Today I was sitting around thinking about the transport I just finished and decided to write about what had happened out on the water. To set the stage, your on the open water on a 50′ ocean vessel that cruises at 8.5 knots and can run 2800 nautical miles before refueling. Ok the day started out with calm winds the sea’s running 1- 1.5 at 10 seconds, ( for those of you reading tis when you see or hear some one talking about the ocean the waves and currents are whats being described th hight is measured in feet and the interval is measured in seconds). the winds out of the south at 5-10 with temp of 55deg. About 4 hrs into the run I had the vhf’s tuned to channels 16 and 13 to monitor radio traffic, when a call went out from a boat stating they needed help they where suck and unable to move, not a situation that you put much urgency into it’s not uncommon to find a boat aground due to the lack of skill of the operator, and the amount of water needed to keep the keel off the bottom. The person placing the call was either very upset or did not know how to use the radio because the call went something like this ( coast guard, I’m stuck and can’t move.) end of the transmission. The transmission ended without the name of the vessel, location, type of vessel or the number of persons onboard. All of this information is essential to get out on the first call case you only get out the first message so anyone that hears it can relay the call so emergency persons can be dispatched to start the search and rescue. The coast guard tried several times to respond to the vessel calling but the vessel was unable to read there reply, or the vessel had not been receiving incoming radio traffic. Several hours went by and a transmission from the coast guard ask all mariners beware and on the look out for the vessel, but without knowing what vessel to look for or the location it was impossible to help out. By this time the weather had started to change with a storm pushing in from the west and the sea’s had picked up to 2-3 with the winds now 10-15 from the west, and the sun was know low over the horizon. What ever happened to the vessel making the call I don’t know but I can only hope they found  a way to get unstuck and back underway headed for a safe harbor.

When I make transports there are many things that go into the pretrip planning to make sure all the details are worked out to keep the trip as safe as I can and ensure that I am able to keep my vessel and crew safe, thats what makes paid mariners professionals, and liable for their actions or inactions. This is something that recreation mariners don’t understand or think about, most just want to get out on their boats and head out to play without taking into consideration the condition of their boat and equipment, or the weather conditions that are out there.

If you take anything from this please be prepared for any situation that might happen out there on the water you will find your self out there on the water and no one there to help when  an emergency occurs.

Check out the weather and sea conditions, check out the vessel and all the equipment on board and make sure you have the equipment needed and required for safety on the water. Make sure you know how to use all the equipment, and ensure the guest you bring know the emergency procedure and where the safety equipment is located. Taking a boaters safety class was recommended in he years past but now are mandated depending on the age and state you ive in, but I strongly encourage a boaters safety course and equipment class prior the next trip to your boat.  

Tools ‹ Captchaneysnautical’s Weblog — WordPress.

During the winter and the weather turns cold no one seems to venture out to their boat, because either it’s cold or they can’t find the time to see how wonderful being on the water is during the winter months especially around the christmas holiday’s.

Things around my home are festive the lights are lit and the tree is decorated.  I live on the water where life is always at a pace the life should very relaxed and there are no pressures of the big city and people care about their friends and those that live around them. when the leaves have fallen and the summer time crowds have gone home those of us that live the maritime life year-round enjoy the peace and serenity that the water brings.

One thing I want to convey in  this to anyone that read the short message is life is good and should be enjoyed no matter what it is for me it’s the waterman life.

Merry Christmas to all and may the new year bring you happiness and prosperity. 

I hope to see everyone on the water next year.

Captain H. Chaney

No matter what size you are no matter if your on land or in the water Teresa can get the job done and take the money

you spent buying the pleasure craft and make worth something again.

This is an investment don’t be like the Ponzi or market put our $$$ to good use and keep the value in your pride and joy, it’s saves money over time. Why? you’re not calling the insurance company telling them you have damages and a claim is on the way. Preventive  care and maintainance on your boat (cosmetics and mechanical) goes a long way reducing the cost of owning a water craft and keeps the money you make out of the pockets of high cost mechanics and boat yards.

\Teresa’s Yacht detailing is cost effective and very good at getting your boat back into shape as well as bringing the value back in line so when the time comes to sell because your ready to upgrade the value is there.

Be proud when your on board either at the dock or cruising and hear the commit ”I love the way that boat looks” and you’re the envy of the crowd because you have the best looking and running boat around. Pride is what the boat is about as well as being able to enjoy the time away on the boat everyone wants.

Teresa’s Yacht detailing is located at; Olverson’s Marina 1161 Melrose rd. Lottsburg, Va. 22511 Phone (804) 313-0236

E-mail primetime60@yahoo.com  This is the Northern Neck of Va. Which is the Chesapeake Bay where every boaters wants to enjoy the life style.

