This page is intended to provide helpful hints to do with Cruising, Passage Planning, Customs Clearance and Boat Maintainance.

These hints are gleaned from magazines and provided by you (the cruising sailor) .......... please let us have anything that you think will be of use to your fellow sailors - just go HERE and submit your "helpful hint"

Registering a Yacht in South Africa (December 2002)

To register a yacht with South African Sailing (previously CASA), you will need to complete an application form which can be obtained from them by emailing SA Sailing <jayne@sailing.org.za> and faxing it back to SAS along with a copy of the Bill of Sale, a copy of your Yacht Club Membership Card and a copy of the deposit slip. The fee to register your boat is R300.00 if you are a member of a South African Yacht Club and R600.00 if you are not a member.
An additional fee of R285.00 is charged if you live outside of South Africa and would like us to courier the documents to you.

SAS banking details are as follows:
Account Holder: SA Sailing
Bank: Standard Bank of South Africa
Branch: Thibault Square, Cape Town, 8001
Branch Code: 02-09-09-00
Account No.: 07-088-302-5

Bringing Dogs & Cats Into South Africa

For dogs, quarantine may or may not be required, depending on the country from which the animal is being imported. For details, please refer to list of countries from which quarantine is not required on the SA Veterinary Services website at www.nda.agric.za/vetweb. If the country you are looking for does not appear on this list, please contact Annar@nda.agric.za : Phone +27 21 319 7405. Arrangement and reservation for quarantine has to be made with the Quarantine Master. The Quarantine Master has to complete the relevant part of the application form, after which the application form may be submitted to the permit office for processing. The necessary application form must be printed out, filled in, and faxed to +27 21 329 8292 accompanied by a payment of R60.00 (Approx.US$5.50)., and this should be done at least a month in advance of arrival.

State Vet Durban: (031) 466 5810
Stae Vet Cape Town: (021) 551 2050

If the animal requires quarantine this is usually 30 days .......... alternatively the animal must be kept on board at all times.

EXACT POSITIONING WHEN COASTING
By using a sextant and horizontal angles. Take three shore marks as widely seperated as possible, and measure the angles between them. On a sheet of tracing paper make a dot to represent ship's position and lay off the angles from it using great care. If the paper is then laid on the chart and shuffled around until the three lines cut the shore marks, the ship's position can then be pricked through the dot with a point of the dividers. (SAIL AFRICA)

LOOK ASTERN
When coasting in well-buoyed waters, look astern often, both to check on course being made good and to familiarize with the appearance of the buoyage from a different angle.You may have to return by that route some day. Look astern as often as you look ahead when on watch. In miserable weather one tends to huddle in a fixed position. (SAIL AFRICA)

ASSESSING LEEWAY
If a sheet of paper can be 'laid' in the water so that it floats flat instead of blowing away, it can be seen for some distance as it is left astern. This provides a useful mark for back bearing which can be compared with couse steered in determining leeway made. (SAIL AFRICA)

DOG - BARK NAVIGATION
(Echo timing): The use of a reliable echoe from steep cliffs, buildings etc. in fog can give rough distance off. An echoe is the period in time taken for a sound made aboard (bell, fog horn or gun, etc.) to reach the shore and be bounched back again. the time is converted into distance with the formula .09 x time = distance off in miles. Sound travels at about 1,100ft per second or .18 miles per second and so the distance off is one half the total distance travelled by the sound wave. For a rough quick estimate one can multiply the total time in seconds by .9. An even rougher guide is 10sec = 1 mile. Fog can distort or soften an echoe and wind can also render the meathod valueless. (SAIL AFRICA)

DISTANCE OF HORIZON

Height of eye in feet	0.8	3	7	12	19	27	4
horizon in nautical miles	1.0	2	3	4	5	6	8

(SAIL AFRICA)

SPEED OF DEPRESSIONS
In forecaster's terminology:
Slowly: 0-15knots
Steadily: 15-25knots
Rather quickly: 25-35knots
Rapidly: 35-45knots
Very rapidly: over 45knots
When at sea and considering a bolt for nearest shelter it is important to know the expected speed of a low and it's direction relative to own position. Shelter may be too far away for the time available; for example, a low centred 200 miles away and closing at 40 knots gives just over 5 hrs: 25 miles at a possible 5 knots. (SAIL AFRICA)

