Update on my Drammer 935 Classic yacht: List of accessories I bought

Also got a dry bag, which will be our grab bag. The idea is you keep all your valuables, (passports, wallets, ship papers, licenses etc) in this bag.

BHPian Jeroen recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

These days almost all small vessels, motor yachts, sailing yachts and even small sloops tend to have a bow thruster. I will say that by and large most owners rely on their bow thruster way too much. I always say the sound of the bow thruster is a sign of incompetence. You should be able to control your boat, without it too.

Having said that, it is very convenient and these small boats are very susceptible to wind and currents, so it does help in close-quarter manoeuvring. But any skipper worth his/her salt will always try to use bow (and stern) thruster to the minimum.

Just some more updates on what we have been doing. My wife and I also visited a nearby ship Chandler. This is one of the largest, if not the largest ship chandler catering for pleasure crafts we have in the Netherlands. So it's a bit like a candy store for the recreational skippers such as me! But bring a credit card, because nothing is cheap here!!

One of the things we wanted was a life jackets. Ad left us several. But they are old, although never used. But they are not very comfortable to wear and I also need to overhaul them.

I had visited this store before and the sales guy had shown me all the various life jackets. He also told me: never to buy a life jacket without trying it on. Bring your crew and let everybody choose one that fits him/her best.

So me and Mrs D, showed up and sure enough he recognized me: I see you brought the crew!

When it comes to life Jackets there are a few variants. Self-inflating or not. We went with self-inflating. When you fall overboard, the jacket will self-inflate. For sea/ocean-going use the life jacket might also be equipped with a special hook to attach a safety line. We don't need that.

All these life jackets, adult size, will produce at least 150N buoyancy. Which is adequate to keep a full-sized adult with his/her head out of the water. Technically, it is all one size fits all. But we found differences between the various makes. In the end, Mrs D chose hers and I chose mine and then we took an extra one of each. So we got four new life jackets, two variants in terms of fit.

We also got a smaller version for the grandchildren!

I got several nautical presents for Christmas from our kids.

I got a little book about knots. I do know a few knots, but I really need to brush up on my knot-tying skills and so does Mrs. D. So I took one of the ropes home with me, so we can practice our knot-tying skills in the weeks to come.

I am also immensely pleased with this Christmas present from Mrs. D. Well, I found it and bought it. It is a Steiner Navigator 7x50 binoculars, with build in compass.

I always wanted one of these. Last year after we bought Sirion, I started looking for a pair. I found a shop that specialised in two things, walking shoes and binoculars. I also happened to need a new pair of walking shoes. If you recall my thread about our big hike in Crete, my old pair was done for.

I met with the owner who spent about an hour and a half talking to me. I was very lucky as he had just traded in this pair of Steiner. So I got it really cheap!!

Another "must have" for anybody with a boat, is a large knife. There are situations where you might have to slash a rope in a hurry. This one will be kept at the ready next to the steering stand.

I witnessed an almost very nasty accident in one of the many locks here in the Netherlands. A small yacht, similar to ours, came into the lock. You never tie up in a lock, you keep the ropes in your hands. This yacht was also owned and run by a couple, similar in age as we are. They did everything correctly, but the water in the lock dropped very quickly, one line got tangled and got stuck. Which meant the boat was starting to be lifted out of the water. The guy ran inside the cabin, grabbed his knife and managed to cut the line. Just in time!!

When we were in Barbados earlier this year, I also got myself a proper pennant of the Bridgetown yacht club. We have been (temporary) members for more than forty years. I still need to get the pennant from our home marina too. Both will be hung on our little mast permanently.

Another Christmas present from one of our kids; a proper yachts log book.

Quite empty still!! But we have big ambitions to start filling these pages from mid-March onwards!!

Also got a dry bag, which will be our grab bag. The idea is you keep all your valuables, (passports, wallets, ship papers, licenses etc) in this bag. If anything major happens you just "grab" this bag and leave the rest!

I have also spent a lot of time, re-organising and updating some of the boat's documentation and papers.

I have made two small plastic binders. One will contain all the ship drawings and a few copies of several pages out of several manuals. Basic stuff that you need to have handy all the time.

Ad had made these excellent inventory lists. Very useful and handy. He has also provided me with the original Excel and Word files of all the drawings and documents he made. So I can easily update and maintain them.

I have also had to update several of my personal papers and licenses. The radio license has been transferred from Ad to me as well. I keep copies of everything onboard. Some of the papers, in particular the radion licenses, need to be kept on the boat and only the original will do. Hefty fines apply if you can't produce the correct paperwork.

Still waiting on my RYA Radio Certificate and a new VAT declaration. (which is a requirement when crossing the border.

Another relevant certificate that needs to be onboard; the gas certificate. The cooker/oven works on gas. I have shown the gas bottle locker and the new hose and reducer. As part of the certification, a guy checked out the complete system. This is just the front page of a report of 27 pages, certifying the gas installation on Sirion!

I always have notebooks for everything. I love my little notebooks. All my notebooks are from Moleskine. Made famous as Hemmingway apparently, used them.

I have also been experimenting with various apps for planning our trips. I have bought one I like. It plans your trip based on the draught of your boat and your height. It provides you with all relevant information on all waterways. So for instance the size of locks, height of bridges, notices to vessels etc etc.

Very useful.

Read BHPian comments for more insights and information.