One constant when you head offshore in a small boat is that the seemingly empty ocean is anything but empty. The night sky is fuller with stars and planets than you’ll usually see on land. Creatures surface unexpectedly, birds appear far from shore, and the clouds and sea present an endless variety of moods. Offshore … Read more

Andy Tyska sat alone in the office after a long meeting about Bristol Marine’s acquisition of the historic boatbuilder Huckins Yachts. The other attendees had left, and he found himself at a desk moved into the office of Huckins president Cindy Purcell, the company’s third-generation owner whose family began Huckins in 1928. On the desk … Read more

Why Orcas Are Ramming Sailboats Near the Iberian Peninsula Since about 2020, sailors around the Iberian Peninsula—including in the Strait of Gibraltar—have reported an unusual and worrying pattern: orcas approaching and ramming sailboats, frequently damaging or removing rudders. Attempts to deter these interactions have ranged from repainting hulls to blasting loud music, but so far … Read more

Kruger’s Journey: Standup Paddling, the Arctic, and Life Aboard Raven “After I did the Race to Alaska, people would often throw that word at me,” Kruger says. “They’d say, ‘Did you always know that you’d be doing extreme stuff like this?’ It took me a long time to find the words to explain why that … Read more

Not long ago, a Northern Marine owner brought his boat back to the builder’s shipyard in Anacortes, Washington, for a light refresh before listing it for sale. Bringing the boat to the original builder sparked word-of-mouth among Northern Marine owners and prompted the company to put dedicated refit services on its radar. “That started word-of-mouth … Read more

Delos 2.0: Brian Trautman’s Next-Generation Cruising Catamaran Brian Trautman, his wife Karin Syrén, their daughter Sierra, now five, and Brian’s brother Brady make up the core crew of the family’s well-known boat, Delos. Over the years they have completed several long ocean passages, logging more than 85,000 nautical miles and visiting 45 countries. Along the … Read more

Navan C30 Pilothouse Review: Brunswick’s Nordic-Inspired Outboard Adventure Boat For years, Scandinavian commuter boats have been the go-to solution for quick, practical passages to vacation homes and work. Over the last decade, a newer class of Nordic-style outboard boats—long, lean, fast and seaworthy—has grown in popularity worldwide. Builders such as Axopar, Nimbus and Saxdor helped … Read more

How to Install, Adjust, and Use a Magnetic Compass on Your Boat Even with modern GPS and electronic navigation systems on board, a magnetic compass remains an essential backup and an independent source of heading information. Unlike electronic devices, a magnetic compass needs no power and will continue to show the direction the vessel is … Read more

I once spoke with a North Carolina Highway Patrol officer who said, “I’ve never unbuckled a dead man.” He used the seat-belt analogy to explain how critical restraints are on the road, then added, “Kind of like life jackets, right?” The truth is harder: people drown while wearing life jackets every year. A life jacket … Read more

The Coho Ho Ho is a small, rather new cruising rally that typically departs Puget Sound on the last Sunday in August and continues for several weeks, with some boats finishing in San Francisco and others continuing to San Diego. Over the past decade the fleet has averaged about a dozen boats a year, and … Read more