Swimming with humpback whales

Having paused their Pacific cruise in Mo’orea, Josh Shankle and Rachel Moore find wonderment swimming with humpback whales “Slip into the water, don’t jump. Try not to splash, and follow me,” our guide Torea hurriedly told us as the panga-style boat slowed to a stop, only 100m away from a sleeping giant. “Stay together, stay […]

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How to provision a yacht for a long passage

Long term liveaboard Catherine Lawson talks about how to provision a yacht for a long passage and passes on some of her top tips Provisioning a yacht for a long period away from conventional shops, with limited cold store space, dry goods stowage and galley facilities, can be daunting. In a beautifully illustrated new book, […]

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How to live aboard a yacht for years at a time

What if one or two years of adventure just isn’t enough? Meet the cruisers who’ve been on board for a decade or more, and find out how to make long-haul cruising work for you “I probably wouldn’t even recognise the person that I was when I first started,” admits Brian Trautman, skipper of the Amel […]

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Coolest yachts: MOD 70

We ask top sailors and marine industry gurus to choose the coolest and most innovative yachts of our times. Sam Goodchild nominates theb MOD70 class trimaran “In terms of complexity for speed, there isn’t anything else which has such a good ratio as a MOD 70. We’ve been over 40 knots [boatspeed] on them, and […]

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Catamaran sailing: can you fast track multihull skills?

An intensive course promises a fast-track ticket to skippering a catamaran. Helen Fretter goes catamaran sailing to find out more Can one week change your life? That’s a whole lot of pressure to put on a holiday. But for a surprising number of graduates of the Nautilus Sailing catamaran sailing course, that’s exactly what their […]

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Hull Innovator Dave Switzer, 96, Remembered

Dave Switzer of Switzer Craft powerboats fame had possibly the most creative designing mind in boat-racing history. He didn’t just take existing designs and make subtle derivative changes, he amazingly created whole new concepts, without wasting time to even draw up a set of plans. switzeragain-slide2 switzerwinner-slide1 Dave Switzer is perhaps best known for the […]

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New Boat: Riviera 46 Sport Motor Yacht

An australian cruise aboard Riviera’s new family adventure-ready Fishing machine shows a perfect melding of modern and traditional. An australian cruise aboard Riviera’s new family adventure-ready Fishing machine shows a perfect melding of modern and traditional. From engineering and design to friendlier and more accommodating layouts, Riviera has learned a lot in building 6,000 boats […]

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Making the switch: How we become a liveaboards

A gentle introduction to the cruising life set Kate Ashe-Leonard on course for a full transocean liveaboard adventure We’re sailing by the Gulf of Venezuela as we approach the Colombian coastline, a notoriously difficult stretch of water with frequent high winds, big swell and current. This night is no exception. It’s 0100 and Jim and […]

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New mutihulls take on an Atlantic crossing

Helen Fretter speaks to a few of the astounding 15 new multihull owners who took part in the most recent ARC, as catamaran and multihull sailing continues to boom The explosion in multihull and catamaran sales has been well documented, with many yards reporting lead times of two years or longer as build slots sold […]

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Uncharted Waters: North vs. South

Tackling the Classic U.S. Boating Debate of North Versus South. A couple weeks ago, I attended a yacht club dinner at the invitation of a friend and had a fine time, in spite of the fact that I’m about as yachty as an aluminum canoe. Toward the shank of the evening, as coffee and other […]

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Second hand boats: Buying a family yacht

Will Bruton takes a look at the positives and potential pitfalls in buying a family yacht so you can cruise the world with the kids in tow Buying a family yacht with room to accommodate young and old means looking for some very specific characteristics. Having enough space for living, studying and – increasingly commonly […]

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Inside Angle: The Great Golden Loop

In breaking down the Great Loop, Bill Prince finds a journey that gives both boaters and boats a second life. Doing the Loop is becoming as popular as filling Eliquis prescriptions among people who owned Led Zeppelin t-shirts 40 years ago. Even so, the America’s Great Loop Cruisers Association (AGLCA) claims it’s still rare for […]

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Capable Cat

A one-eyed dog and its owners take on the American Great Loop aboard an Aquila 44. All photos courtesy of April and Larry Smith. Capable Cat Aquila 44 A liveaboard couple discovers that cruising the Great Loop is even more comfortable on a catamaran. For most of their adult lives, April and Larry Smith had […]

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