Seasickness and Crew Health: Managing the First 72 Hours
Nine out of ten sailors feel it in the first days. Medication timing, hydration protocol and the red flags that turn a joke into a medical case.
Guides on boat preparation, crew management, provisioning, heavy weather, route planning and offshore communications — written for the 2026 season.
The last 50 miles are the most dangerous of the passage. Night vision, reefed sail plans and the discipline of waiting offshore for the dawn.
Nine out of ten sailors feel it in the first days. Medication timing, hydration protocol and the red flags that turn a joke into a medical case.
The autopilot and fridge run the ship. How to count amp-hours honestly, rank solar, wind and alternator, and shed load before the lights go out.
Most boat fires start in the wiring, not the galley. The checks, extinguishers and habits that keep three minutes from becoming the last three minutes.
One lightning strike silences every screen. The minimal sextant kit, the noon-sun skill and the redundancy chain worth building first.
Three litres per person per day is the start, not the answer. Tanks, jerrycans, watermakers and the reserves that survive a bad week.
Choosing and servicing the raft, packing a ditch bag for 72 hours alone, and the abandon-ship routine every crew should rehearse in daylight.
Panama to the Marquesas is 3,800 landless miles. The cyclone calendar, the provisioning maths and the route west through the islands.
Dirty fuel ends more crossings than storms do. The daily routine, spares kit and bleeding drill that keep a small diesel alive for 3,000 miles.
AIS beacons, Lifeslings and the Quick-Stop: the prevention-first system and the monthly drill that turns a crew into a rescue service.
The Canaries-to-Caribbean highway, the calendar that governs it, and what 2,700 miles of trade-wind sailing actually feels like week by week.
Which sails earn their locker space on an ocean passage, how to rig storm canvas before you need it, and the repairs a small crew can manage at sea.
Cuts, burns, infections and toothaches: the layered medical kit for mid-ocean, plus how satellite telemedicine puts a doctor on board.
GFS versus ECMWF, what the grid smooths away, and why the barometer remains the instrument that never lies mid-ocean.
From satellite messengers to SSB nets and AIS: an honest look at offshore communication options, costs and reliability.
How to plan an ocean passage: seasonal windows, pilot charts, currents, weather routing tools and the art of the bail-out option.
Three-on-three-off sounds easy until day four. Watch systems, sleep science and the mistakes fatigue causes offshore.
Reefing early, heaving to, drogues and jacklines: the heavy-weather playbook every offshore crew should drill before departure.
How much food and water a crew really needs for three weeks at sea, plus storage, rotation and the meals that keep morale up.
How to choose crew for a long passage: the skill mix you actually need, trial sails, and managing personalities in a small space.
Rig, sails, engine, through-hulls and spares: a systematic way to ready a cruising yacht for a long offshore passage.