Series

August 2016

Navigator

A beach-cruising centerboard yawl

The Navigator started out as a sailing club’s racing trainer, but it became John Welsford's most popular design after he turned it into a long-range cruising dinghy.

July 2016

LADY LOUISE

A Candlefish 13

Small Boats Monthly reader Scott Rowley read about the Candlefish outboard skiff in our April 2015 issue and decided it not only would be a good tender for his sailboat, but also better suited than his car for taking his family of four, not to mention the dachshund, out to dinner and visiting friends near his South Puget Sound peninsula home.

July 2016

Makita Blade Sharpener

Quick, sharp edges

Sharp edge tools can save you a lot of time when you’re working with wood, but sharpening your blades by hand can nibble away at those savings. The Makita wet-wheel sharpening tool can give you razor-sharp edges in a fraction of the time.

July 2016

Exped Mats

Uncommon comfort

Getting a good night’s sleep is the best way to get your day off to a good start. Two sleeping mats by Exped that are as good as any mattress at home.

July 2016

Tsimshian anchoring

Dropping the anchor while standing ashore

When you come ashore for a quick stop or for an overnight stay, Tsimshian anchoring is a simple way to keep your boat afloat and off the beach.

July 2016

The Race to Alaska

High Hopes, Dogged Determination

In a race as long and as arduous as the 2015 R2AK, coming in last can be counted as a victory. The weather took a heavy toll on the race fleet—many of the boats withdrew and a few needed to be rescued.

July 2016

Glen-L 15

Building experience

When Kelsey Johnson decided he wanted a boat for exploring the lakes near his British Columbia home, he had never sailed a boat, let alone built one. The Glen L-15 turned out to be the perfect introduction for both boatbuilding and sailing.

Small Boats Annual 2017July 2016

Atkinson Traveler

The pinnacle of wilderness canoes

The Atkinson Traveler is Rollin Thurlow’s favorite canoe, and that’s saying something because Rollin has been building canoes in Maine for 38 years. We’ll take a look at what makes this wood-and-canvas canoe stand out among all the others he has built.

June 2016

ELLANDELL

After his kids were grown, Elliot Arons had plenty of free time but spent a lot of it planted in front of the TV. A dream of building a sailboat and a Penobscot 17 kit from Arch Davis got him off the couch.

June 2016

Pocket Puller

Safe, easy hauling of pots and anchors

The Thomas Pocket Puller can help you haul crabpots and anchors aboard without dragging a line over the rail and wearing through your boat's finish.

June 2016

NewGrips

Cool comfort

Rowing is hard on the hands and most gloves only exacerbate the problem. NewGrips aren’t anything like gloves, and that’s why they work to prevent blisters.

Small Boats Annual 2017June 2016

Hvalsoe 18

A new design for solo cruising

Seattle boatbuilder Eric Hvasloe was asked to draw up a boat for cruising the Inside Passage under sail and oars. We put his latest design, the Hvalsoe 18, through its paces.

Small Boats Annual 2017June 2016

Squirt

A Glen-L runabout

The 11’ Squirt runabout was the biggest boat Art Atkinson could build in his basement, but it didn’t come up short on the performance it delivered. He gives us a good look at this offering from Glen-L.

June 2016

Double Poling

A different take on a traditional technique

Poling a canoe is a skill that requires good balance and lots of practice. Peter Macfarlane took a hint from cross-country skiers and applied double-poling to working a canoe upstream in shallow water.

June 2016

Rowing the North Atlantic

Two friends, one old boat

When Australians Peter Fletcher and Tom Hudson decided to row across the North Atlantic, they chose an old wooden boat for the voyage. It had already made the crossing three times and the duo spent 15 months on repairs to make the boat seaworthy enough to get them from New York to England.

May 2016

SWEET PEA

An idea takes shape

Reader Sean Russel has been designing boats for a long time, at first drawing by hand and then using computer programs. Our Reader Built Boat is SWEET PEA, a peapod-like boat he designed and built to fit in his van.

May 2016

Cutting Corners

Tools for rounding edges

Make quick work of rounding corners without the noise of a router and the dust of a sander.

Small Boats Annual 2017May 2016

Chaisson Dory

More than a tender

The Chaisson dory was designed a century ago as a tender, but it still has a lot to offer even if you don’t have a yacht to attach to the other end of its painter.

Small Boats Annual 2017May 2016

The Isles of Finland

Solo cruising in a Herreshoff Coquina

The Finnish coast is speckled with small forested islands rimmed with glacier-worn granite. A modified Herreshoff Coquina is quite at home here, an ocean away from its native waters.

Small Boats Annual 2017May 2016

Arctic Tern

A modern yoal

Iain Oughtred’s Arctic Tern is in the middle of the range of his popular double-ended beach cruisers that were inspired by the workboats of the Shetland Islands.

May 2016

Living with Sprit Sails

Brailing, Reefing, and Furling

The sprit rig’s simplicity works well for boats that are frequently launched and recovered.

April 2016

MOJO

A PT Skiff kit

After 8 months abuilding, a Port Townsend outboard skiff built from a kit as a post-retirement project handles all the conditions she has encountered like she’s been there before.

April 2016

Quick Collars, Simple Buttons

Easy alternatives to leather collars

A kitchen cutting-board produced a simple collar and bits of hardwood led to a quick-shifting 3-speed oar.

Small Boats Annual 2017April 2016

Duckling 17

Fast solo rowing

Although Sam Devlin envisioned the Duckling 17 as a performance rowing craft, not as a load-carrying boat, with a designed working displacement of 350 lbs, it has the capacity to carry gear for fast and light weekend touring.

April 2016

Carbon-Fiber Ferrules for Oars

Better by halving

If you carry oars aboard your boat, you may have struggled to find a place to put them where they don’t get in the way. With carbon-fiber ferrules from Duckworks you can cut your oars down to a more convenient size.