Sailboat Cruising

This article originally appeared in the December 2009 issueHalf a century ago, sailing a full-sized boat up a tidal river was all in a day’s work. Today we rely on our diesel engines instead, but there is no gain without pain. Firing up an engine as a matter of course on entering a river is easy, but is hardly sporting. The skills needed to work up a narrow waterway under sail

This article originally appeared in the December 2009 issueHalf a century ago, sailing a full-sized boat up a tidal river was all in a day’s work. Today we rely on our diesel engines instead, but there is no gain without pain. Firing up an engine as a matter of course on entering a river is easy, but is hardly sporting. The skills needed to work up a narrow waterway under sail

This article originally appeared in the December 2009 issueWhitecaps kicked up by a strong southwesterly wind churned the St. Lawrence River between the New York shore and Grindstone Island. A fierce gust hit, forcing me to goose the throttle of the little single-cylinder diesel that powered Elizabeth, the Bristol 24 my wife, Liz, and I sailed for more than a decade throughout the

Originally published in March, 2009It was a beautiful summer day, and my wife, Emily, and I were looking forward to a relaxing overnight aboard Ocypete, our Bayfield 32. We were heading for one of our favorite spots on the southeast corner of Beausoleil Island, in the Georgian Bay Islands National Park on Lake Huron in Ontario, Canada. Emily was at the wheel as we powered

Article originally appeared in February 2009 issueThe water at the entrance to Tham Morakot (Emerald Cave) is dark aquamarine. Dense schools of small fish make their way from alcove to alcove. In the air above, echoes clatter off the stalactites. The ocean reaches in like an arm and yanks out again. Under the water is silence; dark masses of fish drift in and out, and colors