the  box stitch used to form the loops and that the loops are twisted so they are easier to open when you use them.  Nylons straps are not usually used for reefing as they don't fit as well through the cringles as a light weight rope but you might use them in a pinch by folding or rolling them lengthwise to fit them through the cringle.  If you do  a lot of reefing you are going to want dedicated reefing ties to make the job easier. Nylon straps are amazingly strong.  1"wide nylon straps can usually hold up to 4,000 lbs, way more than you need to tie up a loose sail.

How many sail ties do you need?  I have seen recommendations ranging from using a tie every 2 ' to every 4' for the mainsail.  Personally I prefer using at least 1 sail tie every 2 feet.  On a mainsail with a 10' base or foot that would be about 6 sail ties, one at each end and one every 2' in between-- at 0, 2,4,6, 8, and 10 feet.  You might get away with just  using 5 sail ties -- tie one at each end, on in the middle, and the other two centered between the end and middle ties.  I use about the same number on my jib, which also has about a 9.5' base or foot.  The number of ties you need for reefing will depend upon the number of cringles in your sail.  If you have multiple reefing points (at different levels on the sail) you might want to have a set of reefing ties for each reefing point.  The ties needed for more than one reefing point will need to be successively longer for each level since there will be more sail to be tied off.  You might get away with having just one set but it would mean untying and retying previous reefs each time you reef again.  I like the idea of keeping the previous reefs tied off so I don't risk losing control of the already reefed portion of sail while retying more reefs.  Since reefing is used to reduce sail as wind increases, the last thing I want to have to deal with is extra sail flapping in the wind when trying to do the next reef.

How to tie a sail tie.  There isn't really any wrong way to tie sail ties as long as they hold in place and do their job -- and you can untie them when you need to.  However, there are some techniques that work better than others.  You want them to hold securely yet be easy to undo when you are ready to use the sail again so don't use permanent knots!   I like to use long ties so I can take a couple of loops around the sail to spread the load.  Then I grab the tail (end opposite the loop) and pull the end of  tail through the loop  so I can cinch it down tight, then tie off the loose end.  When I tie off the loose end I use another loop under the strap already around the sail, then put a second loop through the loop and cinch it down so I can get the whole thing loose by just pulling on the loose end.  Pull one loop under the tie next to the sail and then pull another loop through that loop, then cinch the whole knot down tightly.  That way I only need pull the loose end when it is time to undo the tie.  Here is a simple Youtube showing how to use a sail tie.  Sometimes time is critical and you will want to be able to get the sail back in service quickly.  Try avoid making small, tight knots as it they will difficult to untie and repeated use can weaken the strap.  You definitely don't want to tie knots so tight you have to cut them to get them off!  Such knots are sometimes called "knife knots", because you need a knife to undo them!  Knots will significantly weaken nylon straps so you don't want to tie knots in the loaded part of the strap.  You also want to avoid having to cut the knots since doing so you may risk cutting the sail!

Don't leave sail ties on the jib when you stow it away.  Open it up and flake it right so it lays flat then fold or roll it up for storage.  You can leave sail ties around the mainsail when it is left stowed on the boom in a sail cover but it too should be properly flaked when removed for storage.  You might use sail ties to keep properly rolled sails of any type from unrolling during storage and transport.  Sail bags are the preferred method of controlling loose sails, protecting them from sunlight, dirt, dust, and other elements during transport and storage but sail ties can keep them from becoming unruly during shorter spells not in active use and keep them snug in their bags.  What you don't want to do is use sail ties to gather up a loose sail and put it in storage without properly flaking it.

You may find other uses for our sail ties, like securing the extra coil of a halyard to the mast to keep it out of the way while underway.  No doubt you will find lots of other places a sail tie will come in handy.

You might want to have bunch of sail ties all the same color to coordinate with colors on your boat, but it is sometimes useful to have different colored sail ties of different lengths to make it easier to find the length you want for each position on the sail.  All ties a particular length should be the same color.  You might even use color mixing to help identify different sizes, for example, use red for 3' ties, orange for 4' ties, and yellow for 5' ties (orange is a mix of red and yellow so it belongs between them).  Continuing the pattern use green for 6' ties and blue for 7' or 8' ties since green is a mix of yellow and blue.  Then make any really long ones black or purple.  Color coded sail ties will make it easier to grab the one you want for each position on the sail.  Not long ago I replaced my all blue sail ties with colored ones and it really did make selecting the right one for easy position faster and easier.  It worked better whether I was pulling them out myself or asking my first mate to grab them for me.