The purpose of this article is to help every boater or those that want to enter into the world of boating and are looking for the boat of there dreams. Every one wants the mega yacht life style and travel the seas of the world, then reality sets in.

Knowing what your able to buy as well as the maintenance required to keep her afloat, and balancing the family budget so your not working  just to make the payment can be a challenge unless you’re wealthy.The cost of maintaining the boat can get out of hand unless your on a schedule to keep the operating systems and hull in good shape, here’s the example of a maintenance schedule, cleaning the hull and running gear, changing the filters on the motor, keeping the sails and lines clean and dry. When you buy a boat either sail, power, you need to have knowledge of how to operate it, and what the rules are for recreational boaters. There are several place to look for the information, the state you live in will offer on line tutorial of the states boater laws. The U.S. Power Squadron and U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary offers class room training on boating. These are all good resources to get you started, but this is only the first step of what you need to be safe and operate your investment with out causing you a major head ache for you or others around you.

Hands on training by a professional captain can ensure that you are getting the information and skills needed to perform the task of operating your vessel in a safe manner and still have fun while out on the water. The areas you’ll learn pre trip inspection, close quarter maneuvering, navigation with use of the gps, depth finders, and charts, water way makers, light and sound signals for navigation, rules of the road. after you spent time with your captain learning the operational aspects of driving the boat you’ll need to move into safety  procedures fire drills, man over board drills, emergency radio procedures to call for help. The time spent learning in the beginning can make the difference between enjoying your self and coming close to a mental break down when an emergency happens.

At the end of the day and you have done all the research and decided that the boating world i where you want to be remember one thing boats are like your spouse if you give them attention they need and spend time taking care of there needs the cost ismuch less than repairing the broken part after being towed in or re-floating after it sunk. Small preventive maintenance task can save the motors, transmissions, and water systems. knowing how to operate safely can prevent accidents all cost saving ideas. google, yahoo or use your favor it web browser to find the captain able to fill your needs this is what I tell all of my students. We all had to start some where when it comes to boating, and learning is something you’ll do every day.

Be safe and enjoy the water I do.

Planning for you the next boat movement and class to learn.

Capt. Hank

one way to travel to work

my way to travel

When we start our day do you ask your self what is today going to bring?  My wife does this from time to time when thing are going at a steady pace and we try to get our breath from the task of the day. I remember that taking time out to evaluate what I’m doing and check that I’m on tract with the goals we set makes our life a bit easier to manage .

Keeping in touch with who you are and the purpose you have set for your life is the only way to know that you are on track taking care of your daily life and this will keep you in step with the objectives set on your schedule. My work as a Master has opened my eyes to a world that I knew existed but just couldn’t get a grasp on to make it happen till one day My wife and I decided together that our time together is more important than the money we were trying to obtain and at the same time not being very happy with the way our lives had not improved. We decided to take a chance and venture into the life we wanted and at the pace we had set for it to happen at, when this happened a new course for us appeared and all the worries of  the old day to day existing went away and we had a new start to open our lives to new experiences and a new way of living.

Today we live the life as full time mariners living and working on the water. I captain vessels for hire and teach boat owners or anyone that wants to learn how to operate boats, I also scuba dive working on boats to do repairs and clean he running gear from any thing that has attached it’s self, or fouled it out.

We have a full service nautical company established doing everything from cleaning boats to moving them. We are doing what we want and being happy with ourselves and the direction we chosen for there is no better feeling than to say what is the day going to bring us and knowing the answer revolves around boating.

Just a side note when was the last time you saw a sun set and enjoyed it here’s an expample

Captain Henry Chaney

When the play Hamlet was written the question asked was “To be or not to be”, but in my world the question is to sail or not. I find that if the weather is fair and the barometric pressure is steady or rising then sailing is not the question to be asked but how soon can we clear the harbor and head to the deep blue for an adventure that is always out there waiting to be had.

I just returned from a trip that involved traveling from Chesapeake VA. to Mystic Ct. this trip I took a crew that I had not worked with but felt this is what I do teach as I go either new crew or new owners/boaters looking for experience so they can enjoy the water and boating as much as I do. Our departure from Chesapeak 8am. went a little slow waiting on bridges and the only lock in the icw around Norfolk. We cleared the channel around noon after we rounded the Norfolk Naval base seeing what our services members do every day and saying thanks as I pass the last of our fine fighting ladies of the sea keeping us safe and out of harms way, I seen what was to be a fair day for sailing( I thought).

Around 2pm we were just on the final approach to the Chesapeake bay bridge tunnel to head north when night fell not an eclipse am monster thunder storm from the north west. the sea’s went from a 1′- 2′ swell to 5′- 7′ rage, we scrambled to get the sails down and turn around so we could run for shelter and safe harbor but when lightning and winds are working against you you see just what your made of. This wasn’t my firs storm and it won’t be my last but the crew I decided to travel with this was our trail period. I’m proud to say both crew and boat made it with out any scratches or damage unless you call stress damage, me I call it education so if the next storm comes and it will you know that your skils as a seaman are there and you just let your self do what you have learned. 

