South Street Seaport to the Northern Lights

Blog copyright janet groene, all rights reserved. To ask about placing your ad for one year on all six Groene sites for one low rate,  email janetgroene at yahoo.com


WIN A VOYAGE OF THE CHILEAN FJORDS

Win a 13-day voyage of the Chilean fjords with Azamara cruises. Just enter a picture you took of a favorite cruise destination. Get contest details at sit:www.azamara.com/world-photo-day-contest







SOUTH STREET SEAPORT ROCKS   

     The annual Fall celebration on September 19 honors 50 years of dedicated volunteers who save, steer and sail ships. Board the historic 1885 tall ship Wavertree to celebrate New York's connection to the water--past, present, and future. Cocktail or business attire. This is an outdoor shipboard event; please plan your footwear accordingly.





THE NOSE KNOWS

 Starbrite, the company that makes products formulated for the special needs of boaters,  offers a socko product called NosGUARD SG. It’s a complete kit with instructions, product and a container/dispenser. It’s not activated until you’re ready to use it.
    Within 4-6 hours it goes to work in an area up to 1,000 square feet. Read the instructions because the product and its use are new and unique. It comes in fast- and slow-release versions to hinder mildew and neutralize musty smells and odors from cooking, tobacco and damp.  https://amzn.to/2Hl0EEP


QE II TO BE MOVIE SET

    Stay tuned for a film starting Meryl Streep, Candice Bergen, Gemma Chan and a starry cast that is filming now on board Cunard’s luxury liner, Queen Mary 2. The working title is “Let Them All Talk”. Guests on board have a chance to appear as extras. 








NOTHING BORING ABOUT AURORA BOREALIS

 
    Aurora Season in Fairbanks, Alaska runs from August 21 to April 21. Summer is almost over in the Arctic but hurry and you can combine an Alaska cruise with the dazzling nature show that is the Northern Lights.  Fairbooks hotels will be open all year. 







CANOE WITH YOUR CANINE
 

    Bring your pooch to the Stanford Inn Resort in Mendocino, California and rent a canoe specifically designed for paddling the bay with your dog. Dates for availability are September 24-30. 

If you read Book One,  January Justice,  you know about Farley Halladay, the Yacht Yenta. Now she is at it again in February Felony, the second of what will be a 12-book series  https://amzn.to/31J5d3D




 

CHARTER SMARTER
 

MarineMax.com in the Bahamas, British Virgin Islands, Whitsunday Islands, Pacific Northwest, Croatia, Greece and St. Lucia and the Grenadines.


SLEEP AFLOAT IN THE ST. JOHNS RIVER
    In Sanford, Florida a floating cottage is for rent.  Amenities include a queen loft bed beneath a cathedral ceiling and a full side sofa bed in the first floor entertaining quarters. The kitchen features a gas stove, full size refrigerator and ice dispenser.plore the waters in a kayak and walk ashore to browse galleries, shops, eateries, bars, brew pubs and entertainment venues of historic downtown Sanford
 

Boating News, Cruise Views, Sailing Celebations

blog copyright janet groene. To donate $5 a year in support of this weekly publication, use your PayPal account to janetgroene at yahoo.com

SCRATCH VENICE?
    Cruise ships weighing more than 1,000 tons will no longer dock in Venice. Tourists will now be directed to tours arriving by motor coach and cab, paying a city entry fee of $11. It’s expected that the move will not relieve the impact on the city’s crowding and over-tourism. Since tourism accounts for more than 11% of the the city’s total revenue, some experts warn that  local government may continue to ride the tourism wave until the effects become irreversible to the city’s fragile structure.

SAIL SWEDEN THIS SUMMER

    Why go sailing in Sweden now? Because daylight is  endless, darkness brief, and sailing the archipelago is divine.  See https://visitsweden.com/sailing-sweden/       

GALLEY RECIPE OF THE WEEK

Farley Halladay’s
Dilly Cheese Beer Muffins

    These flavorful muffins make a meal with a mug of soup and they are the perfect pick-me-up to hand out to the cockpit crew in heavy weather.
   
12-ounce can or bottle of beer
4 cups biscuit mix
2 tablespoons white or brown sugar
1 tablespoon dried dillweed
1/3 cup grated hard cheese such as Parmesan

    Pre-heat  the oven to 425 degrees. Line muffin tins with fluted papers or grease generously. This dough can also be baked in a loaf pan. Just fill any pan(s) no more than 2/3 full.
    Pop open the beer and let it breathe while you mix biscuit mix, sugar, dill and cheese in a bowl.  Fold in beer just until everything is evenly moistened. Do not beat. Bake muffins 10 minutes or until puffy and golden. 

