GPS Receiver

I've got a 1-year-old Toshiba laptop running XP. It has only USB port connections - no DB9 connections found in the older laptops. This has caused a problem with interfacing the boat's GPS's with the laptop, which is running CMap 4.

On Tuesday I purchased a GPS receiver (No brand, part number BU-353) that is in the shape of a flying saucer about 25mm in diameter. It is heavily magnitised and can also be attached with a suction cup. It has a USB connector.

After two hours of fiddling I got the system to work. The receiver sends NMEA-0183 sentences to the laptop. A driver supplied with the receiver manages the USB port in the laptop. CMap 4 was configured to look for the data at the particular port (com4: in my case).

The receiver performs as advertised. It had no trouble acquiring satellites from inside a house with a tile roof, or on a shelf at the navigation table inside Pachuca. It achieves fixes in amazingly short time.

On Pachuca CMap 4 displayed the location of the boat at the 11th double-boat bay of the NE side of D jetty. We checked and sure enough Pachuca is in the 11th bay from the end.

The unit cost me $129 AUD (i.e. Aussie dollars).

I've also ordered a USB-DB9 conversion cable to attempt to connect the Trimble NT200D GPS to the laptop. I figure that redundancy is worth the $49 AUD cost of the cable.

The next task is to visit the PC shop and get a transformer to allow me to run the PC off the boat's 12V system.

List of things to do or get

This is a list of things to do or get given the current state of the boat, equipment on hand, and gaps in my knowledge. Some of the items are trivial (e.g. steering wheel cover), and some are major (e.g. wind generator) - Robert

Circumnavigation "To Do" Check List - V1.0
TASK	COMPLETED	COMMENT
Install sound system
Book case for large books
Lee cloth for port cabin bunk
Lee rails for quarter berths
Tool storage and work area
Water maker
Wind Generator
Replace cushion in stbd quarter berth
Lightning protection for boat
Get oven to work
Laptop with C-Map 4 and GPS input
Modern EPIRB for boat
Personal EPIRBs
Survival suits
4-man life raft
Select cruising anchor
Mainsail roller slides and track lubrication
New jib sheets
Storm trysail
Drogue
Install stb Whale Gusher bilge pump
Radar?
Rail spray dodgers
Outboard motor cover
Steering wheel cover
Replace companionway spray dodger
First aid course		Robert and Arnold
Medical Kit		Advice from Arnold
Learn to use Pachuca's spinnakers
Conversational Spanish and French		Robert - and Arnold?
Courtesy flags of likely host countries[1]
Learn about Diesel engines
Diesel spares
Steering: How it works, spares
Emergency steering lever
Visas and visiting protocols
Communications: e-mail
Communications: Weather fax
Fishing Gear
Lifeline down centre line of boat
Robust radar reflector (or transponder)

---

[1]

Robert Morales:
NZ, French, US, Panama, Peru?, Chile?, British, South Africa

Circumnavigation Plan V2.5

Note: I have been forced to change the template of this blog to get enough log display width to accommodate the entire circumnavigation plan - Robert

Pachuca's Circumnavigation Plan V2.5
From	To	Dist Nm	Sailing Days[1]	Stop Over Days	Total Travel Days[2]	Depart Date	Arrival Date	Core Storm Season	Avg Speed in Knots[3]
Fremantle	Adelaide	1360	20	3	23	01-Mar-08	21-Mar-08		2.78
Adelaide	Port Phillip[4]	540	8	3	11	24-Mar-08	01-Apr-08		2.78
Port Phillip	Whangarei NZ	1600	24	7	31	04-Apr-08	28-Apr-08	Jan-Mar (Nov-May)[5]	2.78
Whangarei [6]	Tahiti	2600	39	7	46	05-May-08	13-Jun-08		2.78
Tahiti	Honolulu	2600	39	7	46	20-Jun-08	29-Jul-08	Jul-Sep (May-Nov)[7]	2.78
Honolulu	Juan De Fuca[8]	2290	34	58	92	05-Aug-08	08-Sep-08	Jul-Sep (May-Nov)	2.78
Juan de Fuca	San Diego	1100	17	3	20	05-Nov-08[9]	22-Nov-08	Jul-Sep (May-Nov)	2.78
San Diego	Galapagos	2513	38	3	41	25-Nov-08	02-Jan-09		2.78
Galapagos	Valparaiso[10]	2229	33	3	36	05-Jan-09	07-Feb-09		2.78
Valparaiso	Cape Horn[11]	1800	27	0	27	10-Feb-09	09-Mar-09		2.78
Cape Horn	Falklands	435	7	3	10	09-Mar-09	16-Mar-09		2.78
Falklands	Cape Town	4320	43	7	50	19-Mar-09	01-May-09		4.17
Cape Town	Fremantle	4870	49	0	49	08-May-09	25-Jun-09		4.17
Avg Speed Knots	3.1
Distance Sailed Nm		28257
Days Under Sail			378
Lay Days				104
Days Away					482

---

[1]

Robert Morales:
Assumptions:
1. Multiply sailing distance by 1.2
2. 80 nm per day travel
Except for Falklands-Cape Town-Fremantle legs where I assume 120 nm per day due to favourable current and winds

[2]

Robert Morales:
Includes port stay

[3]

Robert Morales:
This is speed over 1.2 x distance in col C

[4]

Robert Morales:
Near Melbourne

[5]

Robert Morales:
Parenthesis includes periods affected by early or late seasons.
The affected area includes: Fiji, Samoa, North island of NZ

[6]

Robert Morales:
NE coast of North island of New Zealand

[7]

Robert Morales:
"North East Pacific" but principally the west coasts of Mexico and California

[8]

Robert Morales:
Puget Sound/Seattle

[9]

Robert Morales:
That's 2 months in Seattle.
The 5th because it is the day after our birthday.

[10]

Robert Morales:
Callao, Peru (near Lima)? It is supposed to be the best anchorage on the Westen side of South Amierica

[11]

Robert Morales:
Best to round the Horn in Dec or Jan