Do you have an extended cruise in mind for this season? Rupert Holmes suggests easy improvements and essential checks to ensure gear failure doesn’t interfere with passage-making. Plus we plug you in to the latest in electric outboard engines and a brilliant guide to buying the right paddleboard for your needs.

Flooded on the mooring

An everyday mistake with a hose connection nearly cost Roger Hughes his boat

‘We bought a tug called Con’

A salutory lesson in why not to make an impulse boat buy

Gas bottle storage

Making plinths to store extra gas safely outboard

Lasso a halyard

Recovering a broken halyard without climbing the mast

Fit a bow thruster

Tips on the best way forward

MG 335/346 used boat test

We sail the yacht that rose to fame in cult TV series Howards’ Way

Salona, Azuree & Dromor – secret boats of the east

Check out a selection of used boatsfrom Croatia, Greece and Turkey

Essential checks for your summer cruise

Key checks and easy improvements for a relaxed and enjoyable cruise

20 years in the French canals and the Med

Fond memories of cruising in Europe

Electric outboards special

How the burgeoning electric outboard market is paving the way

Pilotage tricks

Nifty tools for calculating course tosteer and making best use of tides

Guide to paddleboarding

Stand-up paddleboarding fun from your boat or the shore

New lease of life

Converting a cruiser into a bar!

Sinking alongside

A close call with a leaking shaft seal

Cruise planning: Caribbean and COVID

Strategic sailing in a pandemic