The Practical Mariner's Book of Knowledge
Review Date:
03/04/2005 Publisher: International Marine, 1994
To be sure, I approached this pocket book with some cynicism: another compendium of lists. As I riffled through the pages however, I found myself drawn in and absorbed by items of interest and of considerable use.
A sub title is “420 Sea-tested Rules of Thumb for almost every Boating Situation” and there follows a carefully indexed range of subjects that draw you in. It was fascinating to have a credible explanation of the phrase “rule of thumb” – apparently an ancient piece of advice that we should not put ourselves closer to danger on a chart than shown by the width of our thumb: i.e. the more detail available the closer the approach. Most entries are, however, more immediately practical. There are nineteen contributions about anchors in the first few pages ranging through to a check list for winterising and crisp advice on zinc anodes.
John Vigor acknowledges the contributions from several boating magazines on both sides of the Atlantic that he has collected over the years of his delight in boating and the sea. He is a regular contributor to Cruising World. As Appendices there are a useful collection of tables ranging from guides to anchor weights, galvanic series, weather proverbs and wire gauges. Genuinely, there is much of interest for the novice and the experienced sailor. - MD
