Navigation on Maja
We navigate a 1982 Nauticat 38 with a full Garmin system — and, on top of that, Orca.
The idea is simple: keep the instruments that already work. Add a modern planning and control layer we can use in the pilothouse, in the bunk, and on deck. The Orca system gives us a more modern way of navigation, and maybe most important, it gives us redundancy!
This page is the hub. Articles and videos are added as we install, sail and live with the system.
Honesty first
We used the Orca app on Maja before any hardware arrived, and before we had any contact with Orca Technologies. We liked the app, so we asked Orca if we could try the Core.
Orca later sent us a Core 2. They do not approve our videos or this text. If we later receive a Display 2, we will say so here on the same day.
Links to getorca.com on this site are affiliate links. You pay the same price. We may receive a commission.
What is already on Maja (Garmin)
Everything below sits on one NMEA 2000 network.
Displays
- GPSMAP 7412xsv — pilothouse (Wheelhouse)
- GPSMAP 922xs Plus — aft deck (Aft deck)
Autopilot
- Reactor 40
- GHC 20 control head
Radar
- GMR 18 xHD
Instruments and sensors
- GNX 20
- GNX Wind
- GND 10
- GST 10
- Intelliducer thru-hull
- MSC-10 satellite compass
We are not ripping this out to replace it with Orca. Orca sits beside it, to give a better experience and to give redundancy.
Heading and “crabbing”
Before the MSC-10, the plotter crabbed on the chart. These two short videos are the Garmin chapter of that story. When Core 2 is online we will say which heading source we actually use.
Chartplotter Crabbing? Fix for Garmin!
Garmin MSC10 Unboxing | Will It Stop The Crabbing?
What we are adding (Orca)
| Layer | Role on Maja | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Orca app | Charts, routing, weather, planning | In use |
| Orca Core 2 | NMEA 2000 bridge, GPS, compass, instruments and autopilot to the app | On board — install and test next |
| Orca Display 2 | Sunlight-readable deck / helm screen | Not on board |
In this series
- The Orca app — how we plan and navigate (coming)
- Orca Core 2 — the box on a Garmin Nauticat (coming)
- Installation — NMEA 2000, placement, first data (coming)
- Living with it — after real passages (coming)
- Display 2 — only if it arrives (coming)
- FAQ — plotter, radar, heading, subscription (coming)
Each article gets its own YouTube embed when the matching video exists. This hub stays short.
Who this is for
Owners our age with a working plotter and instruments who want better planning — without buying a whole new electronics stack.
Who this is not for
Anyone who wants one fixed plotter and nothing else. If that is you, keep what you have.
YouTube
Long versions: Sailing Maja.
Orca appears when it is the job — not in every title.