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Coastal Passages, Part 2—Rounding Headlands
23 CommentsReading Time: 8 minutesMembers
Read more: Coastal Passages, Part 2—Rounding HeadlandsIn the first chapter in this five part series, Colin shared his overall planning process. He now moves on to a more detailed look at the features that almost always control how we approach and execute a passage: headlands and capes.
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Coastal Passages, Part 1—Making a Plan, 10 Tips
19 CommentsReading Time: 7 minutesMembers
Read more: Coastal Passages, Part 1—Making a Plan, 10 TipsMany voyagers worry most about ocean passages but, in fact, the dangers are far higher on a coastal passage. Colin, who has made countless passages along one of the most challenging coasts anywhere, is eminently qualified to guide us through the coastal passage planning process.
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SARCA Excel Anchor—A Real World Test
57 CommentsReading Time: 11 minutesMembers
Read more: SARCA Excel Anchor—A Real World TestColin’s in-depth, real-world test and review of the SARCA Excel anchor, based on a season of use in a cruising ground that is notoriously difficult to anchor in.
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Colin on Anchoring
65 CommentsReading Time: 8 minutesMembers
Read more: Colin on AnchoringColin shares some techniques he was reminded of while spending the summer cruising the south coast of Newfoundland, a challenging place to anchor if ever there was one.
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The Southwest Coast of Newfoundland—An Introduction
22 CommentsReading Time: 8 minutesFree
Read more: The Southwest Coast of Newfoundland—An IntroductionColin carries on with the story of their 2018 cruise: A nerve jangling approach, deserted anchorages, a spooky abandoned village and managing a boat mechanical problem of the type that seem to plague us all sooner or later—a tale of real cruising.
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Cabot Strait—Alias “The Chuck”
17 CommentsReading Time: 9 minutesFree
Read more: Cabot Strait—Alias “The Chuck”Colin carries on with his tale of an unsurprisingly unpleasant crossing to Newfoundland with a surprisingly pleasant landfall.
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Getting Back Into The Cruising Life—2018 Season on Pèlerin
8 CommentsReading Time: 7 minutesFree
Read more: Getting Back Into The Cruising Life—2018 Season on PèlerinThe first of Colin’s voyaging articles on their 2018 season cruising Atlantic Canada.
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The Golden Globe Race 2018—And They’re Off
9 CommentsReading Time: 6 minutesFree
Read more: The Golden Globe Race 2018—And They’re OffThe Golden Globe Race 2018 has started, and Colin, who lives in Falmouth, site of the feeder race start, takes a look at the boats and the competitors.
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Boréal Yachts—Eight Years On
34 CommentsReading Time: 6 minutesMembers
Read more: Boréal Yachts—Eight Years OnEight years ago a new boat builder launched one of the most innovative cruising boats we have seen in a generation. Since then, Colin has been an eye witness to, and participant in, making those boats ever better. Now he and Managing Director Jean-Francois Eeman sit down to discuss what Boréal has accomplished and reveal some of their plans for the future.
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There’s A Light…
18 CommentsReading Time: 2 minutesFree
Read more: There’s A Light…There’s so much writing about the latest and greatest gear in the cruiser’s world. Here’s a pleasant break from that in which Colin shares simpler gear that takes him back to a time when his fascination and love for voyaging was still fresh and new.
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The Bras d’Or Lakes—And Now For Something Completely Different…
20 CommentsReading Time: 7 minutesFree
Read more: The Bras d’Or Lakes—And Now For Something Completely Different…Colin takes us to the legendary among cruisers, idyllic and sheltered Bras d’Or Lakes of Nova Scotia.
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Surviving The Boatyard—Part 2
18 CommentsReading Time: 9 minutesMembers
Read more: Surviving The Boatyard—Part 2Managing a boatyard stay is all about good planning and getting the details right. Colin provides vital tips that will help from haul to re-launch.
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Surviving The Boatyard—Part 1
24 CommentsReading Time: 8 minutesMembers
Read more: Surviving The Boatyard—Part 1A simple guide from Colin on how to select, manage and (perhaps?) enjoy your stay in the boatyard, wherever it may be.