BAROMETER RATE
.06 inches in 3 hours: storm impending
.15 inches in 3 hours: strong storm
.30 inches in 3 hours: extreme storm
(to convert to milibars: pressure in inches x 33.86). (SAIL AFRICA)

HIGH LAND SQUALLS
When anchored close under high land look out for squalls. the cold upper air of mountain slopes seeks the lower level. (SAIL AFRICA)

ONSHORE WIND
(Meeting a cliff): In rising over the cliff the turbulance and loss of strength can be felt at up to 7 times the height of the cliff (if it is sheer) to seaward. Wind will funnel into a cove with increased strength. (SAIL AFRICA)

OFFSHORE WIND
(Coming over a cliff): The shelter effect extends up to 30 times the height of the cliff seaward. (SAIL AFRICA)

GOING BACK ABOARD AT NIGHT
If the yacht is anchored with open sea beyond her, and to leeward of her, beware the return aboard with a following breeze and at night. The breeze can be stronger than you think and impossible to row against with a full load should you overshoot or fail to grab hold safely. Make an experimental turn back upwindwhile still well upwind of the anchored yacht; only carry as many people in the dinghy as will allow you to row upwind. To go along side, turn the dinghy head to wind before dropping down on the yacht stern first. This also applies to strong, fair tidal current conditions. Don't rely 100 per cent on an outboard motor. At night always have anchor, bailer and torch aboard. (SAIL AFRICA)

HUG A BIGHT, SHUN A POINT
A London river pilotage saying. When working a sailing vessel up a tide, the bays and inlets are followed tight round to take advantage of back eddies while points are given a wide berth because the current runs harder than them. (SAIL AFRICA)

WEATHER JINGLES
If the sun goes pale to bed, rain tomorrow it is said.
Evening red, morning grey, help the sailor on his way.
Evening grey and morning red brings down rain upon his head.
Clouds like rocks and towers, look for squalls and showers.
Pale moon doth rain, red moon doth blow, white moon doth neither rain nor snow.
Rain before wynd sheets and halyards mind
Wynd before rain set topsail again.
First rise after low then expect a stronger blow.
Mackeral skies and mares' tails, tall ships carry low sails.
Long foretold long last, short warning soon past.
When soung travels far and wide a stormy day will like betide. (SAIL AFRICA)

If your stainless - steel cleats, stanchions and other topside hardware are rusting and difficult to maintain, use ajax, Zud, Bon Ami, comet, or another such abrasive - based cleaner as a polish. Rinse well after use; then coat with auto paste wax. (SAIL AFRICA)

If you are cleaning teak with a powder - type brightener, but the wind blows it away as fast as you can sprinkle, pour it into a bowl and add some water to create a sort of syrup and then it will stay where you put it. (SAIL AFRICA)

Now and then, take allof your fibre sheets, guys , halyards and dock lines to a laundromat. Give them a good washing and thorough rinse. They will not only come out bright and clean but supple and they'll last longer. Be sure to remove all shakels though or they'll beat the hell out of the washer, dry the lines in fresh air - not in a dryer. (SAIL AFRICA)

To reseal a gun - type tube of caulking compound to preserve the remaining contents and to prevent the nozzle from jamming with hardened compound, turn a machine screw into the nozzle hole. The screw should be slightly larger than the hole. (SAIL AFRICA)

If you're having trouble keeping your turnbuckles, anchor shakles, rudder pintles and hatch hinges lubricatedno matter how often you spray them with "magic slick"....try using water - pump grease. It seems to old up forever. (SAIL AFRICA)

Speaking of grease, during your next haulout, polish your propeller; then give it a coating of teflon grease. No living critter can hold onto this stuff, so once the screw begins to turn, even barnacles let go. (SAIL AFRICA)

Every now and then, pour a shot of cooking oil or break fluid (hydraulic oil) into your marine toilet, especially if it's difficult to pump. This will lubricate the seals, "o" rings, and moving parts. This will improve the toilet's operation dramatically and reduce repairs. Do not use lube oil. (SAIL AFRICA)