First the good news. Throughout most of the continental United States, calling the Coast Guard on your marine VHF radio now ties you into one of the most modern marine radio networks in use anywhere on Earth. As of November 2010, the 26 Sector Command Centers in the Coast Guard’s Rescue 21 radio network can monitor transmissions along nearly 37,000 miles of coastline.
While sailing alone one summer on the south shore of Lake Superior on my Westsail 32, Antares, I approached Michigans Keweenaw Peninsula from the east. The Keweenaw juts out into the lake like a giant thumb. Through its base runs the tranquil Portage River, a handy shortcut for boats traveling this coast.After motoring up Keweenaw Bay, I anchored for the night in an open marshy area on a
Most commercial ships are run by competent professional crews. Still, close encounters with yachts are not uncommon. Every once in a while a ship arrives in port with a mast wedged in her anchorand no one knows how it got there.To an offshore sailor a large merchant vessel can seem like a modern-day sea monster, capable of obliterating a yacht and spitting out the scraps
Most commercial ships are run by competent professional crews. Still, close encounters with yachts are not uncommon. Every once in a while a ship arrives in port with a mast wedged in her anchorand no one knows how it got there.To an offshore sailor a large merchant vessel can seem like a modern-day sea monster, capable of obliterating a yacht and spitting out the scraps
One beautiful, sunny July day I was sailing Rondo, my Beneteau 423, about a mile off the famed Santa Monica pier in picturesque Santa Monica Bay, California. The wind was blowing gently at around 8 knots, and I was reaching along on port tack making about 5 knots. It was a typical Southern California day with a typical Southern California breeze. Suddenly, at a distance of about 300 yards, I saw
One beautiful, sunny July day I was sailing Rondo, my Beneteau 423, about a mile off the famed Santa Monica pier in picturesque Santa Monica Bay, California. The wind was blowing gently at around 8 knots, and I was reaching along on port tack making about 5 knots. It was a typical Southern California day with a typical Southern California breeze. Suddenly, at a distance of about 300 yards, I saw
It was a beautiful afternoon in the middle of May, and I was making final preparations to move Second Epic, our Newport 30-III, from its winter storage yard to our seasonal slip at Erie Basin Marina in Buffalo, New York.Rigging the boat that morning had taken longer than I expected, but that always seems to happen during commissioning. As I fussed over a few final details, I knew I should
As we enjoy the summer sailing season, its worth taking a minute to be sure some important sailing traditions dont get overlookedor even forgottenin this age of electronic navigation and autopilots. Stuff still happens out on the water, but fortunately, almost everything that does can be minimized or prevented through good seamanship.First and foremost, whether you are sailing an
Its late at night and youre sailing downwind in a moderate breeze. You hear a faint scream, quickly go up top to investigate and discover, to your horror, that no one is on deck. Apparently, your shipmate has fallen overboard. You hit the MOB function on the GPS, get the boat turned upwind and proceed to the approximate spot where your companion fell overboard. He is nowhere to be
Its late at night and youre sailing downwind in a moderate breeze. You hear a faint scream, quickly go up top to investigate and discover, to your horror, that no one is on deck. Apparently, your shipmate has fallen overboard. You hit the MOB function on the GPS, get the boat turned upwind and proceed to the approximate spot where your companion fell overboard. He is nowhere to be
As the second fleet of starters get under way, a quick look at the tracker and the prep that goes into a race of over 2,000 open ocean miles.
Doubting his choices one chilly day, a sailor wonders whether he’ll have to make changes.
Catching and prepping your own dinner while underway is one of those one of a kind cruiser experiences. The process gets a whole lot better with the right gear.
In her first Marion-Bermuda Race as skipper of a Navy 44, Nancy Rhodes and her team of U.S. Naval Academy midshipmen aboard Integrity stuck to their strategy—even when things looked grim—and walked away with bragging rights and an armful of silver.
In addition to having the trophy for fastest circumnavigation named after him, what other Junes Verne reference might be found in the modern sailor’s vocabulary?A)
Managing Editor Lydia Mullan sits down with the winningest navigator in Transpac history for a breakdown of what this year’s fleet can expect.
By Tim Queeney (304pp, St. Martin’s Press, $27.00) In ancient times man responded to the urgent need for food, transportation, and trade by building all
The Marion-Bermuda Race wrapped up yesterday after a slow approach to the finish, but it certainly wasn’t a drifter for the whole way. The first
48 years after the first Marion-Bermuda race, 20 boats competed in this summer’s event, including the J42 Dianthus, on which SAIL Editor in Chief Wendy Mitman Clarke and crew won the Class A division.
Winning scores of races or cruising thousands of miles, their 34 years with a Cal 40 has always been about great sailing.
