Cheap and effective, they don’t wrap or slide Issue 108: May/June 2016 I sail my Boston Whaler Harpoon 5.2, Quee Queg, on lakes and reservoirs in Arizona, where accurately discerning wind direction ca...
A wet towel puts a damper on a loose helm One morning, we were at anchor in a pretty cove when an empty water bottle blew overboard. We raised the anchor and chased down the errant bottle. Once the an...
A cell phone signal booster brings the world aboard Issue 108: May/June 2016 Like many sailors who still work, I like to keep abreast of things back at the office every few days, even when on vacation...
A first cruise that might have been the last Issue 103 : Jul/Aug 2015 Though it’s not the ocean, Lake Ontario demands a certain amount of respect. My husband, Chris, and I were reminded of this not to...
An oil change that led to a life change Issue 108: May/June 2016 The convergence of boat and boat owner is serendipitous. We expect the new owner to find the boat; sometimes the boat finds the new own...
I want to work sailing into the lives of my great grandchildren (there are 13 of them with 2 more on the way). Unwilling to spend $30,000 apiece for new MC Scows (the most sensible choice given local ...
The ever-narrowing gap twixt cup and lip Issue 103 : Jul/Aug 2015 A search on the Internet would have you believe that the term “slippery slope” has been in use since 1951. In the grimmest of definiti...
A new role brings a fresh identity Issue 104 : Sept/Oct 2015 I renamed my boat. For several years, I’ve made my home aboard a 1967 Irwin 27 . . . just another narrow-beamed mass-produced vintage sloop...
Karma and kind strangers made it happen Issue 104 : Sept/Oct 2015 One desk-bound afternoon in May, as I juggled two phones, carrying two calls to two different area codes in a foreign country, while f...
Exercise that gets you somewhere on the water Issue 104 : Sept/Oct 2015 For many of us, our very first boat was a rowboat — in my case an old and leaky one — so every outing is a trip down memory lane...
Familiar waters feel like a fond hug Issue 104 : Sept/Oct 2015 We had just seen a favorite kid play the role of a Munchkin in The Wizard of Oz when we untied our docklines in late June for a 75-nautic...
A loyal, uncomplaining member of the crew Issue 105 : Nov/Dec 2015 We lost a treasured sailing companion several years back and sailing hasn’t been quite the same since. By all appearances that August...
A lifelong sailor supports her passion by chartering Issue 105 : Nov/Dec 2015 It was 2004 when I entertained the thought of a boat of my own. I had just completed the exam for USCG Master. When I took...
Life lessons from an early affair Issue 105 : Nov/Dec 2015 There was no name on her hull when I found her, so I called her Frankly Scarlett in reference to the closing line of Gone With The Wind. That...
A daily duty records a lifetime of memories Issue 105 : Nov/Dec 2015 I am sitting in front of the fire doing research for an upcoming ocean passage. I like to study the passages of others. What routes...
A downhaul is a singlehander’s foredeck crew Issue 105 : Nov/Dec 2015 A friend of mine told me about an incident he witnessed in which the jib furler on a 54-foot sailboat jammed. “You haven’t laughed...
Variations on taking in a slab of sail Issue 105 : Nov/Dec 2015 A sail is reefed to reduce its area so it will not overpower the boat in stronger winds. Of the many reefing systems used, slab or jiffy...
Lettuce and cold drinks — the frosting on the cruising cake Issue 105 : Nov/Dec 2015 This past summer, for the first time in 15 years or more, we had ice in Mystic’s icebox. In years past, we cruised ...
A sailor and a snake give each other the shivers Issue 106 : Jan/Feb 2016 Shortly after Speedwell had been relaunched following a few weeks on the hard at Young’s Boatyard in Jones Creek, just off the...
Ferry it from shore to ship without lifting a drop Issue 106 : Jan/Feb 2016 When you’re on the hook, you fill your dinghy with four basic commodities in addition to passengers: trash, diesel, gas, and...
Eliminate fire drills with a drag-proof system Issue 106 : Jan/Feb 2016 When I was new to boating, many, many years ago, I quickly learned it was far better to anchor securely than to stumble about on...
A sailing legend puts a wayward boat’s demise in perspective Issue 106 : Jan/Feb 2016 “Holding onto anger is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.” –Buddha In June 2013, at about...
A veteran cruiser’s 12 steps to a well-fed crew Issue 106 : Jan/Feb 2016 Provisioning your boat can be as easy as taking a short walk to the grocery store to stock up for a couple of days on the lake ...
A former tightwad reflects on shoestring budgets Issue 108: May/June 2016 The pastime of sailing has often been compared to standing in a cold shower while tearing up 20-dollar bills. Yacht ownership ...
A faithful and forgiving foul-weather friend Issue 106 : Jan/Feb 2016 Ellen is on top of me! Our legs are entwined! We are lying against the starboard wall of our cockpit footwell. It is horizontal, p...
How we sail is related to how far we are from the water Issue 106 : Jan/Feb 2016 During the summer sailing season I experienced another one of those revelations that occur from time to time. What I fi...
The alluring emanations of a seagoing home Issue 107 : Mar/Apr 2016 At any auto parts store in the country, you can buy an aerosol can of New Car Smell. Have you ever seen a can of New Boat Smell at y...
Seeing current requires GPS and a knotmeter Issue 107 : Mar/Apr 2016 I grew up sailing on a lake in upstate New York on a 16-foot hand-built wooden sloop. No tides. No currents. Only wind. No instrume...
Fatigue, false steps, and a child adrift Issue 107 : Mar/Apr 2016 After four days of the most uncomfortable seas in our entire world circumnavigation, we arrived at the island of Great Inagua, Bahamas...
Surface weather maps, part 1 Issue 107 : Mar/Apr 2016 Surface weather maps offer a wealth of information to the weather-savvy mariner. The key to unlocking the information displayed on these maps is u...
