The hardest part is waiting out the winter Issue 52: Jan/Feb 2007 ABOUT TWO WEEKS AGO, THE WEATHER improved enough here in the mid-Atlantic for me to rush out to my boat, a 1986 Hunter 28.5, scuff up ...
Home canning is the answer for fridge-less cruisers Issue 46 : Jan/Feb 2006 On Lake Superior’s north shore one brilliant sunny day we met a lovely young couple who informed us that, in spite of having...
A DIY kit to soothe those aching teeth Issue 52: Jan/Feb 2007 TWO WEEKS AWAY FROM ANY CHANCE OF HELP, THERE WAS a blinding pain. I found myself staring down at a chunk of metal in my hand. The hole it...
This nice fat one won’t jam in a block Issue 52: Jan/Feb 2007 HAVE YOU EVER HAD A JIB SHEET RUN OUT OF ITS BLOCK AND blow overboard on the leeward side? The consequence of this temporary loss of jib c...
A pioneering designer of many early production fiberglass sailboats Issue 46 : Jan/Feb 2006 Philip L. Rhodes (1895 -1974) was one of the most distinguished yacht designers of the past century. Indicat...
Soon a dream of escape will come true Issue 47 : Mar/Apr 2006 I have a large dog. She’s a Rottweiler/shepherd mix: no tail, like a Rott, but looks like a shepherd in the face. At my yard, here i...
And we’re keeping this one to ourselves Issue 47 : Mar/Apr 2006 In the summer of 2004, the largest U.S. sailing magazine ran a list of the top 10 towns that are perfect for sailors: “Sailville, USA,” ...
How to read your boat’s “birth certificate” Issue 47 : Mar/Apr 2006 Unless you have a really old boat, you probably have a set of 12 characters embedded on the upper starboard side of your boat’s tran...
New owner unearths hidden mysteries aboard Issue 47 : Mar/Apr 2006 “What is this thing?” I ponder, holding up a hotdog-shaped red bulb with a foot-long wire protruding from one end, terminating in a p...
Eight years into a cruise, here’s what’s still operating well Issue 47 : Mar/Apr 2006 I wrote an article for Good old Boat (January 2001) about the preparations we made for liveaboard bluewater cruisi...
Doing your own boatwork, you confront certain immutable truths Issue 47 : Mar/Apr 2006 I am an expert do-it-yourselfer. I make this claim not simply because I’ve fixed a lot of things on my own and fr...
What you see is exactly what you get Issue 47 : Mar/Apr 2006 Why do you always seem to tack into a header? Why do iceboats always sail to windward, no matter which direction they’re going? Why is it t...
How to request openings like a pro Issue 47 : Mar/Apr 2006 Last winter, our friends Susan and Scott came down to Florida to escape the Lake Erie winter and do a little sailing. I enjoy having other sa...
What to expect and how to survive Issue 47 : Mar/Apr 2006 There were all the classic signs — I was just too inexperienced, or in too much of a hurry, to pay attention to them. After a rainy night, my ...
Sailing with a two-year-old in the Florida Keys Issue 47 : Mar/Apr 2006 These days, when Noah is playing with his toy sailboats, he can pick out the boom, the mast, and the keel. Then he points to the...
A long-time voyager examines the effects of cruising on kids Issue 47 : Mar/Apr 2006 We had said our goodbyes the night before, her eyes glistening with love and the anticipation of her next adventure...
A Balance Lugsail Primer It has been five months since the OzGoose kit arrived. The boat has been assembled, epoxied, and varnished. It is ready now for rigging. First it should be noted that there we...
After 29 years, a new genoa Issue 47 : Mar/Apr 2006 Mystic’s 150-percent genoa was made in 1976, as near as I can tell. We’ve made repairs to it in most of the 14 years we’ve owned the boat. I even se...
Not a pretty sight but they get the job done Issue 48 : May/Jun 2006 In addition to owning a sailboat of a certain age, I have other hobbies. I dabble in woodworking — a handy skill when it comes to m...
They also spend who only sail and toil Issue 48 : May/Jun 2006 Some time ago I participated in a government survey focusing on the national economy. It was interested in the buying habits of the publi...
Coil and stow that line following British tradition Issue 48 : May/Jun 2006 Any time we crew for another skipper, I think most of us take a look around and try to acquaint ourselves with how things ar...
This respected company continues to move with the times Issue 48 : May/Jun 2006 Aa any marketing whiz will tell you, brand recognition is key to sales. And among sailboat builders, Pacific Seacraft ha...
It’s his boat’s way of warning him to pay attention Issue 48 : May/Jun 2006 Ahhh . . . at last. Spring is here. I can tell by the bump on my head . . . near the hairline on the right side, same as eve...
A gourmet cruiser’s tasty substitutes for fresh produce Issue 48 : May/Jun 2006 It was the end of a perfect day. Earlier, we’d had a great spinnaker run along Lake Superior’s Ontario wilderness shorel...
Fresh produce from a cruising ketch’s deck Issue 48 : May/Jun 2006 Heading north from Nanaimo to begin our circumnavigation of Vancouver Island on Canada’s west coast, we passed another sailboat headi...
Lose yourself in the mystery of the universe Issue 48 : May/Jun 2006 We hardly get to see the sky at night anymore; electric light has all but banished it. Anywhere near a city, the atmosphere reflect...
How to fix bargain boats and make a modest fortune Issue 48 : May/Jun 2006 “I know about guys like you,” the old yard worker said as we strolled the back fence. “You’re a bottom feeder. You look for o...
My life with Jane Duck Issue 48 : May/Jun 2006 There has never been another boat like her, not before nor since. I remember crossing Rosario Straits, leaving Lopez Island bound for Deception Pass with...
Learn the only real essentials for success Issue 48 : May/Jun 2006 I recently read a prediction that it only a matter of time before anyone who is so brave and presumptuous as to command a sailboat wi...
Thrills and spills on a glorious day for planing Issue 49 : Jul/Aug 2006 I was fortunate to attend Tabor Acadamy, “The school by the Sea,” for those four tumultuous years preceding college. Rather tha...
