A longtime CRUISERS NET SPONSOR, historic Edenton always has an exciting calendar of events and places to visit! Edenton is at the mouth of the Chowan River on the northwest shore of Albemarle Sound.
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Click Here To Open A Chart View Window Zoomed To the Location of Edenton Harbor City Docks
Our thanks to Waterway Editor, Ed Tillett, for permitting Cruisers Net to publish this article from Waterway Guide’s weekly newsletter.
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Staniel Cay Yacht Club, a longtime CRUISERS NET SPONSOR and a favorite destination for cruisers in the Exumas, is providing a Rare Summer Offer You Don’t Want to Miss!.
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Morningstar Marina at Golden Isles, A CRUISERS NET SPONSOR, lies along the southern reaches of the Frederica River, between Lanier and St. Simons Islands, south of the charted 9 foot bridge.
Located on St. Simons Island, GA Morningstar Marina Golden Isles is right off the ICW Marker 675 with easy access to the ocean. The Frederica River provides no vertical obstructions, and we are a deep craft marina, making us a welcome stop for yachts and sailboats for overnight & transient dockage. Our Golden Isles location is home to highly trained dock masters who pair their extensive training and knowledge with superior service, delivering exceptional experiences that go beyond the norm. The overnight & transient dockage facilities for boats at Golden Isles have been designed to serve the specialized needs of today’s boaters offering 1,100 linear feet of transient dock with high-speed fuel pumps, in-slip pump out, free On Spot Wi-Fi, and 30/50/100-amp shore power service. Additional amenities include secure bathroom and shower facilities, laundry facilities, a fully stocked marina ship store, courtesy bicycles and vehicle, a swimming pool, with an onsite restaurant and coffee shop. Beyond the marina facilities, we are two miles away from St. Simons Island and the Golden Isles where you can enjoy the beaches, historic sites, golf, tennis, shopping, and amazing dining. Please submit a request by filling out the form below.
Click Here To Open A Chart View Window Zoomed To the Location of Golden Isles Marina
An on-the-water retirement home or vacation home for those who love the rich cultural ports-of-call cruising waters of North Carolina, Albemarle Plantation Marina, a port on the Albemarle Loop and a CRUISERS NET SPONSOR, is located just off the AICW on the northern shores of Albemarle Sound on Yeopim River/Creek.
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| the adventure of a lifetime begins with one visit. | ||||||
| Breathtaking. One-of-a-kind. Life changing. We invite you to visit and discover ALBEMARLE PLANTATION and see why it is loved by so many families and friends.This 3 Day / 2 Night Special Discovery Visit could change your life.
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 Explore trails and natureDine at one of our onsite restaurants Play spectacular golf Soak in the happy, healthy vibe Explore the gorgeous Albemarle Sound See a wide variety of properties | Plus– Enjoy bespoke accommodations in Edenton’s historic district at the luxurious Inner Banks Inn.  | |||||
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| Discover Albemarle Plantation | Plan A Visit | Contact us | ||||||
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Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of Albemarle Plantation Marina
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Thank you for your loyalty; every story you read makes me ever more proud to share them. STEADFAST continues to undergo extensive repair and refit, so stay aboard for sailing tales combined with the challenges, and intricacies of restoring a 90-year-old Sailing Yacht. I’m always open to suggestions as to content….weigh in as we manage and learn from our latest joust!
Messages reach my inbox directly; please do not hesitate to contact me! ~J
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I went cross-country to Arizona State University and joined an Air Force that promised to train me as a pilot and was not remotely suited to my independent spirit. I forfeited the scholarship, returned east and did a 180, career-wise, cashing in as a bartender, working a winery, choosing a life of hospitality. At twenty-one I got into my Mazda RX-7 and drove to Montana, solo, for a Glacier National Park restaurant management job that I was flattered to have and unqualified to fill. I filled it anyway, a drink-slinger in charge of fifty-two peers serving 600 meals a day. I pay to swim with sharks, jumped out of a perfectly good airplane, rafted the Grand Canyon, flew half way round the world unaccompanied, untracked.