    Cook’s note: If this is to be one loaf, reduce oven heat to 375. When loaf tests done, cool completely and wrap for several hours for easier slicing. 
      Stove-top baking: put dough in a heavy, generously greased skillet. Lid tightly and bake over low/medium burner until it’s springy to the touch. Top will not brown but bottom and sides will be toasty. 
    Variation: divide dough and make some muffins with dill and cheese, some with raisins, some with chopped nuts.

Did you know that Farley Halladay's galley recipes appear throughout her Yacht Yenta mystery books?  Start with Book One, January Justice.   https://amzn.to/2XqCl1y
 
  
CRUISE THE ECUADORIAN  AMAZON
 
    Take a five, five or eight-day cruise starting at under $2,000 per person to see Ysuni National Park and Amazonian communities. Check out the 40-guest M/V Anakonda, a small ship built for these waters. 


 NEW NAV SYSTEM FOR CRUISING YACHTIES, RACERS

 
    Raymarine’s new LightHouse TM3 has new and enhanced features for sailboat cruisers and racers equipped with one or more Axion MFD. As with all Raymarine LightHouse systems, update downloads are free.









LEARN ABOUT THE NIGHT SKY
  

  
A clear night on the water under the stars is one of boating’s most precious privileges, especially when you’re far out to sea away from the loom of city lights. Now Acadia National Park in Maine offers a chance to learn more about the heavens.

 The Night Sky Festival to be held September 25-29 takes place atop Cadillac Mountain, where astronomers will be on hand. Take a photograph workshop. Go night kayaking with a park ranger, attend stargazing events, take an astronomy cruise with expert astronomers.

The newest book in the Yacht Yenta mystery e-book series is February Felony.  https://amzn.to/31J5d3D
 

Boating, Cruising News from the Seven Seas

blog copyright janet groene. Farley Halladay is a fictional widow, author, yachtie with stories to tell, boats to sell, murders to solve. She favors charters boats but all boats and ship, from scows to cockleshells are her life.

Formula 34 Performance Cruiser Interior

SAILBOAT RACE WITH INFLATABLE BOATS?
 BELIEVE IT!

See a video of an international sailboat race in inflatable sailboats! Have  awesome fun with a boat that is affordable and packable!  CUT AND PASTE:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePwtLjvSTTM  



 

Lights out, Kindle on in your boat bunk or at home. Read the cozy January Justice,  a Yacht Yenta Mystery. Salty flavor, salty language, salty tears and a few laughs too.  https://amzn.to/2XqCl1y The e-book is also available for Nook and other e-book formats. Don’t have a Kindle app? Download it free from Amazon and ready Kindle books on your laptop or Android device.

Sail Croatia and the eastern and western Mediterranean on board the 62-meter yacht Klara. She has a crew of 12 and 18 air-conditioned cabins for up to 36 guests. Cost is under €1,500 per person
 



Favorite Cruising Areas Month by Month

    Do you want to avoid cruise ship crowds or join the party? Take advantage of bargain seasons?  Go places in your own boat where the crowds are not? Love ‘em or leave ‘em, these are the top five places where people  cruise each month,  based in purchase data at InsureMyTrip,
January: Caribbean, Bahamas, Mexico, Italy, Alaska

February: Caribbean, Bahamas, Mexico, Alaska, Italy

March: Caribbean, Bahamas, Mexico, Alaska, Italy

April: Caribbean, Bahamas, Mexico, Alaska, Italy

May: Caribbean, Bahamas, Alaska, Italy, Mexico

June: Caribbean, Bahamas, Mexico, Italy, Canada

July: Caribbean, Bahamas, Italy, Mexico, Canada

August: Caribbean, Bahamas, Mexico, Italy, Canada

September: Caribbean, Mexico, Bahamas, Italy, Spain

October: Caribbean, Mexico, Bahamas, Italy, Spain

November: Caribbean, Mexico, Bahamas, Italy, Spain

December: Caribbean, Bahamas, Mexico, Italy, Spain

Boating, Sailing, Ocean Cruising News

blog copyright janet groene, all rights reserved. To donate $5 a year in support of this weekly informational blog, use your PayPal account to janetgroene at yahoo.com

Say NO to Plastics
On the Water
(For a reason you have not have realized)

    These plastic microbits may once  have been your disposable cup or even a large plastic water toy.  Sunlight and wave action break down plastics into small pieces that are deadly when   ingested by fish and other marine life. 

