Coastal Cruising Under Power: How to Buy, Equip, Operate, and Maintain Your Boat

This is a very well written and comprehensive book on coastal power boat cruising. It is fun to read because it is well written and not intended to go into extensive technical depth on any subject. Everything is covered from selecting a proper cruiser to anchoring, to turning a single screw boat even to selecting a turkey based on the height of the oven. It is written from the vantage point of a seasoned cruiser giving friendly advice to a novice so some information is detailed some is less so. Some is basic like knot tying, some is more complex like backing into a slip with a single screw boat with the wind and tide, etc. - sort of like learning golf over the phone! There are even recipes that cruising cooks can make! No this book is not everything but it is an excellent introduction and I would recommend it even over Sorensen's or Stapleton's or even the Beebe classic - simply because it is more readable, more comprehensive and less complex. What would I wish for, probably more information on cruising the Puget Sound/BC area. But there are other books on that.

Coastal Cruising was an excellent companion when I was shopping for a trawler. I've spent lots of time on commercial fishing boats, but was new to pleasure boating. This book provided a great overview of all the fundamentals: Boat buyer pitfalls, boat handling, piloting, anchoring, maintenance, safety, etc. It made me excited about boat ownership and setup realistic expectations for cost and upkeep requirements. It's also surprisingly well-written and readable. There's very little indulgence in personal anecdotes that don't present real information and the succinctness is nicely punctuated with important details and tips. My only suggestion: Drop the recipes and some of the lifestyle content. It's nice to read about different modes of boat ownership (e.g. Live-aboards versus weekend warriors), but I didn't get a lot out of this except low onboard dining expectations and reminders of yacht owners' propensity for corny vessel names (Apologies to the authors, but 'High Life' qualifies). Overall, I strongly recommend 'Coastal Cruising' to new or prospective boat owners.

I really enjoyed this. Very comprehensive, covering literally all aspects of powerboat cruising. Written in a very down to earth fashion, where the authors weren’t afraid to share their own mistakes made along the way. I only wish they had updated it once or twice along the way. This was published in 2006 and there have been quite a few technology changes since then. Nonetheless, this will still tell you 95% of what you need to know as a beginner.

This book probably didn't tell much that I hadn't learned, one way or another over the years - but it would be a foolish person who insisted they had nothing to learn on the subject. I bought the e-version more than a few months ago and I've returned to it again. I don't say it lightly when I write that I am impressed by what the author has achieved. The contents are well ordered, concise and informative without slipping towards verbosity. The author clearly is not afraid to draw on the knowledge of others. I unreservedly recommend anyone with an interest in cruising to place it in their bookcase, digital or otherwise.

The book is very useful for the novice sailor also because of its completeness. If you are an experienced sailor I would say leave it alone.

We are considering cruising the eastern shore of the US during the summer and the Bahamas and Caribbean in the winter when we become live-a-boards after the last child graduates high school. The book was extremely informative and an enjoyable read. The author provides just enough information without getting too detailed. Stimulating and encouraging. I would recommend this book to anyone thinking about power cruising.

Really enjoyed reading this book. The material covered in it is quite thorough, and really does give you great insight into what it takes to get started. I'm looking to become a full-time liveaboard on a power boat, and found this book to be extremely helpful in terms of understanding what I need to accomplish this.

If you're new to boating/cruising you will probably get a lot more from this book than I did. That said, it's well-written and contains most of the basic information that will get you started. Or get you stopped. The authors don't try to sugar-coat boating and you should take their warnings/caveats seriously (even though some are humorously presented). The cruising life is a wonderful way to live, but not for everyone. For some, it can be a nightmare. This book should give you a pretty good idea of where you fit, if you keep an open mind.

perfect

This book tries to cover too much and is out of date. It also contains a lot of superfluous waffle

Great book for anyone who owns a boat or who is considering buying a boat