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The Golden Globe Race—The Boats and the Refits
30 CommentsReading Time: 8 minutesMembers
Read more: The Golden Globe Race—The Boats and the RefitsIn Part 3 of his analysis of the Golden Globe Race, Colin examines the boats selected, cost of refits, and most importantly, how that relates to realistic budgets for cruisers planning to buy an old boat and upgrade it for ocean voyaging.
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The Golden Globe Race—The Good News and The Bad News
33 CommentsReading Time: 7 minutesFree
Read more: The Golden Globe Race—The Good News and The Bad NewsColin’s eagerly anticipated update on his involvement in the 2018 Golden Globe Race as project manager for one of the competitors.
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Cruising: It’s a Fine Life…If You Don’t Weaken
35 CommentsReading Time: 8 minutesFree
Read more: Cruising: It’s a Fine Life…If You Don’t WeakenColin writes about a cruise that didn’t turn out as planned—something all cruisers will face at some point. All you can do then is pick yourself up and keep going. We saved this one from last season to motivate all us northern hemisphere cruisers to get stuff fixed and get out there.
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Boat Heating—Part II
58 CommentsReading Time: 10 minutesMembers
Read more: Boat Heating—Part IIColin carries on with his analysis of boat heating systems covering propane heaters and diesel furnaces, both forced air, and water circulation as well as radiators that harvest waste heat from the engine.
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Boat Heating—Part I
39 CommentsReading Time: 8 minutesMembers
Read more: Boat Heating—Part IYou don’t need to be heading for the high latitudes to appreciate the benefits of a boat heater. Just drying the boat out can be reason enough to make installing a heater worthwhile. But which type is best? Colin shines a light on the options.
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Sailing With Sea Monsters
11 CommentsReading Time: 7 minutesFree
Read more: Sailing With Sea MonstersLovers of Colin’s lyrical and entertaining articles have a treat coming: he has written a whole book about his decades of professional sailing and work in basking shark conservation.
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8 Radar Use Tips
36 CommentsReading Time: 5 minutesMembers
Read more: 8 Radar Use TipsColin and John have teamed up to share the fruits of some 70 years of combined radar use experience much of it in the foggiest (Atlantic Canada) and highest traffic (English Channel) areas of the world.
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Navigation in Fog—Underway
30 CommentsReading Time: 9 minutesMembers
Read more: Navigation in Fog—UnderwayColin has covered gear and preparation for navigating in fog. Now we get to the meat of it: what to do when underway and the visibility shuts down. Includes a vital section on the rules of the road in fog.
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Navigation in Fog—Preparation
37 CommentsReading Time: 7 minutesMembers
Read more: Navigation in Fog—PreparationNever was the old axiom proper preparation prevents poor performance more relevant than when cruising foggy places. Colin gives us an in-depth check list to run through before we leave port.
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Navigating in Fog—The Tools
27 CommentsReading Time: 12 minutesMembers
Read more: Navigating in Fog—The ToolsSome of the best cruising grounds in the world are plagued with fog, so it pays to have the necessary gear as well as navigation and collision-avoidance skills—will make you safer at night too. Colin starts off a three part series with an in-depth analysis of the tools to have when the visibility shuts down.
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Shelburne, Carters Beach, and Lunenburg, Nova Scotia—A Land of Discovery
37 CommentsReading Time: 8 minutesFree
Read more: Shelburne, Carters Beach, and Lunenburg, Nova Scotia—A Land of DiscoveryAn historical and friendly town, a pristine beach, and an UNESCO World Heritage site: Nova Scotia has it all and Colin is back with his unique travel writer’s voice to tell us about cruising there.
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Cape Sable—The Cape Horn Of Nova Scotia
3 CommentsReading Time: 6 minutesFree
Read more: Cape Sable—The Cape Horn Of Nova ScotiaCape Sable is beset by ferocious tides and uneven shoals. Throw in regular doses of dense fog and you’ll need no convincing to avoid this place in bad weather. With the right weather and timing, however, you can have a pleasant rounding, opening up the whole Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia for you to explore.
