The S/V Freedom is an Endeavour 42 sloop rigged sailboat. But more importantly, it's our home. We're on an indefinite cruise of the east coast of North America, following the seasons.
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Improvising
One of the million and one projects I haven't addressed yet is a light for the dingy, required for night travel. We planned on going ashore to watch the superbowl and that means heading back to the boat in the dark. What to do?? Improvise, McGiver style. Or as Chris observed, Classic Rube Goldberg.
Yes, that is a dixie cup and, of course, duct tape.
Posted by Ed aboard S/V Freedom
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Solar yard lights work well, too (for a more permanent solution) -- and you can usually get them for $2 or $3! Just leave it attached it's charged whenever you want it.
ReplyDeleteCarolyn
ReplyDeletethe solar yard lights I've seen aren't very bright. Have you seen differently?
thanks
Ed
For the first year or two, they're usually pretty bright -- we can see ones in a neighbor's yard that's not quite a half mile away. They do tend to "fade" over time.
DeleteIn the Sea of Cortez and El Salvador, lots of cruisers put them on their stanchions so that the local fishing boats will see them before it's too late -- the fishermen aren't used to looking up for a mast head light.
Then cruisers who didn't have lights on their dinghies got the idea of using the solar lights there, too. Admittedly not as bright as "real" lights but still fairly visible. I'm not sure if they'd meet CG or state law requirements in the US.