About Small Boat Sailors2017-11-05T17:46:47-05:00

Small Boat Sailors

We’re on a journey that we hope will take us around the world someday. For now, we’ll settle on cruising on U.S. lakes and coastal waterways.

If you’re interested in sailing small boats, we invite you to explore this site. It features a variety of articles from travel to how-to, book reviews and free book downloads, boating resources and links to significant sies, as well as links to Boat US boat reviews by well-known surveyor Jack Hornor.

Learn about daysailing, cruising spots, and why small boats — both sail and power — can be thrilling and easy to add to your lifestyle.

If you have dreams of becoming a bluewater cruiser, or just cruising along the ICW, remember that dreams have a beginning and they often begin small. Sometimes those small dreams are small boats and sometimes that’s enough.

We have a plethora of articles on the topics of boat shows, boat reviews and boat instruction, as well a gear and books. We hope you enjoy and it inspires you to get on the water.

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Small Boat Sailors

Sailing Resources

Here are a few interesting and helful links:Sailing checklist: Make sure you've got everything before leaving the dockBoatUS Finance: Compute the loan cost of a new boatBoat Reviews A-W: Jack Hornor, NA, reviews sailboats for BoatUSCruising Guide SE USA: You'll want this if you travel the ICW southWaterway Guide: You'll

Sailing Checklist

Sailing Checklist Ibuprofen Water Hat/visor Sunglasses Sunscreen Lunch Towels Dry clothes Mainsail Jib Mainsheet Dock lines Sail ties Boom vang Radio GPS Cell phone Camera Gerber tool Toolbox (hand tools) PFDs (3) Boat cushions Boat tie-down straps (2) Binoculars Charts, Maps Compass Masthead float First Aid kit Fire extinguisher Zip

Hobie Makes Kayaks

Hobie Mirage Kayaks Hobie, a leading catamaran design company, expanded and introduced a line of sit-on-top kayaks, fishing kayaks and float cats. One of its more useful boats for use on local creeks, lakes and rivers is the pedal-driven Hobie Mirage Kayak. A river reputed to be “a

Boat No. 2

I admit it -- I've been waffling. There are so many awesome boats available and every time I go to a boat show I fall in love with a new one. Or one that's not suitable for our lifestyle. Lance, however, has not waffled. He's rolled his eyes a

An Affordable Way to Sail

Daysailing, also called dinghy cruising, has been described as "a magical way of exploring new coastlines and experiencing nature at close quarters." Day Sailing You don't have to wait until the bank account is full and until you have plenty of time for sailing to enjoy a daysail

Snorkeling the Tortugas

Fort Jefferson, Dry Tortugas, Florida Keys DRY TORTUGAS – If you can swim – okay, if you can float – then you can snorkel and the best snorkeling in North America is at Dry Tortugas National Park, nearly 70 miles west of Key West. Its shallow waters have

Don’t Miss the Boat Shows

MIAMI BEACH – The traffic had stalled on Collins Avenue, also known as A1A. Drivers didn’t seem to mind; their eyes were glued on the mega yachts moored in the nearby canal, part of the Miami International Boat Show at the Sea Isle Marina. Sailboats, including luxury multi-hulls, were

Too Cold in New England?

The Maryland State House is the oldest in continuous legislative use in the United States. ANNAPOLIS, MD – If winter winds on Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island aren’t your cup of tea, then consider heading south to the Chesapeake Bay and spend a weekend in historic Annapolis, Md.

eReaders for Sailors

eBooks are emerging as a true friend of the sailor: they're useful, entertaining and you can have thousands on your virtual bookcase without adding weight or taking up valuable space on your boat. If you don't know much about eBooks, this is a primer. An e-book reader also called an

Knots and Do Nots

There’s value in sailors learning how to properly tie a knot because a bad thing can happen with poorly tied knots: The boat could drift away. A short walk down a long pier on Cayuga Lake revealed an assortment of knot-tying techniques, mostly sloppy and dangerous. Wrapping a line

Consider Trailer Sailing

Trailer sailing works for powerboats and for sailboats Living in Northcentral Pennsylvania is advantageous for land-locked sailors. In addition to several large lakes and reservoirs nearby, boaters can use the Finger Lakes of New York. Trailering a boat from Williamsport to the Finger Lakes is easier

Trailer Sailing in the Northeast

Living in Northcentral Pennsylvania is advantageous for land-locked sailors. In addition to several large lakes and reservoirs nearby, boaters can use the Finger Lakes of New York. Trailering a boat from Williamsport to the Finger Lakes is easier than it sounds. It’s little more than a one-hour drive on

Hobie Makes Kayaking Fun for All

Hobie, a leading catamaran design company, has expanded and introduced a new line of sit-on-top kayaks, fishing kayaks and float cats. An interesting boat for use on local creeks, lakes and the Susquehanna is the pedal-driven Hobie Mirage Kayak. The equinox in March afforded local boaters with the opportunity

Daysailing

Daysailing can be a solo activity or a sport, such as racing around the bouys Daysailing, also called dinghy cruising, has been described as "a magical way of exploring new coastlines and experiencing nature at close quarters."You don't have to wait until the bank account is full and until

Swallows & Amazons

Swallows and Amazons: a sailing adventure series for children -- and adults Barbecued Billygoats! You mean you haven't read Swallows and Amazons or any of the other books in the 12-volume series? Technically, we're all supposed to read these books when we're children, but if you haven't

Learn to Sail the Right Way

Learn to Sail Captain Gardner Lloyd of Flagship Sailing We made the decision to learn how to sail and to purchase a sailboat in 2005 so we took Basic Keelboat (BKB 101) sailing lessons with Flagship Sailing in Clearwater, Florida. Captain Gardner Lloyd taught us the

Tony Smith’s Small Boat

ANNAPOLIS, Md — Tony Smith, designer and builder of the 28-foot Telstar trimaran and the 35-foot Gemini catamaran, has retired and has hit the road — as promised — traveling the countryside with his wife, Sue. The couple are hauling a modified Telstar to the Pacific Northwest, according to an

Finding a Small Boat

To Blave We purchased a Precision 15K in March 2006 after investigating small, trailerable boats that we could tow with our Chrysler Sebring. We can only tow 1,000 pounds, so the boat had to be light. As new sailors, however, the boat also had to be seaworthy.

Lakes Great for Beginners

The temperature simmered in the mid-90s last Sunday, but it did not deter the sailors from a rendezvous at Rose Valley Lake. As the bass boats trailered out, sailboats took their spot. There seems to be a mutual agreement – sailors do not disturb the fishermen in their early morning

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