CATEGORIES

Recompense for last-minute cancellation of boat shows rejected

Some exhibitors at Boats 2020 have criticised the last-minute decision to cancel the Southampton event, leaving many of them out of pocket.

Novice sailor to the Netherlands

Bethan Griffiths’ first taste of cruising life with her two young children and disabled husband Chris, who has cancer, osteoporosis and Parkinson’s

TO THE FRACTAL WEST OF IRELAND

Ed Maggs and his wife Frances enjoy the slower pace as they cruise south-west Ireland

‘Lightning destroyed the boat's electronics'

Paul Tinley recounts a truly shocking experience aboard his Beneteau 393 Blue Mistress and the subsequent insurance claim

MONACH ISLANDS, OFF NORTH UIST

The anchorages around the Monach Islands in the Outer Hebrides offer total isolation for the intrepid sailor Jonty Pearce discovers

ADVENTURE A WALK ON THE WILD SIDE

Kari Nurmi dodges ice and predators as he sails around Svalbard’s Spitsbergen in his trusty 30ft Bavaria 300

SOUTH DEEP, THE SWALE

Dick Durham mulls the algorithm of a pint ashore while anchored in this East Coast creek

A WEEK A FLOAT SICILY

The Aeolian Islands delight the senses, with delicious cuisine, charming bays and smouldering volcanoes, as Lu Heikell discovers

British yachting's post-lockdown boom

UK yacht brokerages are reporting a spike in new and second-hand boat sales, with many of them now struggling to find used yachts to sell. The increase began during the summer following the easing of the COVID-19 lockdown restrictions.

COVID-19 Channel cruise

Andrew Beveridge’s solo adventure to the Isles of Scilly and Brittany

Bringing clarity to varnish

The tricky problem of getting wood to shine

The amazing history of rope

Do you know your hemp from your manila and the surprising qualities of Dyneema? Roger Hughes untangles the mysteries of rope

The history of forecasting

Margaret Norris charts the incredible role of Robert FitzRoy in the development of the Met Office

Tales from a tall ship

Bill Howlett recalls a youthful week on board TS Sir Winston Churchill that cemented his love of sailing (if not a love of heights)

Too hot to handle?

What level of risk are you prepared to take for a bit of winter warmth on board?

Mingming II & the Impossible Voyage

Jake Kavanagh escapes to the wilderness with Roger D Taylor’s latest book

DIY keelboat launching trailer

Sam Longley designs and builds a slipway boat launching trailer

Feathered friends

There’s an affinity between those who go afloat and the creatures of the air

Challenges in the Chesapeake

Squalls, hurricanes and operations – there’s never a dull moment aboard Alisara, says Hermione Pattison

Becoming a Day Skipper

From classroom conundrums to night-time navigation, dinghy instructor Margaret Norris decides to give big boats a go

TWO PACIFIC CROSSINGS

After one stress-free trip, you might find the ‘coconut milk run’ doesn’t always do what it says on the tin

SHAMROCK and Sycamore

Sometimes a captain and a boat are meant to be together – and this was never more the case than for ‘Syc’ and the Fife-built Shamrock 23-M

Tributes to pioneering Arctic cruiser and environmentalist Brian Black

Renowned Arctic sailor, journalist and environmentalist, Brian Black, has died, aged 77.

THE ORIGINAL CRUISER RACER

One of only two Island One Designs in commission, Trasnagh still lives up to their 1911 description of ‘rattling good boats, fit to go anywhere’

‘Dead ahead were the bows of an unlit freighter'

Paul Dale has a harrowing near-miss with an unlit freighter at night while on a 110-mile voyage from Trinidad to the Grenadines

New dawn for trading boats

SECOND AGE OF SAIL

ITALIAN JOB

The Sangermani-built ketch Sahib, built in the dolce vita of 1950s Italy, has just been given a five-year rebuild

TECHNICAL IS YOUR ANCHOR CHAIN UP TO THE JOB?

It’s all well and good having a solid anchor, but having ground tackle that is going to keep you secure is equally important, says Vyv Cox

Tradition is not a detail

With the family vocation stretching back over centuries, boatbuilding and repair is clearly in the DNA

TO PROTECT & SERVE

Ireland’s Fastnet Lighthouse has kept sailors safe for over a century. John Greeves talks to one of its former keepers about life on the rock