log

There is nothing quite so daunting as suddenly being at the helm of your own boat for the first time. When it came to the 44 footers that I had first sailed on I was comfortable that my steering was effective, that my understanding of wind direction,...

The first lesson of parenting is really to expect the unexpected. Funnily enough, the same can be said of liveaboard sailing. Often our travels see us going from one extreme to the other in terms of available supplies as we’ve sailed both to big,...

I suppose it must be true that sometimes it takes seeing yourself and your life through another person’s eyes to admit and accept certain facts. I don’t consider myself to be a particularly [...]

We all imagine that we are alone on our boats. Gently swaying at anchor, with the sun shining down, lulls us into a false sense of [...]

I simply adore swap meets. The traditional car boot sale or antiques market in land-lubber life has always had a certain appeal but they are always plagued with the business of having to root through all the junk to uncover something useful. By...

We sailors love our special bits of rules and etiquette don’t we? From COLREGs to radio speak, the yachting world is littered with hints and tips of best practice that help the novice adjust to this whole new language of sailing. But whilst [...]

After the ghoulish curiosity for questions about storms and pirates abates, people are always interested in our engine. And it’s often with a tone of [...]

Sailing gives you the opportunity to have your eyes opened to different cultures, exotic new flavours and languages, enabling you to learn new ways of thinking and being. This constant education is the single most fulfilling thing about our cruising...

To row or not to row? That is the question. Getting your dinghy from A to B, from boat to shore, is an everyday occurrence for any liveaboard. But, although seemingly [...]

Sailors like to get naked. After all your boat is your home and who needs to be covered up in sweltering layers in the tropical heat? Why not just [...]

Once you’ve been cruising for a while you develop a shorthand, referring to every couple or family onboard by their boat name. We get cards or emails to “the Adamastors” and we never take offence at it, although it’s a far cry from our much...

We’re back in the UK, enjoying the reunions with family and friends that our brief sojourns from our ‘proper’ life at sea allow us. And there is one acquaintance that I must admit I am incredibly glad to see again – a washing machine. Not a...

Where has the wind gone? There’s an eerie feeling to losing even the merest scrap of breeze. We know the familiar adage “calm before a storm” so it’s wise to be on the alert when the air goes so quiet. Sometimes, a stillness in the immediate...

One of the most basic and fundamental needs of living on a true bluewater boat is carrying enough fresh water. You can have large tanks, you can store extra containers, you can install a water-maker or even harvest rainwater but the crucial and main...

Summer has begun. For us Brits the snatched breaks of bank holidays and family vacations send us flocking to the beach. Whether it’s the English seaside - complete with donkey rides, rockpools, and someone selling jellied eels - or jetting off to...

A boat is really a house combined with a car and put into an environment that constantly attacks it. Saltwater and sun destroy whatever they can without mercy. It’s a matter of constant maintenance as things will always break. Some items you can...