This book is the most comprehensive, helpful and up to date guide ever written on selecting, equipping and sailing a cruising yacht. Indispensable for prospective boat buyers and cruisers, whether coastal or world-girdling, it covers all the technical and practical aspects of cruising yachts and systems in one unique book. Nigel Calder, one of the most respected nautical how-to authors with extensive cruising experience and a rare ability to reduce complexities to simple explanations, explains not only how to select and equip a yacht for coastal or offshore cruising, but also how to sail and navigate it, addressing the concerns of beginners and experienced owners alike. This is the book the cruising world has welcomed as a must have reference. There is, quite literally, nothing else like it. 'The indispensable crew - no boat should sail without Calder aboard' Yachting Monthly 'This is the one book you would choose for your desert island shipwreck scenario - it would solve all your problems!' Kelvin Hughes.