    Going fishing?  Pontoon boat picnic?  Day cruise? Bring your sandwiches wrapped in generous swatches of waxed paper. Unfold and you have a clean cover for the table or your lap. Plastic sandwich bags and plastic wrap can’t do this.   In any case, don't allow plastics to go overboard. 


FARLEY LOVES TO BOAT IN FRANCE

There is nothing quite like the Cannes Yachting Festival in one of the most romantic harbors in the most romantic country on the Mediterranean. See vessels from small fizzboats to the world’s most glamorous mega-yachts. Or just sit at a sidewalk café and watch the beautiful people go by. Dates are September 10-15.



INTRODUCE YOUR KIDS TO THE HIGH ARCTIC
 
    Many polar expeditions frankly discourage bringing children on board, but here’s a chance to make sure the kids don’t miss out on Arctic spectacles during their wonder years. Children ages 12 and under sail for half price on board Poseidon Expeditions Sea Spirit, a 114-passenger ship sailing out of Spitsbergen.

Read Janet Goene's  January Justice, the first in the salty new Yacht Yenta mystery e-book series by the fictional  Farley Halladay. Meet  a widow who ran a charter boat, her dog, an aged U.S. Navy SEAL veteran she looks after and her fictional  business as a booking agent for charter boating worldwide. It's available for all e-readers and for Kindle at    https://amzn.to/2XqCl1y










CRUISE THE MEKONG ON A NEW SHIP

    Launching on the Mekong River in August will be Emerald Harmony. Accommodating 84 guests in 42 luxurious cabins she’ll cruise Vietnam and Cambodia on 13, 17 and 21-day itineraries. Enjoy local culture and history with Emerald Waterways’ daily land tours. 



See shortcut galley recipes, new each week at https://boatcook.blogspot.com 


GO GREEN WITH THE GREENLINE 40 HYBRID

With the big storage batteries fully charged and some help from sunshine on her multiple solar panels, the Greenline 40 Hybrid can run A/C, lights and other systems for more than 48 hours straight with no need for starting the 220-hp Volvo Penta D3 diesels or the generator. She can run for nearly three hours on her electric motors at a steady 4 knots in near complete silence and with zero emissions. Going from diesel to electric is accomplished by simply turning a switch on the dash. Under diesel power, top speed was 19.2 knots. While at 10 knots, she got 1.3 nmpg for a range of about 213 NM.

Saiiling, Cruising, Boating News

blog copyright janet groene. To ask about placing your ad for one year, one low rate on all Groene blogs email janetgroene at yahoo.com

Glass Bottom Boat in Bonaire

If  it’s about boats and the water, it belongs here. Farley Halladay is the fictional Yacht Yenta, author of January Justice, a Yacht Yenta Mystery e-book and first of a series. Poignant and funny, it’s an exciting read on sea or shore.  https://amzn.to/2XqCl1y

NEW RIVER SHIP CHRISTENED
 
    How do you christen a new river ship?  Formally, of course! AmaWaterways, a family-owned river cruise line has a new, 156-passenger ship for cruising the Rhine. See Europe from its original highways, the rivers, on board small ships.  




                           
 

NEW ORLEANS RECEIVES NEW RIVERBOAT
 
    American Harmony, the newest in America Cruise Lines’ fleet will depart for its inaugural Mississippi River cruise on August 17. Relive the golden days of Old Man River in a small, luxury boat. 





BOAT/US OFFERS YOU TUBE VIDEO
See a fishing boat rescue. Warning: the video is 10 minutes long and takes a while to download and watch. Cut and paste, please.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yI3ZV5gqVaA&feature=youtu.be

The video offers these 8 tips when boating in a marine sanctuary:
    *Check the weather when you are planning a trip, check the weather when you depart, and check the weather during the trip.
   * Know the proper size anchor and ground tackle for your boat and the bottom type, and know how to use it.
    *Ensure you have a working VHF radio aboard, preferably with digital selective calling which can speed a rescue or request for assistance.
    *Have life jackets for all aboard.
    *Make a float plan and be sure to leave it with a trusted relative or friend who knows what time you should be checking in upon your return.
    *Before you go, take a boating safety course.
    *Due to the distance involved as well as potential high towing costs, have an on-water recreational boat towing plan.
   * As a final backstop, ensure your boat insurance policy pays for the costs of salvage as well as claims for cleanup or environmental damage due to the accidental discharge of oil or fuel from your vessel.

