Reeds Practical Boat Owner Small Craft Almanac 2007

Publisher: Adlard Coles Nautical, £15.99

Publication Date: 2006

CA Library Reference:

This little almanac covers the UK and Ireland plus the coast from Denmark to Gibraltar. Over half its pages are devoted to tidal predictions and curves for 49 standard ports, together with tidal constants, tidal streams, tidal gates, and special instructions and curves for places from Bournemouth to Selsey Bill. The predictions are in exactly the same format as Admiralty Tide Tables with the addition of a shaded area for days when Summer Time does not apply. In spite of the smaller page size the predictions are clear and very easy to use. Tidal constants are less clear because, where a port's data cover more than one page, the column subheadings are not repeated at the top of the second page. This is particularly irritating when it involves turning over a page.
The chapter called Navigation has been expanded for 2007 to include a cross-channel
distance table, naval exercise areas (previously in Safety), and a new section on
passage planning which every skipper is now legally required to do if proceeding
beyond sheltered waters. The section includes a useful one-page checklist.

Most of the Navigation pages are devoted to 'selected lights, buoys and waypoints', all
referred to WGS84. Unfortunately the buoys in this section are represented by very
small symbols, some of them indecipherable without a magnifying glass, even in a fairly
good light. A common criticism of published waypoints is that they can lead to
dangerously converging courses, but a cursory inspection suggest these waypoints all
represent real, physical objects which crew will be looking out for. The bulk of the Weather chapter is on forecasts available in the UK and abroad by radio
(including Navtex), TV, telephone, mobile phone and fax. Internet forecasts receive a
very brief mention. Corrections are published on the Internet every month from January to June. Last season I carried the 2006 edition of this very handy almanac on board and it
fulfilled all my requirements. I thoroughly recommend it. - TOP