"Wear a hat" doesn't really work once you start developing
keratoses & basal cells. I've had sailing friends younger
than I am die of melamoma. It may get me too, but if so, I
want as many years as I can get beforehand!

If you've spent significant amounts of time out in the sun
over the past 30 years, the only answer is to keep out of it
as much as possible.


Wayne.B wrote:
I certainly qualify in the 30+ years department but I refuse to become
a total indoor recluse.

Cruising in a pilothouse vessel is "becoming a total indoor
recluse"?



.... I just enjoy being "out there" too much. At
age 61+ I've also gained the dubious distinction of being unable to
die young. :-)


Y'know, a few decades ago I'd have said, "Shucks what's the
point after you turn 40?" but one's perception of how old is
"too old" changes with time!


I do take reasonable precautions with big hats and grade 50 sunscreen
however.


Same here. In fact I make it a point to slather up several
times a day. But I have noticed a huge difference in the
amount of sun exposure I get on a 2 week cruise (basically
none) and the amount of sun that our friends who are very
cautious & diligent return with.... ranging from noticable
sunburn to being red as Indians.





We did the Champlain Canal in our old Bertram 33 flybridge sportfish
and found the clearance to be a tad over 15 ft at the Ft Edwards
bridge, which is the lowest one. We measured ourselves the day before
at 14 ft 9 inches and estimated that there was an additional 6 to 9
inches of clearance going under.

Sounds good... we plan to do that route but not immediately.
We've gone under some places that are marked 14' along the
ICW, and cleared the New Bern swing bridge (about 12' 6")
earlier this year with great caution & slowness.


... There were quite a few 40 something
flybridge trawlers along the way, running with their masts down of
course.

Practically everything has a flybridge. Most people like
them, I'm not trying to say they're terrible. Just answering
why *I* don't want one.

Anyway, all else being equal, a flying bridge will have
higher clearance than the same boat without (if there is
such a boat).


.... Unfortunately our GB49 is set up with a semi-permanent radar
arch on the flybridge, otherwise we could get down to 15 by dropping
the enclosure and mast.


A 49 is a pretty big boat for cruising in these little bitty
places...

DSK