FARLEY’S GALLEY RECIPE OF THE WEEK
    On board her charter ketch Sea SEAL, Farley had a galley the size of a broom closet. Yet she turned out socko meals for six guests and a crew of three.

 Boston Brown Bread
 
    This dense, moist, low-fat bread goes well with bean soup on a cold day at sea. It bakes long and slow in disposable tin cans. No yeast so there is no rising, kneading and punching down. 
 

½ cup each cornmeal and whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup light molasses
1 ½ cup milk soured with 1 tablespoon vinegar
½ cup each broken nuts and raisins

     Grease one large or two medium tin cans. Mix dry ingredients, stir in wet ingredients and fold in nuts and raisins. Fill can(s) 2/3 full. Let stand one hour. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake about one hour or until firm. Cool in cans. Slice and serve with butter or cream cheese.

Polynesia ala Windstar

 
Windstar, the sailing cruise line,  wants to show you their Polynesia with this 2 ½ minute video.  Please cut and paste URL.  https://www.windstarcruises.com/destinations/tahiti/

Boating News Charterboats to Cruise Ships

blog copyright janet groene, all rights reserved. Thank you for your donation of  $5 a year as a voluntary subscription to these weekly posts. Pay via PayPal to janetgroene at yahoo.com

 Farley Halladay is the Yacht Yenta in January Justice, the first in this new mystery series. The book is available for all  e-book formats and for Kindle at    https://amzn.to/2XqCl1y

https://amzn.to/2XqCl1y

News from the water’s edge for those who love any boats from Cockleshells to Cruise Ships to Charterboats



Scroll down to see the incredible deals I found on subscriptions to boating magazines

  
TALL SHIPS TO VISIT KENOSHA, WISCONSIN
    

This year’s tall ships tour visits only two ports on Lake Michigan, so be in Kenosha August 1-4 to see this impressive show. See the U.S. Brig Niagara from Erie, PA; Barque Picton Castle from the Cook Islands; Bluenose II from Lunenburg, Nova Scotia; S/V Denis Sullivan from, Milwaukee, WI; and Pride of Baltimore II from Baltimore, MD. Sail-away cruises will be available aboard the Red Witch from Kenosha and Appledore IV from Bay City on August 1.

    Vessels will arrive in a camera-ready “Parade of Sail” on the afternoon of August 1, led by Kenosha’s own tall ship – the schooner Red Witch. The ships are expected to begin their approach into the harbor to dock at 5:30 p.m. Ships will be visible from Kenosha’s shore as early as 2:45 p.m. An opening ceremony will take place during the free Peanut Butter & Jam concert at nearby Veterans Memorial Park. The event is one big spectacle of nautical fun, food, tours, sails, photo ops.

NAMED IN ICE - WITH ICE
 

Explorer Amudsen

Hurtigruten, the “fast route” line that serves the villages on the  fjords of Norway and many other areas, christens the new hybrid powered MS Roald Amundsen. She’ll  be the first ship in history to be named in Antarctica. The tradition of an ice christening honors the explorer who led the first expedition to traverse the Northwest Passage, the first expedition to the south pole and the first expedition proven to have reached the North Pole.  When he baptized his ship in 1917 he used a chunk of ice rather than the traditional champagne.

Carrying 530 guests and a crew of 151, MS Roald Amundsen’s maiden season includes expedition cruises along the Norwegian coast, to Svalbard and Greenland, before becoming the first hybrid powered ship to attempt a traverse of the legendary Northwest Passage. She’ll also do cruises in Antarctica. She cruises at 15 knots solely on battery power.

CRUISING ALERT
Countries including Thailand and Japan are considering requiring foreign visitors to have travel insurance. Hospitals there are being stuck with too many medical bills that visitors leave unpaid. Required or not, it’s smart to have travel insurance for trip interruption, trip cancellation, medical coverage, medi-evac, lost baggage and other hazards unique to each destination.


Farley Halladay’s Desperation Dinner
    

Fictional charterboat sailor Farley Halladay always had a Plan B to serve her guests in case weather interfered or the supply boat was late reaching the island.  Cruising sailors know it’s smart to have a good backup of supplies and recipes. Condensed soup is a lifesaver. 


Shrimp Chowder
 
Medium onion, diced
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cans condensed cream of potato soup
2 soup cans half and half (light cream)
12- to 16-ounce bag small cleaned, shelled, cooked shrimp, thawed and drained*
2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
Freeze-dried chives

    Sizzle the onion in hot oil, gradually stirring in soup, then cream. Add shrimp and cheese and heat gently, stirring until cheese melts. Add freshly ground pepper to taste. Sprinkle with freeze-dried chives.  Serves 6.    
* No shrimp? No freezer? Stir in 2 to 3 cups bits of poached fresh fish.