Where to get sail ties?  You can buy sail ties at any marine supply store that caters to sailboats and online, including amazon.com.  They usually come in sets of 4 or 6.  You can usually choose a color to match your sail covers or coordinate with other colors on your boat.  I like to have a variety of lengths since I only need short ties near the clew of the sail and longer ones as I work up toward the mast and the amount of fabric increases.  Nylon strap ties can be easily cut to length using a hot knife, other sharp knife, or scissors.  If you don't have an electric hot knife to cut them you can use a lighter to melt the frizzy end to keep it from unraveling.  You might even find other uses for the cutoff ends.  We are replacing a worn out strap on a mainsail cover with one of ours.

You can make your own sail ties too.  You can purchase nylon strap on-line or at many fabric stores.    1" nylon strap is more than adequate for sail ties.  It usually is rated up to 4000 #  tensile strength.  Figure out how many ties you need of each length and add a foot extra for each tie.  The extra foot will be used to sew the loop.  When forming the loop, put a single twist in the strap instead of just laying it flat over on itself.  That will make opening the loop easier when you need to use it.  Use a box stitch about 1" long to fasten the end back on the strap using about 1' of strap to form a loop about 6" long.  Be sure to use thread that is designed for outdoor use and sun exposure.  Match the color of the thread to the color of each strap for the most professional looking results.  If you have multiple colored straps and want to save a couple of bucks (and time changing thread), you might sew them all with the same neutral color.  Dark thread on light straps or light thread on dark straps will be the most noticeable but with the small amount of stitching it probably won't make much difference.  All the ties in the commercial sample photo above used white thread.  You can find instructions along with kits for making sail ties at Sailrite.com.  Remember, be sure to use UV resistant outdoor rated thread.

I can custom make custom sail ties for you for $.40 per foot plus shipping.  Add 1' to your desired finished length for the loop.  Choose Pacific blue, red, green, yellow, or black.  Email your requirements (# of ties, color, and lengths) to lemonts@ix.netcom.com.  I prefer payment viaPaypal.  I will also accept personal checks, but it will delay your order while I wait for your check to arrive and clear.  Include your shipping address in your order email.   Upon receipt of your email order I will reply with a total including shipping and an estimated shipping date.  I try to complete orders as quickly as possible but may experience delays if my supplier is out of colors I need for your order.

Sail ties should be stored where they don't get tangled are are easily accessible when you need them.  You also don't want to leave them hanging in the sun where UV light could damage them.  Of course they will be exposed to UV while in use on your sails, but why expose them to additional deterioration while they are not in use?   You might store them in a plastic bag, but I found they got tangled when bagged.   I rigged a hook on the magazine rack just inside the companionway hatch on my sailboat.  They hang straight down, are generally out of the way, out of direct sunlight, and yet I or any crew member can easily grab them when I need to secure my sails.  They are out of the way and don't look too bad hanging there.

Ran into an anomaly making colored sail ties.  I found the red webbing was lighter weight and prone to tear, even though I bought it from the same store and he bought it from the same supplier as the other colors.  If you REALLY want red sail ties you might need to double up the webbing and stitch it together but be aware that will make them bulkier, stiffer, and more difficult to use.  Or search around for a more consistent supplier!  Check any material you purchase to make sure it is of consistent thickness and strength.

Tie one on!

COVID-19 -- 1 Year Anniversary

 It has been about a year since we first entered the quarantine stage of the COVID-19 pandemic.  At this time we have experimental vaccines and enough of a decline in new cases that some states are beginning to relax restrictions.  For the first time in about a  year, you might actually be able to go out to dinner at a restaurant!

What does that mean for campers and Rvers?  Well, in the first place camping and RVing and boating often allowed enough social distancing to continue during serious restrictions on other types of entertainment.  Major event venues were virtually shut down as were restaurants and movie theaters.

There have been vaccines from at least three manufacturers made available.   All have been "fast tracked", that is none of them have undergone the complete testing and certification normally required by the FDA.  However, all three have been generally proven to be both safe and effective.  The three I know of are Moderna, Phizer, and Johnson&Johnson.  Moderna and Phizer both require two injections about 3 weeks apart.  Johnson&Johnson is done in a single injection.  Immunity is said to peak about 2 weeks after the final shot.  There have been some reports of reactions to the shots, mostly after the second shot.  Reactions range from the usual sore arm at the site of the injection to fatigue and flu symptoms.  My wife and I, who are both volunteer firefighters and first responders, got our Moderna shots in January as part of the first wave.  We experienced no symptoms after the first shot and only a little fatigue after the second one.  My 96 year old mother got her Phizer shots in March and her only reaction was some redness and swelling around the injection site for a couple of days.  My younger sister also got her Phizer shots in March and did have a mild reaction, but she is unusually sensitive to lots of medications.