I am one of those people who doesn’t really fear the unknown. I’m not being boastful; that trait can be construed as highly impractical and dangerous as well as eccentric (discussed last week). I went places and took chances I didn’t consider or calculate. It’s ironic that the engine space of my wooden, floating home was a far more intimidating thing. More foreign, somehow, than any foreign land.
Sailing seems simple and the concept certainly is, but the reality of our motorsailer and the components thereof is anything but. Five feet below the pilothouse lies a rock-solid 1980 Detroit Diesel 4-71 and an impressive 8k generator along with four 150-gallon fuel tanks, a watermaker, half a ton of batteries and the most astonishing array of hoses, pumps, filters, valves and wires I have ever seen anywhere. These type of cruising vessels are self-sufficient and complicated! Atop the fuel tanks are boxes, crates and bins of spare/replacement parts for the items listed above, gallons of oil, cleaners, corrosion blockers and tools; everywhere there are tools. An oil change takes five gallons. That’s a whole lotta lube.
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Before…
Three feet below the engine room floor in the potentially claustrophobic space, (I don’t have that affliction, but if you did, there would be trouble) is a tray designed to catch any water ingress through the drive shaft system. It comes complete with a small pump and a really big pump, as it should. Water ingress, even when controlled, understood, and utilized for the good of all (usually cooling the exhaust system) is a nerve-wracking thing. There are indicator lights at the helm for when those pumps kick on, so we know if they run unusually long.
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“Do you want me to take that tray out so you can get underneath it?” Hmmm. The trick questions just keep coming during this project. I couldn’t quite imagine the next layer down. Little comic strip words in a bubble pop up around my head with alternative answers to this inquiry. They include, but are not limited to:
No. Not really.
I guess so?
Ummm. If that’s the only way.
Is that the only way?
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How am I going to reach that, exactly?
I’m hanging off of what?!
I really don’t have anywhere to put my feet. That one I said out loud.
I was left to tackle my task. I like to do things well, but I don’t like to do all things; you know what I mean. The wet vac is awkward, top-heavy and short-corded, with a mind of its own. I gathered that along with myself and headed down the ladder. You volunteered for this one, the final cartoon bubble said, bursting in a fit of giggles. I thought it best not to respond to me and pondered where I had stashed those weirdly-lined and now-crucial long yellow dish gloves. I dug them up, saviors.
That first fine afternoon a thirty-pound board was delivered to span the cramped yet cavernous space. While cumbersome at first, it did make the upside-downness a little easier. No paid-for yoga class inversions were required during those two weeks; my blood flow was primo as I tackled different kinds of strength and balance without the grace, peace or intention.
I’m more comfortable in there now, and that crucial space is degreased, scraped, sanded, and protected with two coats of primer and two coats of a tough-as-nails enamel called Bilge Coat. Eleven floorboards were removed, and all have shiny white paint on every surface. The pants I wore deserved a ceremonial burning but there are rules against that here in the boatyard. I’m sure I’ll break them someday. ~J
As I write this we are en route to Hope Town, Bahamas to reunite with our friend (and Sophie the little dog) on S/V ANTARES who lost the man in their life. After five days of SPARRING WITH MOTHER NATURE, and by the time you read this, we should be moored snuggly in Vero Beach, Florida, ready for other volunteers to crew her north up the Intracoastal Waterway. RIP Will Heyer. We got your girls.
Thank you, as always, for being part of the SPARRING community. I relish your comments and deeply appreciate all the new folks that are aboard. My work is free to peruse, critique and consider. Think it’s shareable? Do it!
Share SPARRING WITH MOTHER NATURE
I don’t have a ‘buy me a coffee’ button because I’d probably spend it on wine and I always try to be honest. 😉
Here’s a spring shot in lieu of sunrise…these Wisteria are stunning & inverted, the opposite of sooty.
