Coastal & Offshore Navigation

Discover what the modern yacht navigator needs to know for a stress-free voyage along the coast and out of sight of land. This book is designed to raise the game of the inshore day-sailor to fully fledged offshore navigator capable of handling any sea passage short of an ocean crossing. The book contains what you need to stay safe using techniques from non-electronic essentials through to the latest in electronic chart plotters.

It reviews the basic arts of navigation and covers tides, how to predict them and make them work for you and how to keep a check on your navigational accuracy and modify your tactics accordingly. It analyses the vital relationships between the fix and the estimated position and explains the safe and constructive use of electronic aids for navigation. Passage planning for an enjoyable, satisfying voyage is explored and there is a systemic, no-nonsense approach to passage making.

It is suitable for those who are at 'Day Skipper' level and who wish to progress, or those who have started out with the companion book Inshore Navigation, from which this book follows on. Fernhurst Books recommends this book for Yachtmaster and Coastal Skipper students.

Praise for Coastal & Offshore Navigation

"Providing you with a solid foundation in the art of coastal and offshore navigation."
— Boat Mart

"...provides a solid foundation in the practicalities of plotting your route to a destination...worth its weight in gold."
— All at Sea

About the Author

Tom Cunliffe is Britain's leading sailing writer. A worldwide authority on cruising instruction and an expert on traditional sailing craft, he learnt his sextant skills during numerous ocean passages, many in simple boats without engines or electronics, voyaging from Brazil to Greenland and from the Caribbean to Russia. He is the author of the yachtsman's guide to the English Channel.

Tom's nautical career has seen him serve as mate on a merchant ship, captain on gentleman's yachts and skipper of racing craft. He has owned a series of traditional gaff-rigged vessels that have taken him and his family on countless adventures from tropical rainforests to frozen fjords, but he now sails a modern classic 44-foot cutter which he keeps in Scandinavia.

Tom has been a Yachtmaster Examiner since 1978 and has a gift for sharing his knowledge with good humour and an endless supply of tales of the sea. He has monthly columns in Sailing Today, Classic Boat, Yachting World and SAIL (US) magazines. He wrote and presented the BBC TV series, 'The Boats That Built Britain' and the popular 'Boatyard' series. During lockdown he set up an online club for sailors worldwide. This has proved very popular with a monthly zoom Q&A forum, articles and videos by Tom, an audiobook and book recommendations.

About Fernhurst Books

Fernhurst Books was founded in 1979, initially publishing books related to dinghy racing. The list soon expanded to include cruising and other watersports. In 2006 the business was sold to John Wiley, but in 2013 a group of sailing enthusiasts (including the original founder) bought the list and name back, once again creating an independent nautical publisher owned and run by sailors. Fernhurst continues to publish books that instruct, inform and inspire those with a passion on, in or under the water. Their 140+ titles range from how-to guides to narrative to coffee-table books, covering sailing, surfing, canoeing, kayaking, stand up paddleboarding, swimming, diving and fishing.