A boat’s small spaces and singular scents are alluring and memorable. Issue 142: Jan/Feb 2022 I must have been a stowaway rat in a former life. Why else would I have a nose for the dim, fragrant (usua...
Issue 142: Jan/Feb 2022 I spend a lot of time navigating shoal waters, and my dedicated (and expensive) chart plotter only gets fresh information about such places when I install an updated SD card, y...
A clever design for storable mast supports makes for easy traveling between lakes. Issue 142: Jan/Feb 2022 I have the great fortune to live next to an inland lake that is fully navigable, which means ...
Mending a father’s grievous losses seemed impossible until another boat came along. Issue 142: Jan/Feb 2022 Every year, countless sailors venture south. I never thought I’d be one of them but apparent...
Issue 142: Jan/Feb 2022 From the day back in 1998 that Ted Brewer mistook me for an old friend, my husband, Jerry Powlas, and I have had a warm and special relationship with him. At the time there was...
Installing a new motor in a dead solar vent was far more satisfying than the alternative. Issue 142: Jan/Feb 2022 Shortly after buying my 1975 Tanzer 26 in 2011, I installed two 4-inch Nicro solar ven...
After Baranof Island, an Alaskan voyage brings more beauty, a few bears, and stories to tell. Issue 142: Jan/Feb 2022 As we walk down the main pier in Craig Harbor, our family’s dock cart is heavily l...
For these Lake Ontario sailors, the off-season is full on. Issue 142: Jan/Feb 2022 It is February in Bluffers Park Marina in Toronto, and Lake Ontario is frozen solid. Winter in these parts can be pre...
From a spare parts drawer and a galley, you can make a quick and easy anchor light. Issue 142: Jan/Feb 2022 A functioning anchor light is a basic piece of vital equipment on board. And while you might...
A dreamy cruise is interrupted when the head calls it quits. Issue 142: Jan/Feb 2022 A number of years ago, my family and I sailed Dreamer, the first of two Islander Bahama 30s we’ve owned, from the V...
A luff tape cleaner makes mast groove maintenance easy and sail hoisting smoother. Issue 142: Jan/Feb 2022 The most basic part of sailing—hoisting your sails—should be easy and straightforward. While ...
A pleasant amble up the ICW is rudely interrupted by a near-sinking. Issue 142: Jan/Feb 2022 It’s a hot August day, Mile Marker Somewhere, along a meandering stretch of well-marked rivers down in Sout...
Vivian Vuong is on a mission to make sailing more accessible to all. Issue 142: Jan/Feb 2022 One of sailing’s great paradoxes is that while it offers an immense sense of freedom, in exchange you must ...
Careful use of KiwiGrip provides a solution to some slippery problems. Issue 142: Jan/Feb 2022 Having lived aboard Cetus, our Fantasia 35, for nearly 30 years, my wife, Heidi, and I are well aware of ...
Two friends’ seasonal ritual in a frozen boatyard sweetens the long Canadian winter. Issue 142: Jan/Feb 2022 It is mid-January, Quebec winter at its best. The day is sunny, the air crisp, and the sky ...
… And Two More Water-Ballasted Trailer-Sailers Issue 142: Jan/Feb 2022 The Hunter 260 is an evolution of the Hunter 26, which was developed during my tenure at Hunter Design. As Allen Penticoff mentio...
A Low-Priced, Water-Ballasted Trailer-Sailer Issue 142: Jan/Feb 2022 Bill and Marianne Blaschka of Madison, Wisconsin, have been so blown away by the Hunter 260 that they’ve kept theirs for 12 years—a...
Issue 142: Jan/Feb 2022 When I was in my mid-20s, I instructed cruising and sailing classes on monohulls and catamarans in the Caribbean, Bahamas, Florida, and basically anywhere else I was asked to g...
A sailor is grateful for her fellow bold sailing women. Issue 143: March/April 2022 It was mid-March in Rock Hall, Maryland, and boaters were emerging from hibernation to prep for the upcoming season....
Issue 143: March/April 2022 What to do with rotted wood on a boat? Whether it’s a supporting internal structure or a wood-cored fiberglass sandwich exposed to the elements, either may be remedied with...
An externally mounted sensor takes the guesswork out of the holding tank status. Issue 143: March/April 2022 In 2014, I rebuilt the holding tank in our 1978 Bristol 29.9 using 3/8-inch polypropylene w...
Issue 143: March/April 2022 I am fortunate to sail my 1962, Carl Alberg-designed Pearson Electra, Sea Gypsy, out of Bluffton, in the heart of South Carolina’s low country. As a self-acknowledged natur...
Outboards are an easy way into electric propulsion, but are they for you? Issue 143: March/April 2022 For the last 15 years I’ve been telling myself my next outboard might be electric. If I had a smal...
A DIY diesel-to-electric repower required a lot of education but only a little engineering. Issue 143: March/April 2022 While motoring my 1968 Mason 40, NorthWind, out of the marina on a beautiful spr...
The most memorable physical education class in college had nothing to do with the gym. Issue 143: March/April 2022 “I’m sorry!” I shouted as a massive wave hurled itself across the bow, soaking my cre...
A first-time passage to Catalina Island serves up wildlife, outboard hijinks, starry nights, and happiness. Issue 143: March/April 2022 I was getting pretty good at the marina thing. Nine months after...
Do you really need to splice a thimble into that line? Maybe not so much. Issue 143: March/April 2022 Traditional wire or metal thimbles are common gear on boats, usually spliced into a line where a r...
Restoring a nearly 50-year-old Pearson included repowering with electric. Issue 143: March/April 2022 I purchased my 1972 Pearson 30, hull #220, in March 2015 sight unseen by way of eBay. I was the on...
An unpredicted nighttime wind shift created a dangerous situation that demanded quick action. Issue 143: March/April 2022 After months of boat work, my partner, Chris, and I sat back to enjoy the frui...
Storing the dinghy on the hip while moored is an easy, useful practice. Issue 143: March/April 2022 A mother often finds it convenient to rest a toddler on her hip. A mother ship can benefit from the ...