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THANK YOU AGAIN for supporting STEADFAST and her caretakers, mates! It’s not an easy task!
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© 2025 Janice Anne Wheeler
Living aboard Sailing Yacht STEADFAST again soon!
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Makers Air and Staniel Cay Yacht Club, A CRUISERS NET SPONSOR, offer convenient flights to the Bahamas.
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Especially during our busy season, securing a Guaranteed Cargo Block ensures your belongings travel when you do.
From Coastal Review – Historian David Cecelski: Carolina coast still worth the fight.
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From our friends at South Florida Sun Sentinel, if you are near Fort Lauderdale this weekend consider spending time at the Beachfront Grand Prix Festival.
Who says Formula 1 and sand don’t mix? The Beachfront Grand Prix Festival is coming to Las Olas Oceanside Park (aka The LOOP) this weekend. Plus, check out other car-related events happening throughout South Florida.
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Cruisers Net publishes Loose Cannon articles with Captain Swanson’s permission in hopes mariners with salt water in their veins will subscribe. $7 a month or $56 for the year and you may cancel at anytime.
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When all else fails, try journalism.
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The author and his wife are cruising the South Pacific on an Amel 53 named Cream Puff. This story was originally published on their an award-winning blog Cream Puff-Life’s Sweet Treat. It is reprinted here with permission.
Let’s face it: sailors are a rare breed. Adventurous, resourceful, and often stubborn as a jammed halyard. But every generation of full-time cruisers has had its own “game changer”—a breakthrough that redefined life afloat. So hop aboard as we sail through time, tech, and tangled cables.
Back in my younger, wide-eyed days, sailors set out on small boats with little more than a stack of paper charts, a sextant, and a healthy dose of optimism. Navigation into reef-strewn waters often relied more on luck than precision. You might catch a weather update from a passing ship—if you were lucky enough to see one.
Old-school movies like The Dove and Tania Aebi’s memoir Maiden Voyage inspired a generation. Take another look sometime—you’ll notice a glaring lack of GPS. Loran-C was around but only near shore, and you were on your own if you were aiming for that lonely dot in the middle of the Pacific.
Electronics? Minimal. Most boats had a VHF, maybe an SSB radio. Systems were mechanical. Days ran by the sun. There were no solar panels, no lithium batteries, and no LED lights. And honestly, no complaints.
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Sailors took the weather in stride. Most had no idea what lay ahead and dealt with storms as needed. Keeping a close eye on the barometer was a necessity on any ocean passage.
Suddenly, a sailor could get a reliable position with GPS. You still had to plot it on a paper chart, but dead reckoning started to… well, die. Sextants didn’t disappear—they stuck around like old friends who still had your back in case of electronic failure.
Then came EPIRBs (Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons). These magical little boxes broadcast your location until help showed up. Cruising got safer. Not easier—just safer.
Boats became more complicated. Electronics became essential. Troubleshooting moved beyond duct tape and crossed fingers.
By now, GPS was in everyone’s cockpit. Chartplotters arrived, blending GPS with electronic charts. No more paper plots (unless you were nostalgic or cautious). The onboard tech stack started to rise.
SSB radios got upgrades with modems. You could now send emails from mid-ocean. Weatherfax gave you weather maps—even if it took an hour to print one. Autopilots, electric windlasses, refrigeration—all powered by early solar panels and wind generators. Boats weren’t just boats anymore—they were systems.
The tech floodgates burst open. Integrated systems let you overlay radar onto charts, track vessels with AIS, and trust autopilots to follow a route. Satellite phones gave you a line home from the most remote anchorage.
Chartplotters? Check. Weather downloads? Check. Blog updates from your lagoon in Bora Bora? Of course.
And comfort? LED lights, solar arrays, smarter batteries. Cruisers were cutting the cord from shore power, and nobody missed the extension cord.
Enter the “connected boat.” Tablets and smartphones started replacing dedicated nav systems. Apps rivaled chartplotters. Connectivity became the new currency—Starlink was on the horizon.