One of the benefits of wide-spread vaccination is the creation of "herd immunity".  What that means is the immunity among the population (herd) is sufficient to deter the spread of the virus.  Lacking enough susceptible people to keep growing and spreading, the virus stops spreading.  Herd immunity doesn't mean the virus is completely gone or that someone who hasn't been vaccinated might still get it.  But it is another step back toward normal.

Some states area beginning to relax restrictions.  Here in Oregon kids are going back to school in April and the restrictions on public gatherings are being relaxed.  Restaurants are being allowed to reopen for in-house dining but are limited to 75% of their normal capacity,  Church meetings are likewise able to function at 75%.  It is sure going to nice to be able to go out to dinner again!  Picking it up and eating in the car or having it cool while driving home has not been ideal.

You will soon see some camping venues become available once again.  However, there may still be mask and social distancing  recommendations.  Just having access to some of our favorite campgrounds and marinas once again is cause for rejoicing.

If you haven't yet been vaccinated you should try to get on the list for it.  Until you do you should still take all prescribed precautions.  Also, it takes about 2 weeks after the last shot for the vaccine to become effective.  Even after you have gotten your shot(s) you still need to comply with current government and CDC regulations.

While the number deaths and the overall number of cases of COVID-19 have been daunting, the percentage of who have been tested were positive for COVID-19, according to figures I saw on a government web site was a little less that 6%.  I, for one, am a little surprised and very happy it wasn't a lot more.

So, campers, RVrs, and boaters, get ready to enjoy a wonderful new season of pleasant and healthy outdoor activity,  hopefully with fewer and fewer COVID restrictions as time passes.

Stay safe and healthy!

Camper, RV, and Boat Dinettes

Many of our recreational vehicles and vessels have a dinette that provides a comfortable place to sit for meals.  Most of these dinettes are also designed so they can be made down into beds.  Space in RVs, campers, and boats is usually limited so you have to take advantage of every bit of it you can.  Typically, the table is dropped down so it rests between the facing seats and the back rests are brought down to fill in between the seat cushions to make it into a bed.  Dinettes made down into beds are usually about the size of a twin bed (36" wide) but may be as large a full size bed (54" wide).  Lengths may be a few inches shorter than equivalent household mattresses.  Many dinettes are intended for use by children although smaller adults may also find them acceptable.  I am about 5'7", my wife about 5'4", and we've always fit comfortably on dinettes made down into beds in our RVs and campers.  The dinette in cab over truck campers and Class C motorhomes is often more accessible and less confining than the low ceiling of the large cab over bed.  At least you can sit up without bumping your head!  The dinette in our sailboat has a lot more headroom and our feet are less confined than in the "captain's" V-berth (which is only 9" wide!), but we usually use the V-berth anyway.

Dinettes usually include storage beneath the seats.  Sometimes there are doors or drawers on the aisle side of the seat, but some only have access by lifting the panels beneath the seat cushions.  Either way it makes a good place to store items you don't use frequently.  Since the space is usually undivided it is often a good place to store bulky items that don't fit in regular cabinets.  .  If you have to lift the seat to gain access there is usually a finger hole in the plywood base under the cushion you can use to lift the lid.  In one RV I found room under the dinette seat to install an ice chest.  It was a good place to carry extra cold drinks for summer trips.  If you choose to do something like this, make sure you can still get the ice chest in and out easily enough to drain it after each trip.  Or plan on sucking up the water from the melted ice and drying it out after each outing to avoid a nasty mildewed mess.  Oh and don't forget to empty it when you winterize your RV!  Frozen soda cans crack open and made a real mess!

About the only disadvantage to dinettes as beds is having to set them up each night and take them down again each morning so you can use the dinette for seating and eating during the day.  If you use them often you may develop practices and techniques to make setup and take down more efficient.  Using sleeping bags instead of regular bedding may make things a little easier. 

A memory foam mattress topper can make dinette bed more comfortable but you have to have someplace to store it when the dinette isn't being used as a bed and installing it each night and putting it away each morning takes a little extra time.  However, the additional comfort might be worth it.  In addition to extra padding it covers the seams between cushions for a smoother bed.

