I’ve always found local winds fascinating. One year in France, while racing a Q Class in a classics regatta, a whole fleet of spinnakers blew up ahead of me as…
Cruising
‘We paired perfect sailing with colourful evenings ashore’: Exploring unexpected Greece by boat
The wind was dying with the light after a lively passage down the western Peloponnese, but a lumpy sea remained. As we sloshed around in the swell, my wife Maxi…
‘It quickly becomes clear that things are not good. What follows is a blur of suppressed panic and a mad fumbled search of the boat…’
Friday evening, 21 February, 2025, and we are anchored inside a reef lagoon in a remote part of Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indonesia. The entrance to the lagoon is narrow,…
Exploring the Tyrrhenian Sea and the hidden islands of Italy
A shirtless sailor in a roughed up inflatable dinghy approached as we sat in the cockpit at anchor. Along with two friends, my wife Roxy and I had just arrived…
Exploring remote British Columbia on a 210ft superyacht
The Inside Passage is one of North America’s great cruising grounds – an intricate, fjord-lined waterway stretching from Vancouver Island to Alaska. It’s a route known for its remote anchorages,…
Saint Lucia: not just a transatlantic stopover
At the end of a long transatlantic crossing, the island of Saint Lucia is a dreamlike landfall. Its hills and Atlantic-facing cliffs emerge slowly over the horizon, taking shape in…
Online sailing communities and apps: Speaking to Sailing La Vagabonde stars
Fleeting acquaintance has always been part of sailing, particularly for bluewater cruisers. A friendship struck up over a rum cocktail or a kids’ playdate in one anchorage might be rekindled…
Cruising around Japan: ‘Small fishing ports on far flung islands became potential cruising destinations’
Far ahead on the horizon we saw the sweep of a lighthouse and the pin pricks of street lamps along the coast. We did some quick maths – the number…
Island-hopping across the vast Indian Ocean
There’s a saying among sailors that plans are only ever made in the sand at low tide. Sailing the world requires meticulous planning and preparation – but also the ability…
Sailing to the remote islands of Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea
For a month, the boys had been hidden in the mountains with their uncles. They had their noses pierced with bamboo and stayed in the ceremonial hut for three nights,…
Croatia is a yacht charter destination that is chock-full of surprises
Why charter? To have a deserved break afloat; to sail somewhere different; to try before you buy, especially if deciding between monohull and multihull; to see if it’s something your…
Let’s Go Offroad… Sailing? Cruising the Gulf of Bothnia
The massive structure of Svartklubben lighthouse looms on the horizon. Standing on the small Swedish island of Singö, it guards the entrance to the Gulf of Bothnia. Passing it feels…
Jimmy Cornell: ‘Some of my most memorable sailing was due to unforseen detours’
When it comes to regrets, I have none. But on all my voyages the golden rule has been to know what NOT to do. I learned that valuable lesson on…
‘We had not really planned to go to Vanuatu, but had no other choice’
I’m looking up at an almost naked young man 60 feet in the air. He’s balancing on a platform built of sticks and branches, raised on a mountain top in…
How to go cruising in the Baltic this winter
Sailing in the Baltic is increasingly popular, and for all the right reasons: beautiful cruising grounds, lovely weather, interesting history and hospitable countries. But the 90-day limit for non-Schengen passport…
Cruising the coast of Taiwan: A culture rich in seafaring history
We were still five miles from port when we realised that clearing into Taiwan might not be as simple as we’d hoped. Our VHF radio crackled into life and a…
Skip Novak’s sailing adventure to survey endangered albatross: ‘We threaded through a wall of crystalline icebergs’
The mood on the Vinson of Antarctica was a wee bit on edge. Justino was staring into the radar in the pilothouse and Dion was all eyes on deck in…
Cruising in Corsica and Sardinia: gelato, marine reserves, and medieval history
Thinking of cruising in Corsica and Sardinia? Given its strategic position in the heart of the western Mediterranean, it’s hardly surprising that Corsica has been invaded, conquered and colonised many…
The sailing trip of a lifetime where the Australian Outback meets the sea
“That sea sure is mean,” our kind driver observes as my salty trio climbs into his truck, fresh off a rough-and-tumble crossing of the Gulf of Carpentaria. After 48 hours…
WATCH: Orca yacht sinking – Sailor shares details of two-hour orca encounter which sank his yacht off Spain
Robert Powell and his crew were five miles off the Spanish coast in 40m of water when orcas disabled the yacht's rudder before ramming the hull, causing it to crack;…