Henry Chaney jr. USN crew mate your training day.When the calm is near My teaching on this trip was enough to let the crew know how I run a vessel and what I expect from them, we did well together and I am proud to have called them ship mates. Job well done. The trip that was to take 75 hours running from Chesapeake,Va. to Mystic Ct. took 8 days because of weather and a small mechanical problem but when we made port and placed the John Galt in her new slip at the end of our final day I was a happy sailor knowing the satisfaction of traveling from one port to the next and living life as it is meant to be. The calm of the day and the end of this adventure.New home for the John Galt

 

A new start

 When the day is done and all is well tell your self and your crew it’s a fine day for a sail.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At the end of the day the true question to ask is not to be or not to be but, can I enjoy what I’m doing and be happy with the out come. For me the answer is as long as I’m able to live and keep my whits about me I will keep doing this living and working in the maritime industry both for recreational and as a profession because I have the passion and drive to live my life this way. My advice to others is always ask your self are you happy with what your doing and is there any thing you can do to improve your quality of life, only you can answer that.

      I’m writing this article to reflect and evaluate the course of my life, from the time I was able to make choice’s for myself at times I found the course I was on did not seem to be right for me. I would ask myself often what am I doing and where is this heading I’m on leading me. In my early years growing up our parents and elders where there to guide us teaching as we grew, good and bad right form wrong. When we enter into our grown up years teen agers and 20’s we know every thing and nobody can prove us wrong at least in our minds, what a joke. I learned how wrong I could be. When we reach our 30’s, in most cases we have started a family of our own and are now reaping the fruits of our younger years. Our parents if they survived us, laughing at what we have become and learning what we put them through.

I can sit back and reflect on my past and try to figure out what the future holds but I’ve learned that it holds what we desire, and for.  We are the only ones that have the free will to choose what is to be. For me being a boat captain sailing, teaching, and traveling is the path I have chosen and has given me the direction of living and working on the water.   Holding to my faith and dreams are what makes me live as I should. Knowing the direction of your life, is what we make of it, living and working for that dream can make it happen for you. I make this statement from fact because of the course and path my life has taken. Not every thing I one has been a success but knowing how to recognize what is working or not and making course corrections to keep you making head way toward your goals is what the fee will in life is all about.

Dispite the rambling I do when I write these articles I hope anyone reading them can find a ray of hope or a since of meaning that I’m trying to convey. For me I’m getting ready to head back to sea for my next adventure by transporting for a new customer the vessel I hope he’ll be able to find a since a of Peace with.

Stop reflect and learn the waters your on set a course and steady up on a heading, always try to find the calm for your journey.

 Captain Henry Chaney (capt hank)

Imaging the life you want to have and the facts of living the life you make for your self can be challenging today.

LIVE YOUR DREAM

What we do to make our life mean something to ourselves is a challenge in today’s enviromeant and uncertain times because of the way the economy, and the worlds politics are, but if you work and plan you can live well and make the life you want happen. I have just finished a job that I have been training for and love doing  for a long time and what made this job even more pleasurable is the clients I did the job for. The movement and delivery of a vessel to a new owner is good, but when you meet someone that works and plans their dreams and lives them, it gets even better because they bring new meaning to the phrase loving life. My job this week was to pick up and deliver a 43′ Gulf Star from Va. to New York, meeting the new owners in-transit. My crew and I stopped in Atlantic City, New Jersey to lay over waiting the arrival of the owners.

The day I met the  her (vessel Bay Star) I was taken back to a time of when she and other vessels like her had their keels laid and after time and labor the life of a new vessel is formed. In the case of this Gulf Star with every inch of her as grand as the day she was constructed but showing signs of her age. When I met the owners I was amazed the way the love of a vessel can bring the peace and tranquility into ones life. The thoughts and ideas brought by the owner to return this vessel back to her grand state of beauty was something of an artist creating a new work for his enjoyment.

At the end of my trip working with the owners and trying to cover the vessels working components ensuring they where comfortable with her, my crew and I departed, leaving her in the hands of people that approach life head on and enjoy living their dreams.  Don’t get caught up in the side attractions that seam to keep most people  from living their life. What you make of your life, and how it turns out is up to you. Love life and live it keeping your dreams alive.

My thoughts live today and keep your dreams alive for tomorrow.  Smile and laugh at the world you only live this life once.

Living the dream and loving life

 Now this is living! New and proud owners Robert and Lynn Becker Thanks for a great trip. Meeting and making new friends

Captain Henry Chaney