Dinette upholstery is usually made of rather sturdy materials that will last a long time.   That makes it sturdy, but not always comfortable to lay or sit on.  Dinette upholstery often lasts for decades if it is not abused.  It often comes from the factory with a Scothgard treatment on fabric seats to reduce staining and make it easier to clean  If yours is not Scotchgard protected you can purchase Scotchgard in an aerosol can and spray your seats for extra protection.  Some Scotchgard products help protect the fabric against sun damage as well as water or stains.  Vinyl seats don't need Scotchgard.  If the upholstery is getting worn or is out dated or you just don't like the way it looks you can have it reupholstered or recover the cushions yourself.  Since the cushions are easily removable you can usually just take them out for re-upholstery (unlike sofas, part of which usually can't be removed).  Reupholstering cushions in your boat, camper, or RV is a fairly inexpensive improvement that increases comfort and enjoyment, may extend the usable lifetime of a unit, and might even increase resale value.  If you are at all handy using a sewing machine you might even be able to handle the job yourself!  Sometimes the durable upholstery may be kind of coarse, making it uncomfortable to sleep on.  In such cases you can usually use a mattress pad or even just an extra blanket between your bottom sheet and the cushion.  Lying directly on the coarse fabric can be uncomfortable.

Since dinettes are used for dining, they often get soiled by spilled or dropped food and drinks.  Scotchgard is a good way to minimize the impact of such accidents.  However, if you get a spill before you protect the upholstery with Scothgard or if the spill soaks in or stains the fabric, you will want to clean up the spill as soon as possible, then deep clean it to remove as much of the offending substance as possible.  Greasy foods and things that leave stains can be a challenge.  I usually keep a can of carpet spot cleaner in my RV and boat that I can use for cleaning upholstery as well as floors.  First, wipe up as much of the spill as you can without spreading it around and making the stained area bigger.  Then spray on a generous amount -- but not too much -- of carpet cleaner and let is stand according to the directions on the can, usually about 10-20 minutes.  Then scrub the stain with a stiff brush, wipe it down with damp cloth to remove residual cleaner and removed dirt, then dry it with a soft dry cloth.  Really bad stains may take several tries to get things really looking good again.  One word of caution:  pay attention to how hard and how long you scrub and stop scrubbing before you cause additional damage to the fibers!  A discoloration isn't nearly as bad has having a badly worn spot!  And worn spots are usually more susceptible to getting dirty.  You will always want to make sure the cushions are clean before you turn the dinette into a bed.  Sleeping on spilled food is certainly no picnic!

Another option for worn out cushions is to replace them with used cushions from another vehicle or vessel.   Cushions from the same make, model, and year will be most likely to fit properly but often you can simply measure your cushions and find others that will fit close enough, giving you far more options.   Some good online places to look are ebay.com and craigslist.org.  You might even find some at garage sales, thrift stores, or junkyards that handle RVs.

In a worst case scenario you can make new cushions or have them made.  You just need to get the proper measurements.  Many times you can use the old cushions as a pattern but if they are gone or too badly damaged, measure where they go and purchase foam pads to fit and then cover them or have them covered.  If the old cushions weren't thick enough you can sometimes make new ones using thicker foam, but make sure everything will still fit.  When choosing new fabric for your cushions, look for sturdy material that will hold up in regular use.  If it doesn't come with a fabric protector, spray it with Scotchgard before every using it to reduce soiling and make it easier to clean.  You may want to color match the new fabric to coordinate with other furniture or you might want to change the color just for fun.  If you can't get an exact match you might consider using a complimentary color or fabric.  When choosing a new material you might want to consider vinyl if you have small children.  It doesn't absorb spills and is easy to clean.  For a more comfortable bed, or just seating without the sweat vinyl can induce, go for a nice, sturdy, coarse weave fabric.  While some heavy canvas and nylon materials may be suitable you will usually get the best results using fabric designed for upholstery use.  If you are doing cushions for a boat where you may use them outside in the cockpit, using a UV protected  and water resistant fabric is advised.

Sometimes you can borrow the cushions from your dinette and use them on benches outside to make sitting outdoors more comfortable.  If you choose to do this, take care to keep them out of the dirt and away from campfires and make sure they get back where they belong when you are finished.  You might be able to use cushions from your boat cabin in the cockpit, but often they will not have the same water resistant covering as cushions designed for cockpit use so they might be more easily saturated.  Indoor cushions may also be damaged if left in direct sunlight too long.  Outdoor cushions should be made of UV resistant material.

