Sideways is not a direction anyone wants a refit to take, yet it’s a familiar outcome on many projects. Owners looking to update their boats—whether for small improvements or complete overhauls—often run into avoidable problems. Experts from three well-regarded Maine shipyards—Lyman-Morse, Front Street Shipyard and Brooklin Boat Yard—say many of these issues stem from choosing … Read more

Wanderbird: A Sturdy North Sea Trawler Turned Expedition Yacht Photos by Onne van der Wal Salty, seaworthy and built to last, Wanderbird is a 90-foot former North Sea fishing trawler refitted as an intimate expedition yacht. Captains Rick and Karen Miles outfitted the vessel for comfortable, adventurous passagemaking, combining classic wooden interiors with modern voyaging … Read more

Vendée Globe turmoil: Half the fleet forced to retire after brutal Southern Ocean conditions The 2008–09 Vendée Globe, often described as the Everest of solo sailing, saw an extraordinary wave of retirements after severe weather in the Southern Ocean. By early January, half the starters had withdrawn from the nonstop, solo, around-the-world race, many after … Read more

Johnson Outboards and Cypress Gardens: The 1977 Record That Changed Boating On May 16, 1977, a memorable collaboration between a leading outboard manufacturer and a legendary showman produced a spectacle that is still talked about by boating and water-skiing enthusiasts. At Cypress Gardens in Winter Haven, Florida—long known as the “Water Ski Capital of the … Read more

Diesel Duck Owners Share Offshore Passagemaking Experience and Upgrades LOA: 48 feet, 5 inches • BEAM: 14 feet, 10 inches • POWER: single 150-hp John Deere 4045TFM diesel • SPEED: 6.5 knots cruise • RANGE: 6,825 nautical miles at 6.5 knots • TANKAGE: 2,000 gallons fuel, 250 gallons water • CONTACT: Seahorse Marine, Zhuhai, China, … Read more

Senior Sailors Set Out on An-Tiki Raft to Raise Funds for WaterAid An 86-year-old grandfather and a determined crew of over-50s set sail on April 6 from the Caribbean, bound for the Bahamas on a raft constructed from water pipes. The voyage has a clear charitable aim: the crew hopes to raise approximately $75,000 for … Read more

The glory days of surfcasting for giant striped bass on Block Island still live large in the memories of those who were there. Between 1982 and 1987 the island’s rocky shores produced an extraordinary run of big stripers that few anglers have ever seen since. Veteran surfcaster Dennis Zambrotta, who chronicled those years in his … Read more

Akademik Lomonosov: Russia’s Floating Nuclear Power Plant Heads to the Arctic The 474-foot-long Akademik Lomonosov is a block-shaped floating nuclear power plant equipped to generate roughly 70 megawatts of electricity. Built and operated under the auspices of the state-controlled company Rosatom, the vessel was recently declared operational and has begun a long voyage to the … Read more

Rebuilding the Maryland Dove: A Historically Accurate Replica of a 17th-Century Coastal Vessel In 1633 a small two-masted square-rigger named the Dove departed the Isle of Wight for the New World. Caught in a sudden storm and last seen by the crew of her larger companion, the Ark, flying distress lanterns, the Dove appeared lost. … Read more

Dreamers with a Sense of Humor Renee D. Petrillo’s sailing memoir, A Sail of Two Idiots, tells the familiar but still irresistible story of a couple who decide to leave the 9-to-5 grind and trade it for life on the water. Published by International Marine in 2012, this 304-page paperback (priced at $12.16 through Amazon … Read more