Your Tru Design Specialists Talk About Why You Need a Great Boarding Ladder
Last year, we ran a review of a Union 36, and the opening photo of the boat featured a unique folding ladder that I hadn’t seen before. The ladder, instead of hanging vertically, folded out at a comfortable angle in a way that seemed—at least in the photo—pretty practical for routine boarding. I was curious how it worked in bouncy weather, and the owner of the boat, PS contributor Frank Lanier, assured me that the ladder, which came with the boat, was as good as any other he’d tried.
The trend toward sugar-scoop transoms on sailboats has reduced the need for boarding ladders, but owners of older boats like the Union 36 will likely need to retro-fit one. Our last boarding ladder test was in December 2002.
The boat I cruised on for many years, Tosca, was a double-ender with the same sort boarding of complications as the Union 36. A stern boarding ladder didn’t work. For a couple of ladder-less months after we bought the boat, we just shimmied up the bobstay when we went swimming.
Shocked at the prices for a stainless-steel ladder and wanting a permanent means of climbing aboard that a person in the water could use without assistance, we settled on a modification that you see on many catboats—folding steps drilled into the rudder (look for our Marshall 22 catboat review in November).
So keep in mind these suggestions when getting a portable boarding ladder. 1) You can buy a portable ladder for cheaper; 2) these are ladders you can use without assistance; and 3) they are easier to maintain.
Family boating at sea hear strange sound—shocked to see ‘black spot’ swimming towards them
A lot of people equate a great summer vacation with sea, sun, sand, and family. But for the Nikitina family, they got more than they bargained for on one fortuitous summer day, while out at sea.
The family was out sailing and swimming in the Black Sea when they recorded a rare incident. They had already sailed a distance away from the mainland and were passing nearby a remote, rocky island when they heard strange cries coming off from that direction.
Upon closer examination, they saw that it was a lone kitten stranded on the rocks near the shoreline, trying to get their attention. The family’s daughter, Natalia, recalled, “The sound gradually intensified.
The kitten was jumping from rock to rock in a desperate attempt to reach them. Natalia shared, “She jumped over the stony bank, following our voices. She jumped from stone to stone, and crossed the snags.”
In a daring bid to catch up with the family, the brave kitten then jumped into the water and swam towards them. Inspired by the kitten’s courage, two of the family members jumped into the water to grab the baby cat and take her aboard. When she reached the boat, the kitten was welcomed with open arms.
The family decided they could not abandon a cat who cried out to them for help, so they decided to adopt her and christened her with the name Aurora.
Poor Aurora was so lucky to have caught the attention of the Nikitina family on that day. She is now a daily source of cuteness for the family. It would not have been possible for the cat to survive alone on that island.
Order your TruDesign parts here at Raritan Engineering and see how Raritan Engineering provides you the best products in the marine sanitation industry today.
via In Search of the Perfect Boarding Ladder
via Family boating at sea hear strange sound—shocked to see ‘black spot’ swimming towards them