Not all factory dinettes are designed to be made into beds.  However, if you need the extra sleeping space you can often adapt your existing dinette.  Typically you will need a shelf of some sort to fill the gap between the seats facing each other.   If you are lucky, the table might be used for the shelf.  For an even surface beneath the cushions install a cleat on the front of each seat so hold your added shelf even with the top of the bench the cushions sit on.  You can probably use 1/2" plywood or OSB.  If the gap between the seats is so long 1/2" shelves sag, use 3'4" shelving.  The thinner plywood will save weight in your rig and be lighter and easier to handle.  Very often the existing cushions can be re-positioned to make the mattress.  If not you can buy or make additional cushions or even use pillows to fill in any gaps to fit better.  For even more comfort add a memory foam mattress pad to cover the whole bed.

Many dinette tables include cup holders.  They are particularly helpful when the vehicle or vessel is in motion.  If your table does not have cup holders they can usually be added fairly easily.  First make sure there aren't extra structural supports where you want to put your cup holders.  You can buy cup holders to install in your table just about anywhere RV parts are sold.  You will need to cut a hole in the table the size of the cup holder.  It is best to use a hole saw to do this as cutting out a hole with a jig saw doesn't always make a perfect circle.  You want the hole to be just big enough for the cup holder to fit into, a tight fit is best.  Most people glue the cup holders in place but if you have any reason to remove them you could leave out the gluing.  One reason you might need to remove them is if they interfere with the way the table fits when the dinette is made down into a bed.  I have seen cup holders in white, black, and dark brown and they usually come in at least two different depths.  Some come with drain holes, some without.  You may or may not want drain holes.  Cup holders without drain holes will keep some spills from dripping onto the floor but they may be a little harder to clean.  I made sure I got cup holders without holes when I installed them beside the cockpit on my boat so they wouldn't leak into the cabin below.  They fill up with rain but it is pretty easy to  empty them out for use.   If you can only find solid cupholders but want drains you can always drill a few holes in the bottom.

Dinettes in cab-over campers and Class C motorhomes may offer more comfortable temperatures than the cab-over beds.  They are usually near large windows, not so close to the ceiling, and generally have better air flow, giving them more stable and controllable environments than the small, enclosed, dead end cab-over spaces that can be too warm in summer and too cold in winter.  Some older truck campers have convection furnaces with no fans and getting heat up into the cab-over bed can be spotty.  Sometimes the rising heat makes it too warm, sometimes the heat from the furnace in the far end of the camper never seems to reach all they way up there.  In such cases using the dinette for sleeping space is often way more comfortable.  Many of the problems with cab-over beds are also found in the V-berths on boats, making sleeping on the dinette an attractive option.

Sit this one out!

Boating Safety

Boating safety includes proper operation, obeying rules and regulations, and having the right safety equipment on board and knowing how to use it.   The first two are things YOU have to do is to learn how to and be willing and able to correctly perform all necessary tasks before operating a boat yourself.  The right safety equipment is specified by USCG regulations and boats operated in regulated waters MUST carry the required safety equipment.  Boats operated on non-regulated waters, usually small lakes and rivers, SHOULD carry the same safety equipment and local laws may require it.  Not having the prescribed safety equipment could subject you to significant fines if your boat gets inspected by law enforcement and costly liabilities if you are involved in an accident and didn't have the required, up to date safety items on board at the time.  Of course, just having the right equipment isn't enough -- you (and everyone on your boat) needs to know where it is located,  how to get it out and how to use it.  When you have guests, take a little time to go over safety procedures and make sure they know where their individual life vests are and where all safety equipment is located and how to use it.

