It is forever useful to have access to sources of information, whether these sources come in the form of books, videos or how-to guides. This is especially true for sailors and cruisers, because there exists a wealth of information and wisdom out there that is only built off the experiences of other sailors. To help anyone interested in this area, whether for practical purposes or to enjoy the simple pleasure of reading about the travels and journeys of others, here is a list of the resources we have found to be informative, insightful or just plain useful.
Travel and Cruising Literature
Alayne Main, Sailing Promise
Deborah Scaling Kiley and Meg Noonan, Albatross
Jim Trefethen, The Cruising Life
John Kretschmer, Flirting with Mermaids
John and Jean Silverwood, Black Wave
Joshua Slocum, The Annotated Sailing Alone Around the World
Cruising Guides and Navigational Aids
Adlard Coles, Heavy Weather Sailing 6th Edition
Chris Doyle, The 2010-2011 Cruising Guide to the Leeward Islands
Chris Doyle, The 2011-2012 Sailor's Guide to the Windward Islands
Chris Doyle, Windward Anchorages
Gary Jobson, Championship Sailing
Ivar Dedekam, Illustrated Sail and Rig Tuning
Linda and Steve Dashew, Offshore Cruising Encyclopedia 2nd Edition
Mark and Diana Doyle, Managing the Waterway: ICW
Nancy and Simon Scott, The 2009-2011 Cruising Guide to the Virgin Islands
Nigel Calder's, Cruising Handbook
Seifert and Spurr, Offshore Sailing
Skipper Bob Publications, Anchorages Along the Intracoastal Waterway
Stephen J. Pavlidis, A Cruising Guide to the Virgin Islands
Steve Dodge, Inlet Chartbook, Southeastern United States: Chesapeake to Miami 3rd Edition
Fishing and Marine Life
Eugene H. Kaplan, Coral Reefs: Caribbean and Florida
Humann and DeLoach, The Reef Set (Fish, reef creature and coral identification books for Florida, Caribbean and the Bahamas)
Paul Humann and Ned DeLoach, Snorkeling Guide to Marine Life: Florida, Caribbean and Bahamas
Scott Bannerot and Wendy Bannerot, The Cruisers Handbook of Fishing
Manuals
Calder, Boat owner's Mechanical and Electrical Manual
Calder, Marine Diesel Engines
Casey, Sailboat Electronics Simplified
Don Casey, Complete Illustrated Sailboat Maintenance Manual
John Roberts, Optimize your Cruising Sailboat
Spurr, Guide to Upgrading your Cruising Sailboat
DVDs
Paul and Sheryl Shard, Distant Shore, The Sailing Adventure TV Series
-The Med to the Caribbean and Bahamas
-Cruising in the Middle East
-Western Mediterranean and Central Mediterranean
-South Italy & Adriatic Sea, Greek Islands and Turkey
-Special Collector's Edition Cruising with the Shards
Peter Rowe Productions, Exploring Under Sail
Morning Light: A True-Life Documentary
Paul and Sheryl Shard, Distant Shore, The Sailing Adventure TV Series
-The Med to the Caribbean and Bahamas
-Cruising in the Middle East
-Western Mediterranean and Central Mediterranean
-South Italy & Adriatic Sea, Greek Islands and Turkey
-Special Collector's Edition Cruising with the Shards
Peter Rowe Productions, Exploring Under Sail
Morning Light: A True-Life Documentary
Nicole’s Travel Literature Suggestions
My favourite English course in University was a seminar in Travel Literature. Here are some of the titles we read and some additions of my own from the genre that currently sits at the top of my reading list with fantasy and historical fiction.
Ann Vanderhoof, The Spice Necklace: A Food-Lover’s Caribbean Adventure
Ann Vanderhoof, An Embarrassment of Mangoes
Elisabeth Eaves, Wanderlust: A Love Affair with Five Continents
E.M. Forster, A Room With a View
Fern Schumer Chapman, Motherland
Karen Connelly, Touch the Dragon
Jack Kerouac, On the Road
Jamaica Kincaid, A Small Place
Janice Holly Booth, Only Pack What you Can Carry
Jennifer Baggett, Holly C. Corbett and Amanda Pressner, The Lost Girls: Three Friends, Four Continents. One Unconventional Detour Around the World
John Steinbeck, Travels With Charley in Search of America
Margaret Laurence, The Prophet’s Camel Bell
Mary Kingsley, Travels in West Africa
Michael Ondaatje, Running in the Family
P.K. Page, Brazilian Journal
P.K. Page, Hand Luggage
Tony Cohan, On Mexican Time: A New Life in San Miguel
