See now Jeff... from talking to my good buddy after he crossed the Atlantic
from Halifax to Portugal via the Azores... you just cannot beat a windvane.
Sail by Hand across the Atlantic... not a chance. Stand watch and let the
windvane do 90% of the sailing. There's enough work aboard to keep you busy.
He never used his electronic autopilot at all. GPS data was hand plotted to
chart and weather forecasts by VHF [ sailmail/fax.] He uploaded the logs to
a website. Makes for a good read!

Ever hear of the Cornholious Effect? :-)

CM


"Jeff Morris" wrote in message
...
| Sailing by hand, eye, and feel is fun. Being lost isn't. While I
sometimes do trips
| without the GPS, this is to practice navigation, and I usually end up
doing less "sailing"
| because of it.
|
| My friends that have the computer drive the autopilot migrate between Nova
Scotia or
| Newfoundland down to South Carolina every year - they've easily logged
over 100,000 miles.
| I don't think they're lacking "the experience."
|
| -jeff
|
|
| "Njord" wrote in message
news:c_zqb.10359$pK6.8747@lakeread02...
| Gee, doesn't anyone sail by hand, eye, and feel anymore? I always
thought
| getting there was much of the fun. Seems like all this automatic 'set it
and
| let it do the sailing' removes a lot from the experience.
|
| --
|
| Njord
|
| "Lord, your sea is so big, and my boat is so small"
|
| Anonymous
|
| "Jeff Morris" wrote in message
| ...
| I would advise against using a computer as the primary GPS. And a
| "plug-in" GPS (one
| that can't work alone) is even worse. At the very least, get a small
| handheld that can
| stand alone, and connect it to the computer with a data cable.
|
| Although I have a number of computer charting programs loaded, and my
boat
| is wired
| appropriately, I hardly ever use the computer underway. A small
mapping
| handheld (I have
| an older GPSMAP 175, today I'd get a 76 or 176) plus a chartkit suits
my
| need much better.
| I have friends that like using the computer, and have it wired to the
| autopilot, so the
| boat will "follow the mouse," but they have an enclosed center cockpit
41
| foot ketch, and
| the computer is right down the companionway. Plus they have another
GPS
| at the helm.
|
| The last time I researched low end GPS units, I decided the Garmin GPS
72
| was the "best
| buy" because it came with the cables that would be needed. I don't
think
| this is still
| true - whatever you get, consider the "total cost" of all the
accessories
| you'll want.
| The 72 is nice because it has a large display, its waterproof and
floats,
| and has a navaid
| and tide database.
|
|
| "Dennis Vogel" wrote in message
| hlink.net...
| I have a nice laptop running Windows XP with a nice big screen.
|
| Can anyone recommend a GPS plug-in for my laptop that comes with
sailors
| software? It should have all the good stuff like VMG.
|
| I've been away from sailing for several years. If this is not a good
| choice
| then can someone recommend a reasonable cost handheld or
deck-mounted
| GPS
| system?
|
| Thanks,
|
| Dennis
| Pearson Flyer #168
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|