Learning proper operation of your boat usually involves more than a few minutes of instruction by the dealer or person you purchase (or rent) your boat from.  Ideally you should have hands-on training by a qualified instructor.  In some cases, such as piloting commercial boats, you must have a Captain's License that has minimum training and testing requirements.  If your boat is for personal use you won't need the License, but you should still ensure you are qualified to operate your boat before you take it out on the water without a more experienced skipper on board.  The training you need will depend on what type of boat you are in.  Personal boats, such as canoes, kayaks, and row boats are pretty simple but you still need to know how to use them safely.  That would include how to launch them, how to load them, how for you and any passengers to sit safely, and how to paddle them, steer them, stop them and dock them.  Motor boats will require additional instruction on how to operate the controls along with guidance on choosing a safe speed and other operational considerations, depending on where you are.  Sail boats will require you to know points of sail and how to raise, lower, and adjust and trim the sails.  Many sailboats also have auxiliary power which you will also need to know how to use.  Operating any boat without proper training is a recipe for disaster, for you and anyone around you!  For personal use you may be able to get training from a friend or associate who is an experienced, competent boater.  If you are renting a boat, pay close attention to the instructions you receive from the rental office.  Take time to clearly understand what they tell you and then comply carefully.  Make sure you are understand and are comfortable with all the aspects of operating a boat before you attempt to do so on you own.  Waves are almost a constant feature you need to know how to handle.  In general it is best to cross waves about 45 degrees to their shape.  Hitting one straight on can cause violent pitching and the rudder and propeller may be lifted out of the water leaving you with no control.  Letting one strike the side of your boat will cause it to roll side to side and if the wave is big enough may make you capsize.  The same applies to the wake kicked up by other boats.  Low waves and small wakes are not usually of any concern, but as the grow bigger they can wreak havoc.  I was once towing a water skier when a harbor tour boat came by kicking up a 2'  wake.  My skier caught the tip of his ski in the wake and it flipped and spun him like a top!  I've heard of small boats capsized by the wake from larger boats and it is not unusual for that to happen.

Certain navigation and other lights are required on any boat used after dark.  Standard navigation lights include a red light visible from the port side, a green light visible from the starboard side, and white lights front and rear. You can remember which color goes with which side in a couple of ways.  Red is for the port side, just as port wine is red and both port and left have 4 letters.   In addition all boats need to display a white light visible all around when moored or at anchor outside a designated moorage at night.  Sailboats also have to display a white light visible from the front when using an auxiliary motor at night.  Lighting requirements might be different for different sized boats as well as different between power and sailboats.  Check to make sure your boat has all the required lights for its type and size.  Modern LED lights take a lot less power than the old incandescent lights.  This is particularly helpful for anchor lights or other lights that will be used while you are on battery only power.

Day shapes are used on sailboats to let other boaters know if the sailboat is under power or at anchor during daylight operation.  The use of day shapes on inland waters seems to be often neglected, which is a sad thing as it may contribute to unnecessary accidents or close calls.  A sailboat under power should display a black ball shape.  At anchor in daylight hours they should display a black, inverted cone shape.   There are other shapes such as diamonds and combinations of shapes used on commercial fishing vessels and vessels under tow but you seldom see them on personal boats.  The day shapes are always black because other colors can not always be distinguished if the sun is in your eyes.  Day shapes are required on vessels over 20m in length and recommended for all vessels and are typically displayed in the fore triangle (e.g., hung from the fore stay).   Day shapes are not commonly seen on inland waters but their use (or lack thereof) may still be a liability factor if there is an accident.

Rules and regulations will, to some extent, depend on where you are using your boat.  Regulated waters usually include all coastal waters and large, navigable lakes and rivers like the Great Lakes, the St Lawrence seaway, the Columbia River, and the Mississippi River.  The regulations governing these waters include federal laws and regulations put forth by the U.S. Coast Guard.  There are other local rules and regulations that govern recreational boating on lakes and rivers.  It is your responsibility to learn the laws, rules, and regulations pertaining to whatever venue you are operating in.  Failure to do so could result in serious accidents or expensive fines.  You will find speed limits and restricted areas posted near most boat docks, launch ramps, swimming areas, brides, and dams in both regulated and unregulated waters.  Obeying these rules is both your legal obligation and a matter of common courtesy and safety.

Safety equipment requirements are primarily based on US Coast Guard regulations.  In pretty much all cases you are required to have personal flotation devices (i.e, life vests) readily available and accessible to every person on a boat.  As boats get larger they are required to have additional throwable flotation devices (specially designed cushions or life preservers).  All boats are required to carry visible and audible signalling devices.  In regulated waters you are required to carry signal flares.  Boats operated after dark require navigation lights.  All boat having motors must carry at least one fire extinguisher.  Boats over 25' must carry at least 2 fire extinguishers.  All safety equipment should be up to date and easily accessible by the crew.  Everyone on board, especially crew members, should know what and where every piece of safety equipment is and how to use it.

Signal flares come in several forms.  There are hand held flares and flare guns.  Flare guns shot the flare high into the air so it can be seen from long distances.  Hand held flares can only be seen by people with a direct line of sight to where you are.  Hand held flares are probably adequate for use on inland lakes and rivers but I would want to have a flare gun if I were doing any off-shore, blue water voyaging.  Signal flares are not cheap and they come with an expiration date.  Some expired flares might still work, but do you want to bet your life on that?  I don't!  Expired flares do not meet USCG regulations so having expired flares might result in a stiff fine, not to mention they very well might fail when you need them most!

