Adventurer and disabled sailor Jazz Turner reflects on her recent record-setting UK and Ireland circumnavigation
Seamanship
Force 10 in the Channel: ‘We took a colossal wave broadside, and the cockpit was suddenly knee-deep in water’
A routine Channel crossing became a nerve-shredding passage when a ferocious storm hit, as Ron Stride recalls
Avoiding boat collisions: understanding COLREGS
If you’re at the helm, can you spot a risk of collision with another boat? Do you know when to ‘stand on’ and when to ‘give way’?
How to cope when marina berthing goes wrong
Nobody gets every tricky marina manoeuvre right first time – but what do you do if things don’t go as planned? David Harding presents an escape route
Manoeuvring in shallow waters with a bow thruster remote control
Andrew Morton explains how a bow thruster remote control helped him manoeuvre safely alongside a new jetty in potentially shallow water.
Prop walk: how to use it to your best advantage
Daria and Alex Blackwell share the close-quarters manoeuvring techniques they’ve picked up at the helm of a 57ft, heavy-displacement classic ketch
Why you should race your cruising boat
Ben Meakins finds out why – and how – PBO readers from around the UK go racing in their cruising yachts
How important is headsail trim?
PBO reader Jenny Spear wants advice on how to improv the performance of her boat's headsail. Ian Brown has this brief guide to headsail trim
Embracing electronic navigation – one reluctant boater’s tale
Celestial navigation instructor Paul Jones reluctantly got to grips with electronic navigation and is now "out of the fog and into the future"
How to use a shore line to secure a boat at anchor
Genevieve Leaper explains why, in some circumstances, using a shore line to keep the boat secure makes perfect sense
Sailing in a hurricane: How I escaped Hurricane Beryl
When I bought my first boat, I didn’t imagine that I’d soon be sailing in a hurricane, writes Ben Williams. The anchorage in Tyrell Bay was perfection. Good holding for…
Summer sailing: how to have the best time afloat!
Ali Wood gets some top tips from experienced cruisers on preparing for the perfect summer cruise
Rigging pile mooring pick-up lines
If you have a pile mooring, permanent and properly rigged pick-up lines will make life a lot easier. David Parker explains how to rig them
Tidal races, overfalls, and headlands: how to prepare for challenging waters
Sailing around a headland in the British Isles will nearly always involve an encounter with tricky tidal races and overfalls, a ‘commotion of the sea’, best visualised as broken or…
How to free a fouled anchor
A fouled anchor doesn't have to mean losing costly ground tackle. If the conditions are right, you can save the day with a mask and snorkel, says Richard Hare
‘In a flash, I was hanging on the lifelines on the wrong side of the boat’
Solo sailor Tony Purcell discovered how quickly a tricky situation can develop when he fell overboard his 42ft yacht on a busy tidal river
The dark art of night sailing
Rigorous preparation, a back-up plan and keeping warm are among the key elements of a successful and pleasurable night sail, says David Pugh
Boating on a river: tips from the experts
Machiel Lambooij, joint secretary of the Cruising Association’s Motorboat Section, shares his expert river boating knowledge
How to sail tidal estuaries safely
On tidal estuaries boat owners can become explorers. Ken Endean has advice for potential creek crawlers
How to sleep sailing shorthanded
John Apps stresses the importance of sleeping sufficiently on long-distance single-handed passages, and explains how to snatch safe naps without leaving yourself vulnerable