(Part 2) Reddit mentions: The best boating books

The Complete Sailor, by Seidman & Mulford.

I'm reading the second edition of the Slight / DK manual at present, and IMO it's quite poor. It features an incorrect theory of aerofoils [more], and the layout is a bit cluttered, but most importantly it's badly written. Sentences are poorly phrased, with repeated and redundant words, whole descriptions are a messy clusterfuck, and the author uses nautical words which it doesn't explain or define (and I'm sure at least once wasn't in the index).

I was impressed by The Complete Sailor when I read it, my first sailing book, but having read two more in the intervening weeks, my opinion has only hardened.

It is a beautifully and elegantly constructed work, and I say that not just because of Mulford's illustrations - he does deserve as much credit as Seidman - but also for the layout and the way topics are handled. Each page or pair of facing pages covers a single topic, and there's something particularly impressive in how it's explained in a way that the reader can understand - the book starts by talking about the wind, and thereafter every term or concept that is used to explain the current topic is one that has been explained already, previously in the book.

I really think that the authors deserve a lot of credit for how they lay a foundation of information and then build upon it - they make everything simple and logical, and any time you think "what does that mean?" you know that it's already been covered, and it's easy to flip back to the right section. The authors have taken a lot of information about a complicated subject, and made it really accessible.

The Complete Sailor also focuses more on the core concepts of sailing and seamanship than the other books do - they make more digressions about types of life preserver, wood vs GRP, details of yacht vs dinghy, and key dates in yachting history.

I haven't read Sailing for Dummies, but Herreshoff's Sailor's Handbook is pretty good, and I'd recommend anyone pick up a secondhand or remaindered copy to set alongside Complete Sailor. There's probably some stuff in the former that the latter skips.

The Dorling Kindersley book, though, just feels a bit like marketing-orientated writing - it's a thick book, full of high quality glossy photos and clean modern illustrations; it probably looks commanding in the store, and it'll probably be bought as a present by mothers and grandmas for teenagers who have developed an interest in the sport. Nevertheless, it's cluttered, hard to read and factually wrong.

I know that I could have expressed this comparison with more clarity, but it's late here, so I can only apologise.

The best way to learn how to sail and make mistakes. But you can not learn how to sail on your own. The best way to get your feet wet is by taking a few classes at your local sailing club (There is one in every puddle.) or buming rides on peoples boats.

After a few boat rides or "lessons" (same thing as boat rides), you will know if you still like sailing. At that point, decide if you want to sail small boats or keel boats. Either way, before you go buy your own boat, sail on one. People are always looking for crew. Shop around. Find a boat that sails often, the skipper knows what he or she is doing, and you like the boat. Crewing for really good sailors will make you a better sailor in the long run. Ask lots of questions. Make sure you sail with a skipper or boat that answers those questions. If they don't find a different boat.

When you feel comfortable (and you have the budget) buy a boat (or join a club). Ask really good sailors to crew for you. You'll get really good at sailing really fast. Just remember to always listen, ask questions and swallow your pride.

Sailing is a life long passion. It is in your soul to be a sailor or not. A true sailor is always learning and is never shy of asking questions and learning from their mistakes. Just remember, you will get wet. You will break things. You will get yelled at. You will have fun and have great sailors yarns in the end.

But if your a true armchair sailor, I have taught classes from the US sailing, Learn Sailing Right! Beginning Sailing book.
http://www.amazon.com/Learn-Sailing-Right-Beginning-Certification/dp/0979467721
http://store.ussailing.org/browse.cfm/learn-sailing-right-begin/4,145.html

Don't sweat the growth below the waterline. Heck that happens to boats that are underway.

You'll probably have a hard time getting insurance, in part because of the age of the boat and in part because you haven't owned a boat before. You may have to "self insure", which will limit your moorage options as some marina require insurance. Insurance companies will also require a survey, usually from a list of surveyors that they work with.

To find moorage, just walk or drive around the likely areas and look for "moorage available" signs and start calling. Some cities and other quasi-government agencies have marinas (e.g. the Port of Seattle), which can sometimes be a great deal. Finally, ask the people that are auctioning the boat, as they will obviously have a slip available, and will have a working relationship with some of the other marina owners nearby.

Haul outs always include the power wash AFAIK. Haul outs aren't that expensive; in my neck of the woods they're about $400. Call some nearby yards. Alternatively, for a lot less you can hire a diver to get the worst of it off of the bottom, check the hull for damage (blistering, grounding, etc.), etc.

I don't think that $5k is nearly the worst you can expect for an engine. It's unlikely given the current owner's work on the boat, but if you have to repower then it will cost a lot more than $5k. Chances are, it'll just need an oil change, fuel filters and fresh fuel.

An acquaintance of mine just spent $15k on new sails for his Baba 35. He got a ton of new sails, but you may want to up your estimate there if you're sure you want new sails.