Having the required safety equipment on board is just the first step.  Obviously you must also know where to find it and how to use it!   Having all the required equipment tucked away in a storage locker might avoid fines but it isn't going to do yo much good if you need to use it.  Even simple items like life vests require a certain expertise to be worn correctly.  Putting one on wrong could cost you your life!  Throwable cushions are pretty simple to use but it is advisable that you practice throwing them so you will be able to get them where you need them if someone falls overboard and needs help.  Know how to ignite or shoot your flares.  You should not fire flare guns as practice, except in an official USCG designated flare practice area so you may have rely on learning the instructions and "dry firing" practice.  Any passing aircraft that sees a flare is obligated to report it which would launch a possibly expensive search operation. 

Audible signals (horns and whistles) have specific meanings you need to know.  They are generally divided into short and long blasts.  Short blast is 1 second.  A long blast is 4-6 seconds.  One short blast is used by boats approaching each other to signal they are passing on the port (left) side.  Two short  blasts mean passing on the starboard (right side).  By the way, the generally accepted practice is to pass port to port, just like driving on US highways.  Three short blasts means your engine is in reverse.  Five short blasts mean danger or I do not understand or agree with your signal.  You might use 5 blasts to warn an approaching boat that you have a swimmer in the water on the side he intends to pass on or if there is some danger such as rocks or debris  or another boat there.  Audible signals are also used in times of reduced visibility, such as fog or around blind turns.  One long blast means entering or exiting a blind turn, nearing an obstructed area, or leaving a dock or berth.  One long blast every two minutes is used by power boats operating in low or restricted visibility,  One long blast followed by two short blast  is used by boats under sail operating in low or restricted visibility.  Whey would power and sail boats use different signals for the same situation?  Well, sailboats may not be able to change course or speed as quickly as power boats.  Knowing a sailboat is approaching in limited visibility conditions lets you prepare to allow more time for evasive maneuvers if they are needed.  It may also help that you know you will not be able to listen for approaching engine noise and that the other boat could appear out of the fog without you ever hearing the sound of their engine.

EPIRBs (Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons) are required on large boats (typically over 300 tons) but might be useful on smaller craft if you are sailing off-shore.  They send an SOS signal that includes your precise coordinates to assist rescuers in finding you.  They are somewhat large and expensive.  A Personal Locator Beacon (PLB) performs a similar function.  They are small enough to carry in your pocket (they are designed for hikers) and start at prices much less than EPIRBs.  Emergency beacons are probably not needed on inland waters but I wouldn't want to do any ocean voyaging without one.  You might want to have a PLB you can use both on land at and sea, for hiking, riding OHVs or horses, hiking, boating, etc.  Most PLBs are waterproof down to at least a couple of meters.

There are no laws or regulations I know of that specify proper clothing for boating,  other than perhaps laws regarding public nudity.   However, to be safe and comfortable you should dress appropriately when boating.  Avoid exceedingly loose clothing that might get caught on parts of the boat.  For both your own safety and to protect the deck of the boat, wear soft-soled shoes with a good grip.  "Real" boaters wear deck shoes when on the boat and do not wear them off the boat where they could pick up bits of debris that would damage the deck.  Slick or loose shoes may cause you to slip and fall, perhaps even fall overboard!  Wearing any shore worn shoes on your boat risks damaging the surface of your deck.  It is popular to wear swimsuits or shorts when boating but be aware you may be exposing your skin to excessive UV radiation which could lead to sunburn and eventually even to skin cancer.  You will get exposed to sunlight reflected off  the water as well as from directly overhead.  Wear sunblock on exposed skin.  A good broad-brimmed hat or at least one that shades our eyes will be helpful.  Your eyes will also need protection from both direct and reflected sunlight so a good pair of sunglasses is advised.  Most tasks on a power boat don't require gloves, but many tasks on a sailboat or any kind of paddle boat will require gloves to protect your hands from blisters, rope burns, and other injuries.

If your boat is on a trailer you will need to have safe towing skills and learn how to launch the boat.  To launch the boat back the trailer down the launch ramp until the boat is in the water.  If you can't get it far enough down the ramp before the water is high enough to get the brakes on your tow vehicle wet you might need a hitch or tongue extension to give you further reach.  Boat trailer guides are really useful when backing the empty trailer into the water to retrieve the boat and they also make it easier to align the boat to the trailer.  When towing a boat, always make sure the boat is securely attached to the trailer and that the trailer hitch, safety chains, wiring, lights, and brakes are working properly.  When towing you usually need to travel slower than you do without a trailer and give yourself more room for turning and stopping.  Trailers can also be affected by wind or gusts from passing trucks and buses.

