Practical Guide to La Rochelle
Click here for a link to some of our lessons from picking up in La Rochelle.
Click here for a link to some of our lessons from picking up in La Rochelle.
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Apps
We have set up an iPad pro to use as our boat device and it sits at the nav station. We have one screen with all of the apps and links we use on a regular basis for sailing and navigating. Here are the main ones. Volvo Penta Dealer Locator
This one came in pretty handy to find a service agent for our first engine service that is recommended at between 40-60 hours. It's basically to change the oil for the engine and transmission and check everything. Finding someone close to a marina in a town that is on your way to where you are going to be when you think you will have used the engines for that time can be a challenge. This app shows you your options and helps plan and make contact in advance. Probably best if you plan to stay in a marina and the staff will help you coordinate with the workshop. Navily
This app shows both anchorages and marinas, you can use it to book some marinas and if you plug in the details of your yacht you might be able to get an idea of price. There is no longer a surcharge although the quoted price may be quite different to what the marina will quote directly, particularly if they are not too busy. People post reviews of both anchorages and marinas and its nice to add to those if you can as a lot of them are from French sailors, originally written in French and the translations are dodgy. It can be difficult to sift through reviews to find factual information though and many of the reviews are quite negative. More recently we have preferred to use the noforeignland website (see below). Nebo
A social network site where you can set up a profile, friend with both land and water based folk, track your journey, add photos, stats and share your location. Each day they email you with your daily log. It did crash on me 2.5 days into the Bay of Biscay trip, as well as crossing from Balearics to Sardinia, which was a shame, and you do have to remember to start it as you fire up the engines, and of course turn it off when you drop anchor. Marine Traffic
This is a handy one to see what boats are around you, or where your mates are, based on AIS. It shows the country of registration and details of each vessel. Its free to set up an account and just add your own boat to your fleet. Shipfinder is another similar app. VictronConnect
Our battery monitor has a blue tooth function that will allow you to monitor your battery state from your iPhone or iPad. Very handy to look at first thing in the morning after being at anchor overnight. VictronToolkit Another Victron App which tells you what the sequence of LED flashing lights on your controller mean. That is helpful, however even once you know that you have a "temperature sensor error" you still don't know what to do about it or what it means... Anchor
This app is an anchor alarm which can tell you if you are dragging or not. It takes a bit of getting used to but basically at the moment you drop your anchor you hit the "anchor" button to put a pin in the map exactly where it hits the bottom. Then you decide based on the amount of chain you put out, conditions, boats around you etc what circumference you are safely able to swing through. If you dip outside of this a (very loud!) alarm will go off (particularly if you went for the BOSE upgrade and you are connected to Fusion!). It uses the GPS on your phone so accuracy may vary and it does suck the battery. It can send an email to another phone in case you are not on the boat, but you would need to leave the primary phone (or iPad) on board. It is also quite annoying if you forget that it is on and you take your phone ashore. It will go off in the RIB... More recently we have shifted to using the anchor alert on the Garmin system which will allow you to set the desired range and alert you if you go outside this. We are not yet aware if this has a remote alert function. Active Captain
This is Garmin's app and it is great for planning on the chart, you can also control the helm from it as well (and freak out the person on watch...) Importantly though you can do your software updates using the app. Put a blank SD card into the card reader on the Garmin at the helm, connect the app to the internet to download the software updates, then connect the app to the helm station and download the updates. Works a treat so far! |
Websites
Noforeignland is map based social networking website and a fantastic resource for finding anchorages and local information in cruising grounds the world over. The site has been developed by cruisers for cruisers with contributions coming in real time from people who are out there living the dream. It can also help you record your journey and share your location with friends and family and connect with fellow cruisers. Sailing Yacht Eight (Skipper Robert Verboon) has some incredible technical information which has been very useful in designing backup systems and handy modifications. Orange France for topping up the Orange Holiday SIM. Noonsite which is an online cruisers forum. Create a login so you can add comments. This one is useful if you find yourself without a pilot for an area, or to supplement the pilot. It is sorted by country and region. It does not seem to cover anchorages, mainly marinas but has good info on formalities. In Italy Pagine Azzurre is a good reference for marinas. It's only in Italian but google translate can help here. Blogs
We enjoy following Starry Horizons on their world tour in their Helia 44. Out Chasing Stars is a great source of information and great to share Amy and David's knowledge and travels. Ana and John on SV The Dream, who we met in Tunisia, have been a great source of information particularly on formalities of checking in and checking out of various locations and countries. If you have a dog you must follow these guys. Everyone has a different experience of cruising. Shelley and Jill (SV Eucalyptus) were relative novices when they started out. They have taken a leap of faith to follow their dreams and their insights give a fresh perspective on cruising life. Sailing Yacht Eight has some a great website with excellent technical resources capturing those handy "boat jobs" we all love so much! Facebook Groups
Women who sail the Med A women's only group where women can ask questions and share information in a safe and supportive environment. Med Sailing General group where people ask for recommendations and offer information about anchorages, scams, technical stuff, bureaucracy etc. Aussies and Kiwi sailors in the Med Similar to the above but also making social connections with the like minded Antipodeans. Fountaine Pajot Owners Forum Some great sharing of tips, tricks, hacks and advice on how other owners have set up and managed their yachts. Watch out for comments from Cote Mar, the guru of all things FP from an owners perspective. We have used alot of his tips and advice. |
