Handling Trash and Garbage While Cruising

1. If you cruise to places far from marinas, carry with you a store of heavy duty sealable garbage (or leaf) bags so that you can store your stuff until you get to a place with garbage cans.

2. If you’re gone for a while and the stuff in the bag becomes a bit too smelly for your cockpit, put in it in the tender. (Make sure it’s secured well.)

3. If you’re gone for even longer (must be having fun) and the stuff in the bag becomes a bit too smelly for your tender, let out a longer scope of towing line. (We carry extra line for this.) Take care, though, not to let it get caught in your prop.

4. Trash compactors, as decadent as they may seem on a boat, are a great idea. If you’re like me and can’t afford one and don’t have room for one anyway, crush those empty cans and boxes before you put them in the garbage bag. That way you’ll have more room for garbage storage and can stay out longer. (You’ve just gotta remember to put on your shoes before you step on a can to crush it.)

5. Sometimes we’ll put left over foot scraps that will start smelling soon into plastic containers (such as yogurt or cottage cheese containers) that we can seal. We may even put these sealed containers in the freezer or refrigerator if we have really hot weather and we’re not going to be heading into a marina soon. Of course, this means that I have to pay really close attention when I get up in the middle of the night looking for a snack.

Copyright 2004-2009 Tom Neale