lightning

We left Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, at 1230 on a Friday. My husband, Hugh, my brother-in-law, Jim, and I were sailing overnight to Charleston. The early November weather was lovely and warm, with the forecast calling for light winds, mostly out of the south-southwest. We ...read more

When it comes to communications technology on bluewater sailboats, I have always been a Luddite. I never had any interest in high-frequency radios and never carried one on any of my boats, even after Pactor radio modems and the volunteer Winlink ham network dazzled us all with ...read more

In the middle of the night, 400 miles away from the Marquesas, my eyes snapped open.Something had changed; Shapeshifter, our Beneteau Oceanis 423 was heeling to a new breeze. I hopped out of my bunk and looked up the companionway. Colin, Shapeshifter’s owner, was flying around ...read more

Few things strike an uneasy feeling into a sailor’s heart like the sight of darkening storm clouds looming on the horizon, the rumble of thunder and the flash of lightning. Whether you’re watching a storm roll in from the cockpit, revving the engine to head for cover or waiting ...read more