Eight 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.
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.
Colin takes us to the legendary among cruisers, idyllic and sheltered Bras d’Or Lakes of Nova Scotia.
Managing 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.
A simple guide from Colin on how to select, manage and (perhaps?) enjoy your stay in the boatyard, wherever it may be.
In 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.
Colin’s eagerly anticipated update on his involvement in the 2018 Golden Globe Race as project manager for one of the competitors.
Colin 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.
Colin 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.
You 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.
Lovers 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.
Colin 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.
Colin 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.
Never 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.
Some 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.
Solar, wind and hydro generation, it’s all here—real practical advice from an experienced voyager who has walked the walk, not just talked the talk.
Information you need to put together a bullet-poof anchoring system—solid gear recommendations that have been tested in the real world.
There are few activities in the voyaging life that cause more anxiety and stress than anchoring, so here are the techniques you need to get anchored and stay anchored every time.
A complete, but simple, protocol to get the very best life out of batteries—real information that works based on 25 years of live-aboard experience.
Most sailors have thought about transitioning to a power boat, even if only as a way to stay on the water as we age. Here are the issues and options for a sailor’s power boat.
A sailor with decades of experience as a research boat skipper in demanding conditions builds his dream voyaging boat—we can all learn a lot.
Considering buying a boat with a carbon fibre mast or replacing your existing aluminum mast with carbon? The benefits and drawbacks of carbon fibre for voyaging boat masts.
Online Book on docking (coming alongside) that will truly take the drama out of this every day activity for cruisers both power and sail.
There are literally thousands of snug harbours on the east coast of Canada—these cruising notes, collected over twenty-five years sailing this coast, will make planning your voyage easier.
Seasickness is the great spoiler of offshore voyaging—tips and wisdom for fighting off the dreaded mal-de-mer and what to do once it strikes.
An analysis of what makes an ideal cruising boat engine, together with a step-by-step account of a highly successful repower.
If you can’t get along with your crew, your cruise will not be a success. Chock full of practical tips on crew management.
John, Phyllis, Christopher and Colin write about what you need to do to get out cruising and have fun when you do.
The options for storm survival from heaving-to to drogue deployment with a step-by-step guide to putting together an easy to deploy and retrieve system.
The critical issues that you need to understand before you buy a cruising boat. Time-tested tips to help you determine what really matters.
A look at the loss of several yachts and what we can learn from each—reading this book could save your boat…and maybe your life.
Do you dream of sailing in turquoise waters? Join “Pélerin” on a voyage in the Caribbean. Colin weaves a travel tale like only he can.
Often what will really govern how much fun and how safe your cruise will be is how good you are at maintaining your boat.
How to prepare for every voyaging sailor’s worst nightmare—a medical emergency at sea. Medical kits, emergency medical training, it’s all here.
The fruits of a combined century of navigation, much of it before electronic gadgets, and then we relate that experience to modern electronic navigation.
Knowing the difference between a boat that will work inshore and one that can go to sea could save you from making a terrible and expensive boat-buying mistake.
If you fall overboard from a short-handed boat, you are probably not going to be rescued. Tips and procedures that will help keep you and your loved ones on the boat.
Telling the story of your voyage in photographs. Techniques and gear tips that will make you a better photographer.
Setting, reefing and striking sails and doing it in challenging conditions—tips, techniques, gear, sail selection and rigging.
A different and much more interesting transatlantic than the classic milk run, with valuable voyage planning and execution information.
In the market for a boat to take you to out-of-the-way places in safety? Even if you don’t buy a Boréal, you will learn a huge amount about what makes a good expedition boat.
There is nothing more important to an offshore boat than keeping the water out. Here are real practical tips.
Step-by-step methods to receive weather information while offshore and in remote places.
A voyaging sailboat that would be ready to take you around the world in safety and comfort for US$200,000.
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