Living Through The Gale

Being prepared for heavy weather at sea Heavy weather is a lurking spectre that most of us hope and plan to avoid, but not even internet forecasting can make it go away. Anyone intent on crossing oceans must be ready to deal with it if it comes, as well it may. Even well-informed inshore and continental-shelf sailors will inevitably be caught out sooner or later. The object of this slim, quickly absorbed volume is to give everyone, whatever their passage-making aspirations, a sound brief so that whether they find themselves at the wrong end of a force-six blow along the coast, or confronting serious waves far out at sea, they are fully aware of their options for taking it in their stride.

Praise for Living Through The Gale

"Tom Cunliffe is one of Britain's leading sailing writers and his many years of experience in the maritime environment shine through this comprehensive but easy to read book… It is filled with practical and sound advice, is easy to read and has loads of images and diagrams to support the comprehensive text. When I go to sea again, I will make sure I have a copy of this stowed away."
— Noonsite

"Another excellent and authoritative book from Tom Cunliffe… This book has so much truly excellent observations and advice with clear diagrams and appropriately chosen photos arranged in 12 carefully thought-out chapters… A sensible skipper should read this book, take the advice and build it, as needed, into the way the boat is run, the crew briefed and the passage planned."
— Little Ship Club

"His enormous maritime experience has been distilled into this slim volume and not a word is wasted … Tom is a practical man and this is a highly practical book. His explanations of complex subjects such as wind, waves and weather are transparently clear … This publication is structured, succinct, well illustrated and affordable. All one needs to know about living through the gale is here, compressed into the pages of one slim volume. This little book deserves to be in the library of every yacht that goes to sea."
— Ocean Cruising Club

"A distillation of the author's plentiful experience in everything from mountain-high waves and survival conditions to plain old-fashioned ugly weather … It's nicely laid out and covers everything from storm-induced engine trouble to boat types, equipment and strategies. The book is packed with diagrams and photos."
— Classic Boat

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.

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.