Month: November 2024

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Essential Gear to Bring on a Boating Trip

Essential gear to bring on a boating trip is like beauty – it depends on the eye of the beholder. You may not want to step off the dock without a double pack of light beer, while your wife would really like to take the kitchen sink. But probably there is a middle ground where we all can agree that some things are really necessary.

First of all, to be safe, every passenger should have true boating shoes. This term is not equivalent to sneakers, no matter how many cute little nautical flags are used for decoration. Boating shoes, in the modern, commercial sense, have grip pads or other carefully designed features on the soles to make them cling to wet, smooth surfaces. All boat decks are smooth, for maintenance reasons as well as for traditional ideas of beauty. All boat decks are very likely to get and/or stay wet.

Secondly, giving the nod to conventional medical wisdom, you should take sun screen. Hats may blow off, assuredly will interfere with letting the wind blow through your hair, and cannot help protect you from the glare off the surface of the water and the boat itself. You will probably be out for hours, so choose one with a high SPF factor. For those skeptical of the true protection of sun screens, take a spray bottle of dilute vitamin C, take extra CoQ10 for a few days before and a few after your excursion, and have some natural coconut oil along.

Clothes are up to you, depending of course on the season, but also on what you are doing. Rafting down a canyon river does not call for shorts and tank tops, because the water feels like ice all year. Wet suits come in all sizes for those active souls, but for the rear cabin of a yacht, shorts will be just fine.

However, foul weather gear should be somewhere in your immediate vicinity, so provide it if you ate the boat owner or check on it beforehand if you are a guest. Open water comes with wind, and being out longer than you expect will make day wear inadequate after sundown. Squalls on the Bay and thunderstorms inland can drench you in a minute. This rainproof outer clothing comes in traditional bright yellow slick to fashionable color coordinates, and can be merely a shell or fully lined for cold weather protection.

For safety, you will want to have on hand a floating flashlight, a way to contact the shore or the folks that stayed on land, a first aid kit with band-aids (great for blisters, if for nothing more serious), lots of water for keeping hydrated, food because raw fish gets old fast, and polarized sunglasses. Sunlight is intensified on the water, so give your eyes the protection they need. Lip balm may also be very welcome after a while.

Of course, there are many other great ideas: gloves to keep the canoe paddle from wearing away the skin on your hands, a personal flotation device (no longer needs to be blaze orange and bulky, or always under your chin), a strap to keep your sunglasses or goggles firmly in place, a folding ladder to let you swim off the boat and get back in, and fishing gear to let you catch dinner. Towel, good books, radios for music and news, good friends – all of these can make things afloat easier and more pleasant.

Essential gear to bring on a boating trip is what personal taste and common sense tell you. You can also check out boating experts, from friends to the US Coast Guard, for advice.

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Guide to Living Cheap – How to Choose Good and Cheap Restaurants

Every guide to living cheap should have a section on dining out.

There are special occasions that require we go out. That doesn’t mean you have to spend an arm and a leg. Nothing irritates me more than to go into an overpriced restaurant with poor food. It rarely happens today… you can avoid this as well if you follow some advice.

Guide to living cheap rule number one

Avoid restaurants that cater to tourists

You can be assured if a restaurant does not have a local base of customers they advertise heavily to attract visitors and tourists. Any restaurant you see advertising in those slick “free newspapers” or tourist magazines should be avoided.

They have to recoup the advertising some way and guess who is going to pay. Look for restaurants the locals patronize. Here’s a great way to find a good cheap restaurant in a strange town.

Guide to cheap living rule number two

Look for pickups parked outside

As a rule construction workers and tradesmen look forward to lunchtime and a good meal. They are not going to pay too much and they want large portions. Let these hardworking men and women be your guide to picking a good cheap restaurant. This tip rarely has failed us… if it works for you, pass it on.

Guide to cheap living rule number three

Ask the locals where they eat

Find a local you can relate to and ask him or her where they like to eat. Now just use common sense. Don’t ask the dude filling up his Porsche. Instead ask the bartender/barmaid at the motel. Maybe the nice clerk where you are shopping.

You know who looks approachable…go ahead…tell him or her you are looking for a good local restaurant, where they eat, with no tourists. This tip also is very reliable, especially if you hear the same place mentioned more than once.

Guide to living cheap rule number four

Eat early

If you eat dinner before 7PM your chances of finding a cheap good meal can increase. Lots of restaurants offer reduced menu prices from 4 PM to 6 or 7. It is good for them; it gets the kitchen going, good for you if you are a patron.

Another plus is if you dine early, you are likely driving home before dark. It is a sad fact that some drink and drive…better to be home when they are on the road.

Guide to living cheap rule number five

Use coupons

Look for local restaurants that advertise in local papers, the ones tossed on your driveway. Their target audience is the local populace not the tourists, see rule number one. They usually offer two for ones, sometimes early evening. Occasionally you will find something totally free. You can’t beat free.

Hope you have enjoyed the dining out tips for the guide to living cheap. You work hard for your money; don’t waste it on overpriced meals. Enjoy.

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Beginning Your RV Camping Experience

Camping can be a wonderful get-away from the boring daily routine. It’s a good way to discover many interesting places around our great country. If you are adventurous and love to take off and drive wherever the road takes you, you never know what you will find. If you have decided to buy your first camper or RV, take things slow. Shop around for one that is not too large or expensive. Find out as much as you can about your new purchase. Do some studying to learn how to hook up all the electric running lights and connections on the camper and tow vehicle or the RV. Next take a few trial runs in city driving and highway driving to get the feel for handling your camper.

Take just a few days for your first camping trip. Whether you want to stay at one place or try a different place everyday, make sure that you are familiar with all water and electrical connections at each campsite. There are many campground guidebooks and RV directories. Have a plan as to where you are going beforehand. That could save you a lot of stress later.

Try to get to the campground before dark, so you can clearly see how each space is set up. Also, make note of shower and bathroom and general store locations. Check into the office and find out about all their rules and regulations. Ask them if you can register for one night and then add another night for the next day if you decide to stay. This way you will be able to leave the next morning if this place does not work for you. Even if you will not be able to stay for another day for whatever reason, at least you will know if this place is a good or bad destination for you.

If you are planning to spend a long time at one place and use it as a base from which to visit many attractions in the area, you would be wise to learn everything you can about it. Even if it has a really good discount offer, it may not be worth it if you are having a terrible time there.

No matter what time of year it is, there are always good campgrounds all around the whole country. As we are moving into late fall and winter now, this may be the best time to take a trip. It will cooler up here in the north but warmer as you head south. There will probably be smaller crowds also.

Do your homework first and you can expect to have great time with many happy memories. Proper preparation can make your Rv motoring trips the stuff of dreams or when not properly prepared a travel nightmare.