Essential Boat Gear and Spares

There are dozens of gear checklists to be found on the internet and in cruising books. These are a mixture of my experience and some of the aforementioned lists.

For all boats

• Drain Plugs
• Paddles, Oars
• Greater than the legal number of life preservers and throwable cushions, crew + guests
• Anchors, warp, chain, shackles; take enough line to allow a scope of 4 to 7 times the depths you'll be voyaging.
• If a large boat, enough line to tie both fore & aft ends to shore anchors in a squall.
• Docking & locking Lines, fenders, shock cordage
• Red/green & white running lights, anchor light
• Flashlight, spotlight or searchlight
• Spare batteries & bulbs
• Pressurized canned air horn, plastic trumpet fog horn, whistle, 7 x 50 binoculars
• Manual Bilge pump, large sponge, plastic bucket
• Pocket knife, screwdrivers, pliers, sandpaper, tape measure
• Boat registration, pencils, paper, matches or lighter, dry storage box, maps, charts, guide books, compass
• First Aid kit (see below) , extra set of prescription glasses, sun glasses
• Tarps, line & rubber tie-downs, rain coat, boat shoes or tennis shoes

For Boats with engines & 12 volt batteries

• Jumper cables, electrical tape, liquid rubber, fuses, electrical wire, connectors, wire cutter & stripper, WD-40, cheap voltmeter
• Needle-nose pliers, spark-plug wrench, prop wrench, vise-grips, adjustable wrench, wrench sets (metric?)
• Stainless-steel: hose clamps, nuts & bolts, & screws assortments
• Fuel line, clamps, male & female connectors, rubber primer bulb, fuel filter, fuel transfer hose & primer
• Spark-plugs, belts, prop for outboard, prop nut & washers, shear pins, cotter pins
• Oil & oil filter for inboards, oil mix for outboards, plastic funnel with mesh filter, measuring beaker for oil mix, mix ratio tables
• (2) spare 5 or 6 gallon fuel cans, one for each hand, for those cussed times when you under estimate fuel needs or the marina is closed or out of fuel.
• If engine can't recharge the battery(s), take 10 amp charger to use overnight at marinas, battery tester

For Sailboats

• Sail Repairing kit- patches, needles, thread, palm, tape
• Beeswax, waxed twine, spare line/rope of all sizes aboard
• Rigging knife, marlinspike, fids, pusher, chafing tape, whipping cord or sealant, matches or lighter
• Spare turnbuckles, sail slides, shackles, thimbles, rings
• Spare winch handle, battens, blocks, cotter & clevis pins
• Safety Harness & line

First Aid & Comforts Afloat

General Comforts & Problem Prevention

• Always take enough high SPF sunscreen to last weeks longer than you expect the voyage to take. Sun hats that you use on the farm or to mow grass will probably blow away on the open water without a chin strap. Sunbrella? makes a complete line of specialized treated fabric clothing and hats for extended sun exposure. Khaki or white is a good color for reflecting heat. If your sun hat gets lost, take a light colored towell or rag and place it under an ordinary bill cap in such a way that your ears & back of the neck are covered, then tuck it into the top collar of a shirt to hold it down...sort of an arabic hat. In the '50's, when we boys spent all day, every day, all summer, on the river, we had really cool-looking tans. I go to the skin cancer doctor twice a year now to have it cut away as it surfaces. Oh yeah, don't forget the sunglasses, and an extra pair of prescription glasses in case of a "glasses overboard" incident.



• Avoid any vines while onshore. Take a couple of bottles of Calamine Lotion for those vines you didn't see. After you put it on, stop scratching, or it'll surely get worse. Keep using it for three days, morning, noon and night, or till the bumps go away.



• Assume mosquitos will be active anywhere you pull in for the night, including marinas, and take more mosquito netting than you and your guests could possibly use. Mosquito repellants aren't that great, at least for me, so I try to get in the cabin or a netted area after encountering even one of the little buggers. I bought and have used a combination hat & bugscreen - see military surplus stores. The wind is your friend when it comes to mosquitos, but brings it's own set of problems instead.



• Plain old Bayer aspirin will help your aches and pains, whether they're in your bones, your head or your teeth. I try and take some left over "pain pills" from past doctor visits for a real pain filled emergency.



• Constipation can ruin a trip, and even hospitalize you if not taken care of. Take a teaspoon of mineral oil a day, some high fiber fruits, and a drugstore laxative along just in case. Diarrhea can also mess up a good trip, take some Kaopectate or similar medicine along.



• If you don't already have them, I highly advise you to order specialized tweezers for tick removal from Forest Products Supply catalogs. These are plastic, with a magnifying glass and tapered tweezers to remove any size tick, and they WORK! beautifully.



• Antifungal, antibacterial, decongestant, seasick pills, band-aides, gauze, tape & scissors, tweezers, thermometer, magnifying glass, hydrogen peroxide, iodine, petroleum jelly, elastic bandage for wrapping sprains, cotten balls, snake kit