Condensed cream of potato soup is a backup ingredient to have on hand for making any quick chowder and it's less then $32 for a case of 12 cans

I found these
Spectacular Deals on Boating Magazines

Kindle or Print, Some As Little as $1.98 a Year
    What ever happened to some of the boating magazines you loved but can’t find on newsstands any more? They’re still afloat and better than ever.

Boating Magazine 

Boating NZ
.
Cruising World 

Chesapeake Bay Magazine

Good Old Boat

Houseboat

Pacific Yachting 

Sailing
               
Sailing Today (British) 

Sea 

Southern Boating (Southern U.S. and Caribbean) 

Woodenboat

Yachting 

Nautical News from Farley Halladay, the Yacht Yenta

blog copyright janet groene, all rights reserved

    Love boats? All boats? Score a 45-minute tour on board New York’s last working, New York-built wooden tugboat, the W.O. Decker. 

A typical steam tug, she was built in 1930 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  View lower Manhattan from the water with views of Battery Park, Castle Clinton National Monument and One World Trade Center. 

Public sails are on Saturday and Sunday out of South Street Seaport.

 
Excerpt from January Justice, a Yacht Yenta Mystery by Farley Halladay, 
quoted by permission.    https://amzn.to/2XqCl1y
        (While I waited to see someone in the village office), sneaky side glances let me take mental snapshots of women on the phone, women at PC screens, women with clipboards. 
    Were some of these dames making what Shakespeare called “the beast with two backs” with Stan Fielding ? Had one of them knifed him in the giblets?  Did one of them have a boyfriend or husband who discovered them flagrante delicto and bisected Stan in a fit of jealousy? None of the above?
    Would Danielle say I was over-thinking the whole thing?
   
Upcoming Laser Sailboat Races

    See Laser Class action at Sail East, to be held at the Shediac Bay (New Brunswick)  Yacht Club August 3-4 . This is also the District 1 Laser Masters Championships






 Farley’s Desperation 
Dinner of the Week

     When you’re cruising the world’s most remote reaches there are many reasons to have a generous backup of canned foods. Money transfers don’t come through. Refrigeration fails. Island supply boats are held up by weather.  The bilge floods. Guests arrive.
    Here’s a pleasing recipe made with 100% canned vegetables. For more recipes using affordable, familiar shelf foods from the supermarket, read Survival Food Handbook, a guide to choosing and using stowed foods. No high-priced doomsday rations required.

Vegetable Can-Can   
    The more vegetables, the more colorful the casserole. Try toothsome carrots, water chestnuts,  mushrooms, quartered artichoke hearts, white and yellow corn, Mexicorn,  cut up baby corn, mixed Chinese vegetables, diced rutabaga, green beans etc.  Canned vegetables not recommended for this recipe include beets, canned spinach,  zucchini in tomato sauce, creamed corn or starchy, mushy beans, peas or potatoes. 

4 cans, 15 ounces each, different vegetables
2 tablespoons diced, dried onions
1 cup tinned heavy cream soured with
1 teaspoon vinegar
1 can condensed cream of celery soup
1/2 cup grated dry cheese
1 sleeve round buttery crackers, crushed
½ cup melted butter, margarine or butter flavor Crisco

    Drain vegetables, saving some liquid to soak the dried onions. While onions soak, whisk soup and soured cream. Drain onions. Fold in cheese and vegetables. Spread in a casserole and top with crushed crackers. Drizzle with melted butter and bake until top is crusty and vegetables bubbly.
    No oven? Heat vegetable mixture gently in a pot. In a nonstick skillet, toss crushed crackers in melted butter and sprinkle over each portion. Serves 6 to 8.

Farley’s Secret Mustard  Sauce

     Just two ingredients make a magical sweet sauce.  Gently heat a 10-ounce jar of apricot or pineapple jam, jelly or preserves and stir in 1/4 cup Dijon mustard and a pinch of salt. Spoon over burgers, salmon, chicken.

This space-saving powder sounds like a GO for sailors and travelers who love iced coffee.  It’s high in protein and only 100 calories a serving. Scoop some into cold water, shake up and reach into the ice chest to fill a glass with ice. Pour over ice. Enjoy .
https://catalog.herbalife.com/Catalog/en-US/Healthy-Weight/Protein/High-Protein-Iced-Coffee?q=High%20Protein%20Iced%20Coffee