CATEGORIES

Slow boat through the mountains
Practical Boat Owner

Slow boat through the mountains

James Wood discovers the joys and challenges of narrow boating in the Brecon Beacons

time-read
10+ mins  |
March 2023
Azores and back THE SCENIC ROUTE
Practical Boat Owner

Azores and back THE SCENIC ROUTE

Phil Taylor dusts off the charts and turns a winter dream into reality after overhauling his Sabre 27 for a bluewater cruising adventure

time-read
10+ mins  |
March 2023
17-20ft POCKET CRUISERS
Practical Boat Owner

17-20ft POCKET CRUISERS

Whether you're moving on from dinghies, or downsizing to a boat that's fun without being a financial millstone, here's a trailer-sailer market guide

time-read
10+ mins  |
March 2023
The Maxi with the most
Practical Boat Owner

The Maxi with the most

Why has the Maxi 84 proved so popular since her launch 45 years ago? David Harding sailed Maximus, the 'work in progress' refurbished PBO Project Boat, to find out

time-read
10 mins  |
March 2023
Working boats for leisure
Practical Boat Owner

Working boats for leisure

Strong and often cheap, retired working boats make good leisure vessels if you don’t mind fettling to repurpose them

time-read
3 mins  |
March 2023
Rudder bother
Practical Boat Owner

Rudder bother

You know something's up when you're going round in circles with the tiller straight ahead

time-read
3 mins  |
March 2023
Beachcombing
Practical Boat Owner

Beachcombing

How wrecking became a fine art on the dangerously rocky Isles of Scilly

time-read
3 mins  |
March 2023
Plastic classics
Practical Boat Owner

Plastic classics

A vintage boat doesn't win the same admiration as an elderly car - but it should!

time-read
3 mins  |
March 2023
UK drops National Flagship plans
Practical Boat Owner

UK drops National Flagship plans

The Ministry of Defence and Defence Equipment & Support has suspended the design procurement process for the new National Flagship.

time-read
1 min  |
March 2023
Marine micro-organisms mission
Practical Boat Owner

Marine micro-organisms mission

Every day in every boatyard, marina and port the cleaning of hulls, slipways and marine infrastructure kills billions of marine micro-organisms – all vital for sustaining wildlife and the food chain all the way up to human beings.

time-read
1 min  |
March 2023
Invitation to female offshore passagemakers
Practical Boat Owner

Invitation to female offshore passagemakers

The adventure company 59° North Sailing has announced that it will now reserve two bunks for women on its offshore sailing passages.

time-read
1 min  |
March 2023
'Ordinary crew' wanted for global sailing race
Practical Boat Owner

'Ordinary crew' wanted for global sailing race

The organiser of the 2023 Ocean Globe Race, Don McIntyre, is looking for crew to sail with him in the round-the-world race.

time-read
1 min  |
March 2023
My near-miss up a mast
Practical Boat Owner

My near-miss up a mast

A transatlantic sailor has told of her ordeal after a gust knocked her off the mast, jamming her harness, and swinging her repeatedly into the rigging.

time-read
3 mins  |
March 2023
Worrying times for UK's seabirds
Practical Boat Owner

Worrying times for UK's seabirds

The UK is currently experiencing its worst-ever outbreak of avian flu, commonly known as bird flu.

time-read
3 mins  |
March 2023
Post-Covid cruising in Greece
Practical Boat Owner

Post-Covid cruising in Greece

After two and a half years John Woolf returns to his Carambola 38 in Greece and spends three weeks getting her seaworthy again

time-read
6 mins  |
December 2022
A flood of costs and a trickle of cash
Practical Boat Owner

A flood of costs and a trickle of cash

Andy Pag attempts to rebuild a Spectra watermaker on a budget

time-read
7 mins  |
December 2022
As darkness falls
Practical Boat Owner

As darkness falls

Mike Humphreys risks grounding his Halcyon 23 in fading light to assist two teenagers stuggling with a capsized dinghy

time-read
8 mins  |
December 2022
A cruise on the French Riviera
Practical Boat Owner

A cruise on the French Riviera

Owen Moorhouse leaves the wilds of the New South Wales coastline to explore from Nice to Grimaud and back in a borrowed Jeanneau 33

time-read
6 mins  |
December 2022
Time, tide and the Thames
Practical Boat Owner

Time, tide and the Thames

Unlike Arthur Ransome’s story, Trevor Cherrett really did mean to take his boat to sea but it didn't quite work out that way

time-read
9 mins  |
December 2022
A yacht called Alice
Practical Boat Owner

A yacht called Alice

Nicholas Bielby had always had a yen for steel-hulled yachts, so when the opportunity came up to own one that had survived being hit by a tanker, he couldn't resist developing her as a comfortable, family cruiser

time-read
7 mins  |
December 2022
Would you cross an ocean in this?
Practical Boat Owner

Would you cross an ocean in this?

Andrew Bedwell is preparing a world record attempt to cross the Atlantic in a 3ft 10in boat Ali Wood meets him at Southampton Boat Show

time-read
5 mins  |
December 2022
Dufour 32
Practical Boat Owner

Dufour 32

Peter Poland reports on the new 32-footer that reflects the many changes made down the years in the designs and dimensions of production cruising yachts

time-read
8 mins  |
December 2022
A buoyant boat market?
Practical Boat Owner

A buoyant boat market?

Peter Poland assesses how new boats at the Southampton International Boat Show reflect the current state of the sail and power markets

time-read
10+ mins  |
December 2022
Bigger Luggers
Practical Boat Owner

Bigger Luggers

Designed to be a safe family boat for coastal trios, the Drascombe and Devon Luggers have taken intrepid sailors on some long sea passages

time-read
5 mins  |
December 2022
A magical day
Practical Boat Owner

A magical day

Looking back over the year, one very special sail stands out: the day of the dolphins

time-read
3 mins  |
December 2022
Sail souvenirs
Practical Boat Owner

Sail souvenirs

Reaching down memory lane in the Big Shed

time-read
3 mins  |
December 2022
A confusion of Daves
Practical Boat Owner

A confusion of Daves

If in any doubt, just shout \"No, Dave!\"

time-read
3 mins  |
December 2022
Dream job?
Practical Boat Owner

Dream job?

Let's face it, sailing's hard enough work without having to work while you're sailing

time-read
3 mins  |
September 2022
First evidence of GRP boats' impact on aquatic organisms
Practical Boat Owner

First evidence of GRP boats' impact on aquatic organisms

Microscopic analysis of oysters, mussels and sediment from Chichester Harbour has uncovered a dizzying number of glass fibres linked back to boatyards and derelict vessels.

time-read
10+ mins  |
September 2022
Tense shortcut
Practical Boat Owner

Tense shortcut

A stone-lined hole or a 60-mile hike around one of Britain's least hospitable headlands?

time-read
3 mins  |
September 2022