Category: News
by B.J. Porter (Contributing Editor) If you’re a sailor, you’ve almost certainly heard of Newport, Rhode Island. For years it was the epicenter of American sailing. It started as a commercial seaport, but eventually hosted the America’s Cup for decades. In the Gilded Age, Newport was the summer playground of the rich and famous, and […]
by B.J. Porter (Contributing Editor) Last month we talked about standing rigging – the fixed, permanent parts of your boat. This month, we’re on to running rigging – the various lines that you move, pull, and release to sail the boat. Running rigging has at least one free end. For this article, we’re talking about […]
by B.J. Porter (Contributing Editor) True confession – I always enjoyed clearing into countries. Not necessarily the bureaucratic parts, paperwork is paperwork. But I enjoyed pulling in somewhere new, getting a welcome to a new country, and making sure we were all legal and clear to visit where we wanted it. It’s that last step […]
by B.J. Porter (Contributing Editor) Boat shows are a blast, and you can see some of the newest tools and tech for boating, and all the latest new boats. Shows in the winter get you through the cold-weather doldrums, and shows closer to the season have in-water boat viewings and more events. Shows vary from […]
by B.J. Porter (Contributing Editor) Hey New Boaters: a lot of nautical terminology may sound pretentious or unnecessary. And some of it is. But when things are happening quickly, it’s critical to say the correct thing without fumbling for imprecise words. If you don’t know the word, you’ll be yelling stuff like “Move the thing…and […]
by B.J. Porter (Contributing Editor) Tucked up near Canada on the northwest corner of the lower forty-eight states, the San Juan Islands are a delightful archipelago with some of the most stunning cruising grounds in the U.S.. This cluster of over 100 named islands (and several hundred other unnamed rocks and islets) is a popular […]
by B.J. Porter (Contributing Editor) On the western end of the Elizabeth Islands near Cape Cod, about twelve miles south of New Bedford, MA, Cuttyhunk is a beautiful island known for good fishing, natural beauty, fantastic dockside seafood, and a tranquil setting to just kick back and relax. As you will see, Cuttyhunk isn’t a […]
by B.J. Porter (Contributing Editor) Most places that you anchor, it’s best to anchor so you swing like everyone else. Mostly boats only use a single anchor, set from the bow. This way, everyone swings through all the wind directions together as it shifts and nothing goes bump in the night. But there are times […]
by B.J. Porter (Contributing Editor) It’s the middle of the winter, so what better time to talk about…hurricanes? Hurricanes show up in June and plague the east coast until November, and can affect your boat anywhere from Florida to Maine. These tremendous storms originate in the tropics and pick up power from warm water as […]
by B.J. Porter (Contributing Editor) A ship’s log is a permanent record of where you’ve been, what happened on the way, and what you’ve done with your boat. For commercial shipping, it’s a requirement, and logs can be requested if there are any incidents or problems. So details and procedures can be quite formal. Many […]