You can get a once over from a surveyor for a few hundred dollars. They won't have time for much of a check, but you'll get an idea of the structure and the rig, and possibly of the diesel. More importantly, the surveyor will also be able to ballpark the boat's value, which will be invaluable (ha!) during the auction.

Pro tip: Go back to the marina, sit on the dock in front of the boat, and just look at it for a while. Is this the boat that meets your needs? 39' and 10 tons is pretty big for day sailing and weekend trips, and will be more expensive to maintain and moor, but then again maybe you want experience with heavy, long keel boats. Mentally work through the rigging, talk through raising the sails, see if there's anything crazy about it. When other people from the marina walk by, ask them about it, some may have been aboard. That hour on the dock may save you the cost of the mini-survey.

If you decide to go ahead, read this book three times: Inspecting the Aging Sailboat. Go in with a checklist.

P.S. Please post with the auction results. I hope this works out for you.

Edit: Are you guys in Seattle? If so, I might have seen this boat. Is it Lucky Lindy, over at Shilshole?

I bought a pretty damn serviceable Catalina 25 Tall Rig for $2000. I did quite a few things to it before it went back in the water, but as-is, short of new running rigging (less than $200 if you shop around) it was ready for the water right away.

On the other hand, I also bought a Macgregor 25 for $1000 that's still pretty much a basket case, and have put it aside so I can enjoy the Catalina for the season. The biggest difference between the two boats was that after spending 6 months on the Macgregor I knew what warning signs to look for that a boat was going to be more work than it's worth.

Just like anything else, be ready to walk away, don't be in a hurry, and keep your eyes open for the right deal.

See also: http://www.amazon.com/Fix-Sail-Everything-Sailboat-Shoestring-ebook/dp/B000JMKOUU/ and http://www.amazon.com/This-Old-Boat-Second-Completely-ebook/dp/B0013TRRNK/.

I'm sure you'll get better suggestions, but since this was the text for my CoNav class and I'm familiar with it, you can try the US Sailing Coastal Navigation book.

A look at Amazon reveals a number of others that look promising, so I'm curious to see what others suggest for you. One that caught my eye was Prinet's Coastal Navigation, as a very brief peek at excerpts suggests it may do a better job of explaining some of the concepts. It also has a companion text with exercises that you might find useful to work through.

All in the Same Boat by Tom Neale was one of the cruising books that inspired me the most before I bought my first boat and started living aboard in 1994. http://www.amazon.com/All-Same-Boat-Family-Cruising/dp/0070464340 I also highly recommend Beth Leonard's Voyager's Handbook. Both highly inspirational and very informative. I've also interviewed dozens of real cruisers that are voyaging all over the world and am publishing these interviews on a YouTube channel called DrakeParagon. Here's a video that compiles some of my favorite parts from many of them. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEuBLeVZrgs Fair winds, Drake

It has always been a pissing contest among the super rich. Since the Lipton-funded challenges. For the interested - this is a really fun book about the early days of "the cup".

This style of canoe was the origin of the more durable wood and canvas canoe. In his [book] (http://www.amazon.com/The-Wood-Canvas-Canoe-Construction/dp/0884480461) Rollin Thurlow details the construction and history of the wood and canvas version and relates it to these old bark canoes.

I know this is only semi-relevant, but I really like wood and canvas canoes, and if anyone is interested in making their own canoe, I highly recommend this book

Books:
Sea Kayaking Illustrated: A Visual Guide to Better Paddling

Sea Kayak: A Manual for Intermediate and Advanced Sea Kayakers

Sea Kayak Rescue: The Definitive Guide To Modern Reentry And Recovery Techniques

Fundamentals of Kayak Navigation

Other tips:

a) Join a club if there is one near you.
or: Join groups with the same interest near you
Generally the quickest way to learn. Ask in forums as well.

b) You already mentioned courses. Def. do them. This is the best way to improve your technique.

c) Practise. Practise. Just paddle around, sometimes test and extend your limits in safe conditions (example: Go out in windy to stormy weather with waves [<7bft, on really big lakes <6bft] with onshore wind on a bigger lake you know well. Keep near the shore, learn how to paddle in waves. Paddle parallel to waves. Just get experience. If you fall in, worst case the wind will blow you onto the shore soon(ish). Know your equipment, always wear a PFD, have apaddlefloat, pump, reserve paddle & paddle leash, comms device and ideally a buddy. Train rescue & reentry first. Tell people where you are and when to expect you back)

d) Read a few blogs from people who did long runs on rivers and oceans. Even if they've used an open canoe, you can still learn a lot (equipment, conditions, duration and so on)

e) Maybe some youtube videos, but thats - in my experience - a bad source for kayaking. Lots of people who don't know what they are doing but think they are professionals.


For the multi-month solo trip: Your space is very limited in a kayak. It will be hard to get enough food for longer trips. For long tours a canoe is way better, although not really seaworthy. Don't go alone.