Cruising culture shifted. Word-of-mouth gave way to Facebook groups, YouTube vloggers, and real-time updates from paradise. Boats got sleeker, smarter, and more apartment-like.
Watermakers, lithium batteries, electric winches, induction cooktops—today’s boats were floating condos with better views and no annoying neighbors (except that one guy on the catamaran who always anchors too close).
Today, cruisers are part sailor, part systems manager, and part IT specialist. Starlink made remote internet reliable. Cruising couples now Zoom into meetings from mid-ocean and stream Netflix while swinging on anchor.
Autonomy is the new watchword. Smart systems let you monitor and control everything—battery levels, bilge pumps, weather forecasts—from your phone. AI is sneaking aboard too, powering smarter autopilots and adaptive routing software.
Let’s talk AI for a minute.
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When we bought Cream Puff, she was ahead of the curve thanks to her original owner—a tech-savvy guy who’d wired her like a small submarine. Every system ran through a NMEA-0183 network into a navigation computer powered by TimeZero software. We had GPS, AIS, radar, weather overlays—all on a large screen at the nav station. It was glorious and way ahead of instrument suites offered by major manufacturers.
Soon after we purchased the Puffster, we updated the original computer to a custom-built PC that was, for its time, very state of the art. It had no moving parts, a SSD hard drive, low power consumption at 24VDC and didn’t mind the tropical heat. We also upgraded the TimeZero software to a new version. I wrote about the installation here.
That system ran flawlessly for 13 years (that’s like 110 human years). Then—cue the sad music—it died. The motherboard gave up. The data survived. I salvaged the SSD, tossed the chassis, and poured one out for the fallen.
Cue my entrance as the “old guy who doesn’t get the new stuff.” Remember folks who couldn’t stop their VCR from flashing 12:00? That’s me now with computers. I haven’t kept up with trends. I didn’t need to. Now, I have to rebuild the heart of our network.
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Ports changed. Com-ports and DB9 plugs? Gone. Now it’s USB or nothing. My old Windows 7 install disks? Useless. Enter ChatGPT.
AI walked me through the upgrade process like a virtual IT support line with patience and zero judgment. It helped me source parts, debug connections, and—get this—even explain why my Furuno compass was acting like it had a grudge.
Cindy managed to decode Furuno’s cryptic manuals (think IRS forms written in Klingon), and together we got the heading sensor talking to TimeZero again. Success!
Windows 11 is a learning curve. I already hate it. While some things are a little easier like getting into port configurations, Microsoft operates under the assumption that all computers are connected to the internet at all times and data is free. It took hours to figure out how to get control of updates and stop the constant barrage of ads (this can eat up our expensive data while at sea). AI kept me on the straight and narrow, solving connection problems and port configurations.
This was my first deep dive using AI for technical support, and I’m sold. It’s like having an engineering intern aboard who never sleeps, never eats your snacks or steals beer, and doesn’t mind dumb questions.
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Yet, despite all the tech, the sea remains unchanged. The stars still shine. The winds still blow. And there’s something eternal in plotting a course, raising the sails, and letting the boat carry you into the unknown.
I don’t think sailors of the 1970s and prior could ever imagine the boats of today and the complexity of the systems aboard. And vice versa, most of today’s sailors don’t know how to plot with a sextant and can’t imagine being disconnected.
Each generation of sailors faces its own tools, its own frustrations, and its own marvels. Whether you’re navigating with a sextant or a satellite-linked AI, one truth remains:
The ocean doesn’t care how fancy your gear is—it only cares that you respect it.
Fair winds, and may your firmware always update correctly and may your cables always be compatible.
Note: We do carry complete mirror backup systems should the computer ever fail during a voyage – we can switch over in a jiffy.
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The recent shackling of the Environmental Protection Agency “foreshadows the breathtaking descent back into the worst days of our coastal past, when our estuaries, our beaches, our fisheries and the sources of our drinking water were a free-for-all, open to plunder, pillaging and poisoning.”
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