Budget Nav: Build a Fault-Tolerant Electronic Navigation System for Under $3,000
When I started sailing, navigation gear consisted of a paper chart, a few drawing instruments and a compass. Instruments usually consisted of a single...
LFP vs. Lead Acid: Eight Things Every Sailor Must Know Before Switching
Marketing literature does a good job of promoting the primary advantages of lithium iron phosphate batteries (LFP or LiFePo4), such as life expectancy, weight,...
Cabinet Hardware That Holds When It Counts
One of the aspects of safety on a voyaging sailboat that I am most concerned about is that objects stay stowed where they're supposed...
How to Inspect Your Sailboat’s Chainplates—and Why It Matters
The purpose of chainplates on a sailboat is to transfer the enormous loads from the standing rigging into the hull structure safely. Without chainplates,...
Recycling Your Derelict Boat in the Pacific Northwest
“Every once in a while people say we are crushing dreams,” explains Frank Gonzales of Gonzo Boat Recycling, “but we aren’t trying to crush...
Are Old Boats Worth Buying?
Shopping for a sailboat? Whether you are buying your first boat or just making a change, you will quickly come up against the classic...
No GPS, No Problem: A Family’s Pacific Adventure
Forty years ago, I set sail from Victoria, Canada, with my former (now late) husband, Michael, and our two young boys, Sam, 10, and...
Hurricane Center Changes Every Skipper Should Know
With all the talk about a record El Niño coming this summer and climate change generally leading to more severe storms, we all need...
Energy Recovery Watermakers: Running a Watermaker on Solar and Batteries
Let's dig into the truth to the 75-80% power reduction claims for Energy Recovery Watermakers, review some comparison data, chat with the inventors, and...
Building a Boat, Building Knowledge: A Wharram Narai Mk IV in Practice
Along a stretch of Atlantic coastline in Brittany, France, a 41-foot wooden catamaran is taking shape in a modest workshop where the rusty corrugated...
Latest Logbook
Practical Sailor Logbook – September 2026
In September we tour the Hans Christian 48T — the offshore cruiser many sailors call the holy grail — walk the custom Antigua 60...
Video: The BEST Sailboat You Can Buy for $35,000 – Catalina...
If you’re searching for a mid-30-foot sailboat, affordable cruising sailboat, liveaboard sailboat, first sailboat, or a capable used sailboat for coastal cruising, the Catalina...
Latest Sailboat Reviews
Learning by Doing on a $5,000 Catalina 30 Mk II
When Davis’s mother started talking about wanting to do something “big” for retirement, Davis and Gloria half-jokingly threw out an idea that seemed suitably...