I had a folbot super years ago. Now I have a Longhaul Mk 2--folding kayaks are great. I was going to recommend Ralph Diaz's book, the Complete Folding Kayaker, but it's out of print--and used copies are pretty pricey!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0071408096/ref=dp_olp_0?ie=UTF8&condition=all

High indeed... that's awesome. Have you read this? It's a good book for anyone building, owning, or even just interested in wooden boats; but for you, it's pretty much a must!

Don't be intimidated by one of the most rewarding parts of camping, ie.. playing around with rope and stuff.

Just get some and start practicing knots, it's big fun and a very useful skill to have.

Check out this site for some decent instructions on setting things up, and even how to make some stuff your self and save gobs of cash.

Two books on knots I can recommend that aren't prohibitively expensive are this and this. That 60 dollar price is wrong, I don't know what's up with that, but that books should be around 16-20 bucks.

Of course this is the 'bible' of knots, though a bit pricier. I don't own it, but wish I'd gotten it instead of those other two.. meh.

A word of warning.. If you start asking about hammocks, someone is going to point you toward the hammock forums. I won't tell you to avoid that forum, but be careful there. There are some dubious characters there, and the forum as a whole will steer you in the wrong direction for sure.

Pick and choose, especially if you have more time than money.

I wouldn't buy anything from any of the members, or any of the 'cottage industries' often linked there. Their ethics being questionable, at best.

Depends on the boat and the sailor. Google Frank and Margaret Dye, or just order this:

http://www.amazon.com/Ocean-Crossing-Wayfarer-Iceland-Norway/dp/0713675683

But honestly, if you have to ask people on reddit I'm not sure you're totally ready for this. Read the book, google around, read some more, sail more, etc. Don't be crazy and get yourself in over your head. Sailing is for fun, right?

A couple books on Blackadar:

Never Turn Back

Fast and Cold (only part s about Blackadar).

The Susitna got attention in the '70s on account of a proposed dam. The dam is back in the planning stages.

The Susitna is an amazing river, and most people in southcentral Alaska know it primarily for its huge salmon runs, with no idea there is some world class water upstream.

Another classic story from Devil's Canyon.

Happy summer everyone, it's time to break the paddles out!

I think most other people will cover the good points. Some are broad topics like food planning and lodging. Some are small topics like not forgetting to sunblock the underside of your chin and watching for bedsores on your ass.

There are two books I consider definitive for what you want to do in terms of paddling: this and this. The first book is for the neophyte who wants to learn as much as possible before setting out on an adventure. The second book is about kayaking rivers and while many techniques will be beyond what you're planning to do, it pays to be aware of the situations that can arise on rivers before you run into them. Kayaking a river is very different from kayaking flat water, and not many books make this distinction very well. I consider both books to be definitive for what they are, and the vast majority of advice I could give you is contained in them.

Also buy the movie "Paddle to Seattle". It's a small independent film- google it and buy it from the guys who made it. It's cheap and is two guys chronicling a trip they made with a lot of similarities to what you're doing.

I had ZERO interest in sailing until I read Lance Gettler's thread "Ask Me Anything About Sailing Around the World" on a poker forum. Lance's story is the classic, "sell everything you own, buy a boat, and sail around the world" stories that probably starts a lot, but rarely finishes. He turned it into an ebook that you can get from Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Anything-About-Sailing-Around-World-ebook/dp/B008W5BS88

Easily worth five bucks.

those people dismissing him as a rich kid have never been blue water sailing. Rolling waves 30-40 feet high can be the norm and keeping watch at night tests your sanity.

also, you don't need to be rich to sail the world.

http://www.amazon.com/This-Old-Boat-Don-Casey/dp/0071579931/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1411674940&sr=8-2&keywords=this+old+boat

Yes. He wrote the bible for the modern yachtsman crossing oceans. Incredibly useful book from an accomplished sailor. Most cruisers have a copy, and if you leave port without a copy when you go cruising, you will certainly pick one up on the way.

When cruiser talk about the best route for a passage in some remote anchorage, his book will nearly always make a appearance. To the extent that you can read someones World Cruising Routes on their boat, but don't even dare try borrowing it.

I've had people here recommend me some good books on this topic:

Inspecting the Aging Sailboat - Don Casey

For fiberglass specifically:
Surveying Fiberglass Sailboats - Henry C. Mustin

Hmm, they like Costco Corn Dogs, though there are issues with cooking them.

They like Battlefield 3.

I think they like Depeche Mode.

Maybe this

DO NOT: Buy them a dog. Get them anything about not being a sexist troll. A Philadelphia guide book.

Here is a good book on canvas canoes.


And you can look around the forums on the whca website for more advice and tips.

You're entitled to think that.

Here's a book you can read to be sure

And this.

http://www.amazon.com/World-Cruising-Routes-Jimmy-Cornell/dp/007159289X

In 30 years, you won't care about 90k. But you'll remember the passage from the Tuamotus to the Marquesas and lazying around in the greek sun like yesterday.