Onne van der Wal photoWhen Bob Naylor visited a yacht club on the East Coast and presented his yacht club card that features a cactus on its burgee he was met with a quizzical look. “Is this real?��

Shorthanded sailing, whether it be racing, daysailing or cruising is a great way to improve your sailing skills.  Sailors know that their sport is uniquely suited to a time of uncertainty, after

I recall my first Caribbean landfall like it was yesterday. And trust me, it wasn’t yesterday—it was 40 years ago. It was November and we were heading south from Bermuda. After five days we e

Most sailors have entertained the idea, even if only in passing, of leaving life on land and setting out to cruise the world on a sturdy sailboat ready for adventure. Although many dream, few actually

Winter weather on Massachusetts’s Cape Cod can force competitive sailors indoors with little to do but wait out the long months until they can sail again. More than 40 years ago, Harwich Harbormaste

Betsy Senescu photo I never intended to pull a bait and switch. When my husband Barry and I invited avid racing friends to join us in the Caribbean, our intent was to compete in the Golden R

Dorian goes high to navigate through the ice as Qilak leaves Columbia Bay.Julien Giradot photoLiterary masters including Jack London and John Muir have described the beauty of Alaska with more talent,

I cried when our son Sam was born and again when he rode his bike without training wheels for the first time. And since I was a skier before I became a sailor, I burst into tears when our cute li

 Make the most of the precious sailing season by getting your boat ready to go.  SailsInspect your sails, paying particular attention to high-stress points including the tack, clew and head.

British yachtswoman Jeanne Socrates made international headlines when she became the oldest person to sail nonstop around the world, alone and unassisted. The 77-year-old sailed into Victoria, British

The enticing part of sailing is that every time you go to sea you learn something new. And because sailors aren’t typically people who like to sit idly by on their vacations, combining the two, by l

The first time I watched a promotional video for a cruising sailboat was after I had been cruising for at least 10 years. The film was filled with good weather, sunshine, happy faces, perhaps a brief

Sometimes boats and their owners seem meant for each other. And sometimes things align so well that it seems like it must be fate. And everything about Mariah’s story seems fated. Due to a mis

We were barely 20 minutes out of the harbor when the engine conked out. It was early in the day and the whisper of wind meant a motorsail to Santa Catalina Island was unavoidable, but the Yanmar would

J.H. Peterson photoMembers of the S-boat class don’t consider themselves owners of their boats. They call themselves caretakers of the classic boats that they consider pieces of history. And they ha

Light, handy and stylish, this folding electric bicycle comes packed with features to make any cruiser happy. A removable, lockable battery, LED display, front and rear disc brakes and 30-mile battery

 The 65-foot Icelandic ketch Arktika heads up the Johan Petersen fjord on the southeast coast of Greenland. “I had chartered Arktika for a seven-day photographic workshop with six shooters

Let’s meet in Greece.” That’s how our latest sailing adventure began during a family holiday dinner conversation. My wife Christine and I, 30-something son Zack from San Francisco and 20-someth