John

We all have navigation lights, and many of us AIS transponders too, so we assume that other vessels can easily see us at night, but can they really? John shares some tips learned from a real life night encounter with another yacht.

John is back out cruising and thinking about great anchorages, small cruising boats, camping and prime lenses.

What about using a climbing harness with tether for Person Overboard Prevention? John takes a look at this oft-suggested idea.

Bringing a boat alongside in good order is one thing when it's calm, and quite another when it's blowing the dog off the chain. John shares step-by-step instructions on how to make a good safe docking in big breeze, with no drama, shouting, or crashes.

Phyllis and John are out cruising again. Here's what that means for Attainable Adventure Cruising members.

John takes a look at the innovative TeamO Backtow Lifejacket/Harness.

There are endless debates on forums about which is the best GRIB viewer, but most miss a key selection criteria. John shares what that is.

The key to stress free approaches to wharves and floating docks (docking) is in understanding and anticipating what the boat will do in the final few seconds. John shares this vital information.

Many cruisers miss out on the most sheltered berths in a harbour, but it does not have to be that way. Master this one close-quarters boat-handling skill, and getting in and out of tight places, even with a wind blowing, becomes easy.

Phyllis and I are taking a 10-day holiday (vacation) while my daughter and our granddaughter are visiting. This will be our first holiday in two years from our six-posts-a-month publishing schedule and daily work in the comments and, to be frank, we need the break, particularly since the behind-the-scenes work here at AAC, including accounting, tax compliance, [...]

During the some 35 years that John has owned offshore cruising boats, he has made some deeply stupid maintenance and gear decisions. Here's his latest blunder and what we can all learn from it.

In the last two chapters we looked at whether we even need a get-home option for an offshore motorboat and concluded we do, so we looked at six options. In this chapter John reveals his winner, and why.

There are benefits and drawbacks to all get-home backup power options for offshore motorboats, which makes this vital decision surprisingly difficult. John shines a bright light on the tradeoffs of each option.

When designing an offshore motorboat one of the first decisions we must make is what we intend to do if the main engine fails far from land or help. John takes a deep dive into this complex issue.