The longtime publisher of the magazine Messing About in Boats passed away on April 23rd at the age of 96.

Thankfully, there were no mishaps, and everything went smoothly, although it always takes a long time to get her fully rigged.

It served ORION well for many years; for all I know, the trailer is original to the boat. I’m very pleased to know it will continue serving another Mariner.

My book has been reprinted for the third time!

The trailer itself needed some adjusting, but I’m very happy with how it turned out.

A couple of annual maintenance coats of varnish on all the wood and repainting the bootstripe are the most time-consuming.

WCBS is an entirely virtual boat show where, according to their website, they “bring you inside the world of classic boats, and then bring this entire world of beautiful boats closer together.  And it worked.”

I had hoped to sail ORION into November, but there were some forecasted storms in mid-October that had me a bit worried.

Although I try to take pictures each time I go sailing, sometimes it’s difficult, especially if the wind is blowing and I have my hands full.

I especially like the summary written in the contents: “Members of the Mariner Class Association just might have more fun per sailing dollar than any other racers or cruisers.”

I had forgotten just how beautiful that area is with its islands, rocks, and salt marshes; I definitely need to spend more time here in the future.

I hope it provides inspiration to those looking for a solution using portable, Coast Guard-certified running lights without needing an onboard battery.

After a fantastic 2025 Mariner Rendezvous, I wrote up a little summary of the event and it is now available here on this website.

There is a big Google Photo Album where participants have been sharing all their pictures - so far there are 341 and counting!

There are six pictures in the album with many more to come as I’m able to get out on the water more.

We had a great sail there in 10-15 knots of wind even though it was on the nose the whole time.

After deciding to sand the existing bottom paint instead of removing it, projects started picking up speed.

I met with some pretty fierce resistance which made me rethink the whole thing. I’m still not 100% sure exactly what I’m dealing with.

Spring work on ORION has officially begun!

It’s a shame to see yet another magazine end production, sharing the fate of similar printed magazines.