You will need to know how to safely move your boat out of its slip and how to dock it again when you return.  There are many Youtube videos that can teach you useful techniques.  In general you need to make sure you have untied all dock lines and made sure the lane you are entering is clear of other boats.  When returning, approach the slip/dock slowly, have your boat hook ready to help guide you into the slip, and have your docking lines ready to secure the boat once you are in place.  There are techniques that use spring lines to help position the boat and stop it when docking, but not all boats have spring lines.  Speed in any marina or anchorage is always limited.  You usually only need to run the motor at idle when docking.  Boat trailer guide posts are useful for positioning your trailer and aligning the boat to the trailer.

Once you are out on the water you need to maintain situational awareness.  That means you need to be constantly looking around you, watching for other boats, swimmers, obstacles, or even disturbances on the water that might indicate a problem.  Also keep an eye on the sky for changes in weather.  Adjust your behavior depending on what you see around you.  Watch your speed.  There aren't a lot of speed limits on the open water, but there are definitely speed limits near marinas, boat ramps, swimming areas, bridges, dams, and other points of interest.  You should also slow down whenever there are other boats near by, to give yourself time to react if one of them suddenly darts into your path.  In general power boats are expected to yield the right of way to sailboats but if you are in a sailboat, don't count on it!  If you are in a power boat, do your best to comply.  Boats should pass each other "port to port" (i.e., left side to left side).  Think of it like two cars going opposite directions on the highway.  By the way, you can remember that "port"is the left side because both words have 4 letters.  You can also remember the port light is red, just as port wine is red.  The right side of a boat is called "starboard".  The port side is so named because that was the side boats usually docked on in port.  Starboard is thought to have come from "steerboard" at a time before boats had rudders and were steered by a board usually from the right hand side as the one steering the boat faced forward, probably because most people are right handed.

Two special situations to consider when boating:  cooking and sleeping.  Cooking on a boat can be difficult, especially if you are underway or anchored where there is significant movement.  You will always need to ensure adequate ventilation to eliminate fumes from cooking and from burnt fuel AND to make sure YOU have enough oxygen to breathe.  Even if your stove doesn't put off toxic fumes it will consume oxygen.  You will also need to take care to make sure pots and pans don't slide off the stove if the boat is rocked.  Use pot restraints or hold onto the handle to prevent accidental spills if you are hit by an unexpected wave or wake.  Sleeping on a boat is usually pretty safe, but you may be sleeping in the V-berth.  The mattress at you shoulder could be as wide as a queen size bed while the foot may be as small as 9"!  In smaller boats you will have limited head room so you may need to exercise caution when attempting to sit up.  The rocking of the boat may cause problems for some people.  If you find yourself getting nauseous you may need to take some Dramamine to counteract the affects of sea-sickness, especially when you are trying to sleep.  You will want to ensure you have adequate ventilation so leaving a hatch slightly open is often a good idea, even if it is cold outside.  If you have any kind of heater that burns fuel adequate ventilation is an absolute must since combustion consumes oxygen.  Of course you will want to make sure your boat is securely anchored or tied to a dock or mooring before you retire for the night.  Any boat with overnight facilities should include sanitation.  Be sure you know how to locate and how properly use the available facilities.  Mis-use can result in unpleasant and unsanitary conditions on the boat and sometimes in the water around it.

Passenger safety should be one of your primary concerns.  Perhaps your first option is to make sure your passengers are capable of following safety protocols and looking after themselves.   During one of our sailboat outings we witnessed a power boat accident in which an elderly lady fell overboard.  They got her out of the water quickly but she apparently had a heart attack and even CPR by the local fire department medics couldn't save her.  Ironically, she didn't like going out on a boat in the first place and her family had talked her into it.  Always show passengers where all the safety equipment is located and how and when to use it.  Make sure children and other possible at risk passengers ALWAYS wear their live jackets.  Avoid carrying passengers who are intoxicated or under the influence of drugs, even prescription drugs if the drug affects their senses and/or reaction time.  Try to keep an eye on your passengers and advise them if/when they are doing anything that might put them or anyone else at risk.  If all else fails and your passengers do not cooperate, head back and park the boat and ask them to disembark.  Going back and/or asking people to leave may dampen spirits but not as badly as someone getting hurt!

Be safe and have fun!