Canal agony and ecstasy

Proper preparation prevents poor performance

A camping dinghy may not offer the comforts of a modern cabin yacht, but no yacht is comfortable on a hard beat, no matter how many berths she may accommodate in her cabin. And there are serious disad

In addition to mooring bills a fraction of those levied by the honest marina operators of my native South Coast, keeping a boat in the Baltic Sea carries some unexpected benefits. The further in you s

Moored on a quiet stretch of canal in west London, an unassuming widebeam canal boat boasts an extraordinary centrepiece: a Steinway piano. The Piano Boat – officially named Rachmaninov – is possibly

We’d love to hear from you. Write to us at yachtingmonthly@futurenet.com or by post at Yachting Monthly, Future PLC, 121-141 Westbourne Terrace, Paddington, London W2 6JR

None of us plans to be caught in a gale, but if it happens then both the boat and the crew must cope. Jake Kavanagh speaks to Jester Challenge skippers and asks how they get ready for stormy weather