No self-respecting sailor could resist taking a last sail before hauling out for the year. Not this sailor, anyway—even with 20-knot northeast gusts that sent the wind turbines ashore moaning and the waters of New England’s Buzzards Bay squirming.
A Category IV hurricane was heading our way, and we did not want to leave our boat in a marina that would have no protection from the ravages of a storm of this magnitude. Instead, we chose a lesser evil, one in which our boat had a better chance of survival—we anchored it, using tandem anchors—
To obtain a U.S. Coast Guard Captain’s License, unlike a driver’s license, there is a lot more to it than just paying a fee and taking an eye test.
There’s so much to enjoy about birds while afloat. And you’re in an enviable position. Many of these species are never seen by avid land-birders, as many pelagic birds spend their entire lives at sea, only coming ashore briefly to breed on remote islands.
In 1995 my family and I circumnavigated Cuba, collecting data for my book, Cuba: a Cruising Guide. I had assumed then that relations between the United States and Cuba would soon be normalized, and that the lifting of the embargo would unleash a flood of American sailors eager to explore Cuban waters.
Legendary cruising boats come in all forms. Wandering the docks at a boat show in La Rochelle, France, I came across an unassuming, boxy little boat that has achieved iconic status among the French.
Donna Lange is not just a grandmother of 11—she’s a musician, songwriter, registered nurse, delivery captain, the founder of OceansWatch North America and one of the few American female sailors to circumnavigate solo. In 2007, Donna sailed around the globe and stopped twice along the way. Now she’s planning to again circumnavigate solo on her Southern Cross 28 Inspired Insanity, this time non-stop.
I’m racing over the impossibly blue waters of a very feisty Exuma Sound and to port there’s nothing but fiberglass-hungry rocks as far as I can see. The forecast warned of 25-knot winds, which seems about right, but the waves are sure a lot bigger than the three feet they had forecast.
At sea, the boundary between dream and reality can prove rather elusive. Could my shipmate actually be waking me with these confusing words: “Ray, wake up! We’re way off course, and we need to reef the deck chairs!”
On SAIL’s 45th anniversary, we look back at 45 inventions, developments and refinements that changed the way we sail. The year is 1970. Richard Nixon is in the White House. Men wear long sideburns, oversized sunglasses, medallions, velour shirts and platform shoes—
G/flex is a toughened epoxy that makes permanent, waterproof structural bonds. Known for tenaciously adhering to plastics, this formulation is also excellent for bonding metal, glass, masonry, wood and fiberglass. It is even effective on typically hard-to-bond substrates including dense, oily or damp wood varieties. Perfect to keep on hand for small repair jobs on-the-go.
These days, when boats are selling like hotcakes, it may be tempting to sit back and ease up on the innovation process. After all, why
VETUS, a pioneer of electric propulsion, offers two compact, all-in-one electric-propulsion solutions: the E-LINE and E-POD. These plug-and-play motors free up valuable engine-room space and feature a unique liquid cooling solution, giving you maximum power and range, plus proprietary Active Electric Braking.
From classic to contemporary, there is a VETUS ventilator to suit every taste. Silicone ventilators are flexible and will not discolor in UV light. Alternatively,
The RC series incorporates Maxwell’s latest stylish innovation in automatic rope/chain windlass technology. Following in the footsteps of the highly successful Freedom series, these windlasses represent the next generation of windlass evolution in every respect and feature Maxwell’s revolutionary and patented Wave Design™ chainwheel.
Perseverance and an embrace of adventure have always been prerequisites for sailors who earn the Cruising Club of America’s Blue Water Medal, but like everything
In 2015, our friends Lee & Rachel Cumberland were onboard their Tayana 37, Satori, tied to a mooring buoy in a Bahamian anchorage when a
Following a change of control and reorganization in 2018, Bavaria Yachts, one of Europe’s biggest builders, tapped a new design team and started updating its
During the three months my little ship lay in Belfast, Maine, I had three friends. The first was a schooner bum I’d met sailing in
