Sailing by the Book

[Barnacle Jim]

Ahoy,

Being new to the site, I am unsure whether this topic should be under this category or elsewhere.

There probably is a manual or book somewhere listing marinas and contact information?
By that I mean such a book would list sites (and sights) a person might sail his MacGregor.

People talk about sailing in Lake Mead, or sailing to the Dry Tortugas, but is there a book that might cover such areas?
or do we simply search for bits of information here and there from people who have sailed here and there?

I feel much like a man over-board on such a board like this.
What did you do when you planned your last venture?
Is there a travel book for a traveling sailor?

[Divecoz]

Books hahahaha Zillions
Websites ?? 100's maybe 1000's....
Try searching : Where I sailed My Macgregor.. I got pages and pages of hits.. I have several books (some with portions of charts just for dreaming/planning purposes .) for the southern 1/3 of Florida both sides.. and I understand there is a better Author available than any of mine..

[yukonbob]

i still think the best thing for the travelling sailor is charts. Leave it up to your imagination as to what that cove or bay looks like, and then go see what it actually looks like! I was also given Charlie's charts which is nice, but I'm not sure if that only covers the PNW. Maybe he has others?

[henecle]

Try this...

https://activecaptain.com/

Leif

[mastreb]

Google Earth is my planning tool. I just roll to the place I'd like to go and then hunt down boat ramps visually. Turns out they're really easy to find in satellite imagery. Once I've dropped a pin on all the candidates it's pretty easy to determine the location of the ramp, and I just google that. Inevitably you'll get the web page of whatever authority controls the ramp, and that web page will tell you what you need to know.

[phoenixtoohot]

Jim, here are some books I think might be interesting to you:

1. "Fixing Positions" by Matts Djos
2. "Rich Johnson's Guide to Trailer Boat Sailing"
3. "Sailing Big on a Small Sailboat" by Jerry Caldwell
4. "Your First Sailboat : How to Find and Sail the Right Boat for You" by Daniel Spurr
5. "The Complete Sailor, Second Edition" by David Siedman

"Fixing Positions" describes the authors experiences sailing trailer sailboats (Mac 22 and Balboa 26) in four areas: 1) Lake Powell, 2) Puget Sound/Vancouver, 3) southern California and islands, and the 4) Gulf of California. Contains comprehensive reference sections.

All are available from Amazon, and all have the "look Inside" feature so you review the table of contents and the first few pages. In these books you will find detailed descriptions of sailing venues near you, including marinas, ramps, anchorages and trip reports. One of the books has detailed reviews of trailerable sailboats, tow vehicles, etc. I found them all to be very useful as I was trying to figure out if trailer sailing would be right for me and to see areas for sailing within 1000 miles trailering distance from Phoenix. Check them out, and note that several can be purchased used from Amazon at a fraction of the new price.

Regards and happy reading, Larry

[Kittiwake]

.... a manual or book somewhere listing marinas and contact information?
By that I mean such a book would list sites (and sights) a person might sail his MacGregor.
People talk about sailing in Lake Mead, or sailing to the Dry Tortugas, but is there a book that might cover such areas? ....

Many of us sail/motor with books that describe - in detail with photos and charts - the sights to be seen, anchorages with their characteristics, unmarked hazards to navigation, etc. Even if one likes to be independent, such books can optimize one's own sailing experience based on the often-extensive experience of others.
For instance one we have that covers some US and Canadian coastal waters is,
- "The Guide to Popular Pacific Northwest Destinations Anchorages and Marine Parks" by P. Vassilopoulos

Out of curiosity I googled, a guide to anchorages
- and before I could type any more, I got MANY hits on books for boaters looking for sights and anchorages in SW Florida.

But when I forced the search a bit more by typing, a guide to anchorages in New England
- I got books describing both sites and sights for boaters in NE USA

It seems one may have to experiment with search terms based on one's chosen web browser and its version.
Kittiwake

[phoenixtoohot]

Two more books for sailing the West Coast that include descriptions of every marina, approaches, ramps, amenities, anchorages, moorings, pictures, transportation, etc: Both available on Amazon, new or used, and paperback or Kindle. Both also have the "look inside" feature so you can see detailed table of contents, index and first few pages to help determine if it's worth buying for you.

1. “The Cruising Guide to Central and Southern California: Golden Gate to Ensenada, including offshore Islands”, by Brian Fagan, 388 pages

2. “Cruising Guide to San Diego Bay”, by Ed Bowler, 289 pages

[c130king]

Try this...

https://activecaptain.com/

Leif

Ditto...very useful site with satellite imagery, NOAA charts, and lots of info on marinas, bridges, anchorages, boat ramps. Great pre-mission/pre-trip planning tool.

Cheers,
Jim

[phoenixtoohot]

People talk about sailing in Lake Mead, or sailing to the Dry Tortugas, but is there a book that might cover such areas?
or do we simply search for bits of information here and there from people who have sailed here and there?

I think the OP was looking more for cruising guides ... places you could go in a Macgregor and things you could see, and what it would be like ... rather than detailed "mission plans".

Along the lines of "mission planners", Navionics is another good app for that.

[Terry]

The 2012 Waggoner Cruising Guide is a good book to have. I use it all the time. Active Captain is good too.

[seahouse]

Ahoy Jim –

You might be looking for a “Chartbook”. They have them for many different areas, I have the one for Lake Erie, linked…

http://www.richardsonscharts.com/produc ... php?id=138

They have charts for navigation, plus (aerial) photos of the ports, contacts and facilities. All in a large, but easily managed in the boat or on the couch, spiral-wound book. I consider it an invaluable resource for exploring new worlds!

- Brian.