How to paint your boat like a pro; the best navigation apps for UK waters; My 14 biggest boat ownership mistakes; how one couple refitted…
Practical Boat Owner
September 2026 – out on 6 August
Watchkeeping, sleep patterns and short-handed passages – a guide to night sailing; Orca navigation system tested over a 450 mile voyage; Could you be a…
UK cetaceans: How to spot and identify whales and dolphins from your boat
One spring day when I was a teenager, we were sailing across Poole Bay as we had many times before. All of a sudden, an unremarkable day turned into a…
Fairey Swordsman 30: A crowd-pleasing jet boat with James Bond connections
Willie Bewes, retired director of Transworld Yachts, had a successful career selling large numbers of Swedish Hallberg-Rassy cruising yachts to the British market. But despite this commercial success his boating…
Why counting UK seabirds as a sailing hobby is an educational addiction
For starters, there were more species of UK seabirds than I’d expected. I couldn’t mistake the chittering tirricks, or Arctic terns, Shetland’s white swallows, but I’d vaguely lumped common guillemots…
Perplexed by marine engines? Read the RYA Diesel Engine handbook
The RYA Diesel Engine Handbook is indispensable for understanding marine engines. If you want to maintain your boat engine, and even have a go at fixing it when things go…
Freestanding masts: Why more cruisers should go wireless
You see a yacht with a mast, or masts held up with no rigging and think: ‘What’s going on? Why does it not fall over? This must be wrong –…
British rivals to Sailing La Vagabonde? Introducing Sailing Cadoha
I’m not just talking in terms of popularity. The UK is certainly well represented among the most popular sailing vlogs (Sailing Ruby Rose, Adventures of an old Seadog, and Sailing…
Nomads of the wind – an article by James Wharram
In light of the recent passing of pioneering multihull designer James Wharram, we share his PBO October 1994 article, published for the first time online
Fair winds to pioneering multihull designer James Wharram
Fair winds to free-spirited sailor and pioneering multihull designer James Wharram who passed away on 14 December, at the age of 93
Drascombe Drifter 22 Mk II review: The modern classic trailer sailer reborn
For such a venerable name in the world of boating as Drascombe, the launch of a new model is quite an occasion. And so it was back in 2008, when…
Resealing mushroom vents: How to keep your boat watertight
When Old Duck came into my possession she was not in the best shape. The first thing on my ‘To-Do’ list was to fix all the boat leaks – if…
What’s the best boat paint for topsides? Ask the experts
PBO reader David McDermott of Saundersfoot, Pembrokeshire asks: “Because of the Coronavirus pandemic we didn’t put our Prospect 900 into the harbour this year so instead we aim to spend…
February 2022 – out Dec 23
Antifouling; budget, eco or longest lifespan?; PBO Project Boat dodgy wiring tackled; Katie McCabe shares her round-Britain adventures; Fairey Swordsman 30 and 20 pages of DIY...
How to convert a classic motorboat to electric power – Ask the experts
Jon Wallsgrove of Sunbury on Thames asks: “Under restoration is my classic 1946 Thames launch that I’d like to convert to electric propulsion. “Merlin III is a 12ft Kay Craft.…
What’s the best boat fuel? Is it worth paying for premium? Ask the experts
PBO reader Roy Gwilliam asks: “I have a Yanmar 3YM20 engine in my Dehler 32, built in 2010. I generally use red diesel with the belief that it does not…
Katie McCabe: “How I sailed solo around Britain, aged 14”
I had lived on a boat since I was two weeks old aboard Ros Ailither, a 50ft fishing trawler my parents had spent five years converting and restoring. I spent…
Want to know what it’s like to cross an ocean? Watch these videos…
Ginormous fish, a daring rescue, ripped spinnaker and whale encounters are just a few of the tales we heard as the crews of this year’s ARC+ arrived in Grenada. For…
Mon and Brec Canal boating: Lessons learned from our first inland experience
For years my wife, Ann, and I have been Greek Mediterranean cruisers – we keep our Moody Eclipse Aderyn Glas in Preveza, but haven’t been able to visit since the…
Dramatic footage shows moment tow-line snaps in rescue of dismasted yacht
The 28ft French vessel was spotted on Sunday by Alfie and Ceylan Moore, who were sailing across the Atlantic on the ARC+ rally with friend Stu Finch and Alfie’s mum…
Dispose or polish? What to do with old diesel – Ask the experts
PBO reader Martyn Crossland asks: “I have a 1989 Beneteau Oceanis 320 that I bought in Greece in 2009. I spent two months restoring her, and then had two months…
Channel Hopping: Lee Shores, Lazy Jacks and Lunches is back, and better than ever
Flying home to France after a week in London on business, I was treated to lovely views of the Solent. It made me so homesick that I just had to…