Are electric inboard engines suitable for sailing boats? We ask three owners and profile a Plymouth ferry owner as well. Plus top tips on listening to your engine and taking its temperature from Doctor Gilbert Park and some amazing, unusual cruising destinations to boot!

Practical cruisers

German yachts that make great second-hand buys

A ‘proper’ powerboat

Giving up sail for power? The Nimbus 320C is a popular option

Ultimate guide to sea birds

Know your gannets from your gulls and your petrels from your fulmars

Fleeing a volcanic eruption

A cruising family escape an ash cloud in the Grenadines

Baltic odyssey in a dinghy

A father and son camp out under the stars on an historic German waterway

Electric inboards

Is it time to convert to green power? We quiz four owners who have done just that

Calamitous Channel crossing

Concussion, ghostly apparitions and desertion during a tiring voyage

Fast track to RYA Yachtmaster

How lockdown helped one keen sailor to achieve his dream

Learning from experience: Up a creek, aground with a dead battery

How an engine fault, lack of wind and a falling tide led to an embarrassing call to the coastguard

How to check your Engine health

A step by step health check to keep your diesel engine running sweetly

Replace a toerail

Restorers of a classic Atalanta show how to steam bend a new toerail

Restore a clinker hull

Tips, trials and tribulations learned from restoring a wooden gaffer over a four year period

Fit a new tank gauge

Measuring your boat’s water capacity is essential for any cruiser

DIY battery alarm

How to design and build a low voltage battery alarm