When my heart ruled my head!

Richard Carvell learned valuable lessons when he bought an iconic offshore cruiser

Lifejacket: the vital safety aid

Knowledge of the sea – and wearing a lifejacket – are the best ways to stay safe

Back to school

Uncovering the truth about lifelong learning

Top tender tips

From boarding to sculling, hull type and maintenance, John Tylor shares some sensible advice about using small dinghies

Timing the tides to Tobermory

Brian Lennon plans a tricky non-stop sail between Skerries, his Irish home port, and the Inner Hebrides harbour of Tobermory

Short cut to a long cut

Andrew Morton describes how saving time led to trouble on Gigha

Dinghy cruising in the Bristol Channel

Annabel Bowker-Dance describes the joys and challenges of dinghy sailing in the Severn Estuary

360 degrees of horizon

The Warner family talk to Ali Wood about the highs and lows of an Atlantic crossing

Bringing clarity to varnish

The tricky problem of getting wood to shine

The amazing history of rope

Do you know your hemp from your manila and the surprising qualities of Dyneema? Roger Hughes untangles the mysteries of rope

The history of forecasting

Margaret Norris charts the incredible role of Robert FitzRoy in the development of the Met Office

Tales from a tall ship

Bill Howlett recalls a youthful week on board TS Sir Winston Churchill that cemented his love of sailing (if not a love of heights)

Too hot to handle?

What level of risk are you prepared to take for a bit of winter warmth on board?

Mingming II & the Impossible Voyage

Jake Kavanagh escapes to the wilderness with Roger D Taylor’s latest book

DIY keelboat launching trailer

Sam Longley designs and builds a slipway boat launching trailer

Feathered friends

There’s an affinity between those who go afloat and the creatures of the air

Challenges in the Chesapeake

Squalls, hurricanes and operations – there’s never a dull moment aboard Alisara, says Hermione Pattison

Becoming a Day Skipper

From classroom conundrums to night-time navigation, dinghy instructor Margaret Norris decides to give big boats a go

Bay Of Islands Cruising Guide

Huw Williams visits New Zealand’s irresistible Bay of Islands

Is Your Boat Proving ‘Almost' Watertight?

Water can sneak into your boat undetected for years. Øyvind Bordal explains where leaks develop, and how to find them in time

Sailing by ear

Alarm bells ringing afloat on a sea of sound

Working aloft

Alex Blackwell has some tips for staying safe when climbing the mast

Smartened up

A tidy up in lockdown means the boat’s looking smarter now than she has in years

Propeller predicament

Peter Davies restores power to his 60ft charter yacht with the help of Mr Rosebud

In the beginning

How the evolutionary development of the sailor was saved from going down the pan

Fitting new toerails and grabrails

Rupert Holmes explains the techniques for removal and replacement

Fitting a hot water system

Today most new yachts come with pressurised hot water, but that wasn’t the case 20 or 30 years ago. Rupert Holmes looks at how to retrofit a system to your boat

A One Design from Devon

The Devon Yawl is as sturdy as she looks and there is plenty else to admire about this popular Salcombe Yawl evolution, says Peter Poland

Which trailer-sailer for Ullswater?

Which trailer-sailer for Ullswater?

The search for an accessible boat

What boats are best suited for disabled sailors? Ian Cameron recounts Fife SailabilityÕs exciting journey from trimarans to powerboats