CATEGORIES

Remote paddling

The simplest vessels are so often the best

Mind how you go

It’s time to exorcise those mystic influences

Inland innovation

Wilf Lower relives a European inland adventure

Up a creek with no water to paddle

Mike Humphreys calls on his ingenuity and practical skills to rescue a family marooned on a mud bank by the falling tide

Small boats, big cruising

Rupert Holmes describes a selection of very capable small boats for cruising on a budget

God vakt!

Marsali Taylor recalls every detail of a day aboard the tall ship Sørlandet off the coast of Norway

Boat Electrics 101 course review

Nigel Calder and his team of marine electrics experts have hit the mark, says Rupert Holmes

How To Replace Worn Rudder Bushes

Hedley Ritchie shows how he changed the wobbly bushes on his transom-hung rudder to improve his Westerly Konsort’s steering

Viking adventure

Sam Griffiths and his dad camp out under the stars in a 12ft dinghy to enjoy the delights of an historic German waterway

Red herring

Seaspiracy is righteous rather than right

Restoring Andromeda

Clive Robertson swaps a London media career for four years in a boatyard and restores a wooden gaffer from scratch

Steam-bending a new toe rail

Greg Manning shows you how to laminate and steam a plank so that it can be to be bent across its width

The right look

Peter Poland tests the second-hand Swedish production powerboat that just looks ‘right’ to so many ex-sailors

Fleeing a volcanic eruption

Kia Koropp and family up-anchor and grab their face masks when a cloud of black ash descends on the Grenadines

Make or break situation

How you can get snookered when sailing

Old gaffer to Ushant

Max Liberson suffers concussion, ghostly apparitions and crew desertion on a tiring voyage to France

Fitting a new water tank gauge

Measuring your boat’s water capacity is essential for any cruiser, yet is surprisingly hard to get right, discovers Roger Hughes

Fast track to Yachtmaster

When Covid scuppers Josh Lindley’s gap year, he takes on a demanding 5-month sailing course instead to qualify as a skipper

SUNSEEKER MANHATTAN 55

How do you go about improving the most successful model you have ever made? That was the task facing Sunseeker in updating the 52 – has it succeeded?

XO 260 DSCVR

After a few years out of the spotlight, XO is back with a bullet-proof new sports boat that combines user-friendly features with laser-sharp handling

THE ITALIAN JOB

Thomas and Jutta Kittel push on round the bottom of Italy’s boot from Messina in Sicily opposite the toe to Manfredonia tucked under the heel’s spur on the Adriatic coast

GYRO WARS

Thanks to new owners Yanmar, Smartgyro’s latest range of efficient, easy-to-install and competitively priced gyroscopic stabilisers now has the firepower to challenge market leaders Seakeeper. Let battle commence

HOW TO USE A LIFEJACKET PROPERLY

Wearing a lifejacket is one of the most important things you can do to increase safety afloat but unless you wear and maintain it correctly, it won’t work as well as it’s meant to if and when you fall into the water. Any Personal Flotation Device (PFD) provides buoyancy that helps keep you afloat. This is measured in Newtons and for most PFDs starts at 50N. However, from 150N upwards it should be buoyant enough to turn you face up even when unconscious, greatly improving your chances of survival.

COBRA NAUTIQUE 9.2m

As buyers go crazy for outboard-propelled sports boats where does this leave the luxury RIB market? There’s no better way to find out than testing a fully kitted out Cobra in blustery conditions

THE ACCIDENTAL TOURISTS

Kelston and Jackie Tobin didn’t intend to circumnavigate Britain, but after cruising from Kent to the Solent they decided to keep on going

BUSINESS & PLEASURE

Stephen Hubbard is living proof that you can mix business with pleasure after buying a custom-built Cockwells then investing in the yard and restoring a Dunkirk Little Ship

BLUE'S FINAL FLING

Jack Haines delivers his verdict on the Ultra anchor and prepares to bid a fond farewell to Blues Away

A STEEP LEARNING CURVE PART 2

Having swapped their 35ft sailing boat for a twin-engined Nelson 38, motor boat newbies Cas and Dave Peace share their experience of getting to grips with their new toy and their first full year afloat

Paul Heiney

The joy of needlecraft has been somewhat lost on Paul after an attempt to stitch together a rudimentary canvas cover ends in much bloodshed

Clarisse hopes to inspire others

Vendée Globe sailor Clarisse Crémer has said she hopes to inspire other female sailors to follow in her wake.