CRUISING

• THREE OF A KIND
  We test sail a Twister 28, Rival 32 and Dufour Arpege to see whether buying a classic cruiser makes sense

• BRINGING GIPSY MOTH IV INTO THE 21ST CENTURY
  There?s red tape as well as rot to be overcome before Gipsy Moth IV can sail again. Paul Jeffes reports

• Landfalls ? KINSALE
  Fantastic food is just one of the delights of this charming Irish harbour, says Peter Cumberlidge PLUS new-style pull- out waypoints chart

• After the wave
  Is Thailand really ready to welcome back cruising yachtsmen and charterers? Dick Durham takes a Sunsail charter to find out

  FITTING OUT SPECIAL

• Prevention is better than rescue
  Dick Durham is guided through a safety checklist as part of the RNLI SEA Check initiative

• Stop those pesky leaks
  Stop leaks around stanchion bases for good.
  Mike Balmforth tells you how

• THE DNA OF ANTIFOULING
  Toby Hodges finds out what goes into the creation of antifouling during a visit to International Paint

• TROUBLE IN THE RIGGING
  What kit should you have on board to keep your rigging safely adjusted? Tom Zydler finds out

• What the fitting out books don?t tell you
  Peter Bonsey discovers that fitting out requires equal measures of luck and hard work

• AN ODE TO THE BILGE GODS
  Old spanners and mysterious deities lurk in the strange dark places beneath the cabin sole, says Charlie Doane

• WET, WINDY OR WONDERFUL?
  Learrning how the land and sea work togther to alter the weather is a key cruising skill, reports Ken Endean

• BLUE WATER LETTER
  Rod Heikell buys a second boat to live on board as he repairs his yacht damaged by Hurricane Ivan

  
  BOATS AND GEAR

• New boat test: Comet 46
  Is this nimble Italian number a good all-rounder cruiser? James Jermain gives his verdict

• NEW BOATS
  The latest cruising boats to come off the drawing board

• New Gear
  Toby Hodges on the latest additions to chandlery shelves

  SAILING SKILLS

• Taking a dry run
  Tom Cunliffe helps a cruising couple dry out their fin keeler for the first time

• Close encounters
  Avoiding hazards may mean breaking the rules, cautions Evans Starzinger

• Ropework
  Create a multiplait eye splice, step-by-step

• Question of Seamanship
  Head for home or keep on course? You decide

• Learning Curve: riding the storm
  Wishful thinking causes Tony Bolingbroke to sail into the eye of a storm

• Any questions?
  Solid kickers, magical lubricants and fresh fuel

  REGULARS

• Editor’s log
  The view from the helm

• Opening shot
  Dame Ellen rules the waves

• Ellen MacArthur special
  Dame Ellen arrives PLUS Behind the scenes on B&Q with her designer, Nigel Irens
  
  
• Cruising news
  Great news for Gipsy Moth IV and a new maritime heritage centre

• Reader’s letters
  What makes a good yacht?

• This Cruising Life
  Libby Purves loves singlehanding but would not want to do it alone

• Cunliffe on Cruising
  Tom Cunliffe recalls the kindness of strangers at sea and remembers to do his bit

• Subscribe and save
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• Around the coast
  What?s been happening in your home waters

• Next month
  Sneak preview of what?s over the horizon

• Confessional
  Forgive me Father for I have sailed?