The Passage From Hell (Part 1): Naked Goes the Novice
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History of Currituck Beach Lighthouse, Outer Banks, NC – Kevin Spencer
December 1stON THIS DAY in North Carolina history…1875:ON THIS DAY, the last of the four Outer Bank Lights, the Currituck Beach Lighthouse, is lit. It fills in the dark hole from Bodie Island to Cape Henry, Virginia. It is virtually identical to its three sister lighthouses (Bodie, Lookout, Hatteras) in construction. The 162-foot tall tower is constructed of approximately one million bricks. Its foundation extends seven feet below ground, with walls that begin at 5.5′ thick at the base of its tower, then tapering to 3′ thick at the top. It took one and a half years to build, beginning in 1874, and cost around $178,000 to construct.For its outer appearance, Currituck is left with its natural red brick. The thought by experts is this was the best way to distinguish it from the barber swirls of Hatteras, the diamonds of Lookout, and the horizontal stripes of Bodie Island.Initially, the beacon is fueled by a mineral oil lamp with five concentric wicks, the largest of which was four inches in diameter. The light is fixed white with a red flash, which occurred every ninety seconds and had a five-second duration. A clockwork mechanism rotates the light. Directly underneath the light, it is powered by weights and has to be hand-cranked every 2 1/2 hours.Today the light is automated and has been since 1939. The light has a flash pattern of three seconds on, and seventeen seconds off. It can be seen for almost 19 miles out to sea. As part of the automation, the lighthouse also has an automated bulb changer that holds a backup bulb. The Currituck Lighthouse comes on at dusk and turns off at dawn.~Kevin Spencer, Author, North Carolina ExpatriatesBe the first to comment!
BoatUS News: AIWA Celebrates 25 Years at Annual Meeting; Faces New Challenges
BoatUS is the leading advocate for boating safety in the US and A CRUISERS NET SPONSOR.
AIWA Celebrates 25 Years at Annual Meeting; Faces New Challenges
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LNM: Weather Webinars, Dec 12 and 13th
Good afternoon mariners,
Please join us next week for a pair of webinars on Forecast Products and Services provided by the National Weather Service’s Ocean Prediction Center and Tropical Analysis and Forecast Branch. The webinars will be held Thursday, December 12th, and Friday, December 13th, at 1pm EDT.
For Atlantic forecasts N of 31N (30N in the Eastern Pacific):
Please register for Blue Water Mariners – OPC Products and Services on Dec 12, 2024 1:00 PM EST at:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.
com/register/ 68996283223838923 Be the first to comment!
The Down East way: Harkers Island to celebrate waterfowl – Coastal Review
Decoys of redhead ducks created by Jason Michels. Photo: Contributed Read more at Coastal Review, coastalreview.org.
The Down East way: Harkers Island to celebrate waterfowl
Jennifer Allen, CoastalReview.orgBe the first to comment!
BoatUS: Pennsylvania Boaters Now Have Low-Cost Online Boating Safety Education Course Option
BoatUS is the leading advocate for boating safety in the US and A CRUISERS NET SPONSOR.
Pennsylvania Boaters Now Have Low-Cost Online Boating Safety Education Course Option
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NOAA Special Announcement
Explore Planet Earth with Teek and Tom in NOAA’s First Ever Animated Series
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Solo Flyer Captures the Imagination – Janice Anne Wheeler
SPARRING WITH MOTHER NATURE ~~ latest addition. I’m very honored that you’re following along. Thank you from the bottom of my writer’s heart.
Ah, the life of a liveaboard Sailor…on a Classic Wooden Sailing Yacht… as of August 2024 we are undergoing extensive repair and refit for the next several months(!). In boating terms we are hauled out “on the hard” in Cambridge, Maryland.
I plan to mix Sailing Stories with the challenges and intricacies of restoring a 90-year-old boat. I’m always open to suggestions as to content….please feel free to weigh in as we manage and learn from this unexpected joust. Thank you! ~J
A Wooden Boat is a strong, intricate entity constructed of Mother Nature’s finest materials.Share SPARRING WITH MOTHER NATURE
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Heading to the Bahamas? Expert Dispells Ciguatera B.S. – Peter Swanson
When all else fails, try journalism.
Heading to the Bahamas? Expert Dispells Ciguatera B.S.
Most of the Stuff You Read on Facebook About Toxic Fish Is Wrong
Clémence Gatti conducts field research on ciguatera. She works for Laboratory of Marine Biotoxins at Papeete, French Polynesia. After a spate of posts on Facebook showing astonishing ignorance about the dangers of eating barracuda in the Bahamas, Loose Cannon contacted Clémence Gatti, who has a PhD in Pathophysiology and works as a researcher at the Laboratory of Marine Biotoxins at Papeete, French Polynesia. She is one of the world’s foremost experts on ciguatera.
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Anchoring in Northern Lake Worth – Wally Moran
Experienced yachtsman, advocate for boaters’ rights, outspoken critic of restrictive laws on boating, author of numerous cruising blogs and frequent contributor to Cruisers Net, Wally Moran regularly hosts seminars, webinars and cruises on the Waterway.There has been a lot of online chatter recently regarding the anchoring situation in North Lake Worth. The local police were rousting boaters legally anchored from the anchorage, apparently citing Fl § 327.4109 as their justification. The town had also removed a number of unauthorized moorings as a part of its efforts to remove liveaboards and transient cruisers.
When the Cruisers Rights Network of North America – CRNNA – of which I am the president, became aware of what was going on, I immediately contacted the mayor and commissioners of North Palm Beach, within whose jurisdiction this body of water lies, and the Chief of Police.
In brief, my communication advised the recipients that any enforcement of local anchoring legislation was forbidden under FL § 327.60(2)(f), and that the town could be liable to a civil rights prosecution for its enforcement actions.
I also suggested that if they disagreed with me on this, they were free to designate a boat to receive a ticket and we would take the matter up in court:“…speak with the cities of Gulfport, Naples, Stuart and Miami Beach (among others) to discover what happened to them when they attempted to enforce their own illegal anchoring ordinances and actions with respect to those ordinances and FL § 327.60.”
Two days later, I received a phone call from the North Palm Beach Chief of Police. In an amicable discussion, he advised me that there would be no further enforcement against anchoring in North Lake Worth by his officers, and that anyone who had been inconvenienced would be contacted and an apology would be given.
The town was seemingly within its rights to remove the mooring balls, although there is a question about whether or not they were authorized and/or grandfathered in that may be the subject of civil litigation.
Thus, cruisers may continue to anchor in North Lake Worth with no concerns as to the legality of doing so. Should there be any attempt at enforcement, I would appreciate those involved getting in touch with me so it can be dealt with. However, I do not anticipate this will happen.
On another front, there is currently a proposal for a 5000 foot no anchoring setoff from any seaport in Florida we have seen that may go to the Florida legislature this upcoming session. This proposal, if adopted, has the potential to curtail or end anchoring throughout Florida – St. Augustine, Fernandina Beach, Palm Beach/Lake Worth, Tampa, Miami and Miami Beach and more.
This is a serious, all hands on deck issue and I ask cruisers to be prepared to fight it. I will update CruisersNet readers as I discover more on this issue, and in the meantime, they can follow what is happening at our Facebook page, Saving Florida’s Anchorages, https://www.facebook.com/groups/ savefloridasanchorages
Once again, thanks to the Salty Southeast CruisersNet for helping to keep boaters informed of what is going on in our world.Sincerely,Wally MoranBe the first to comment!
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