The Yachtsman Guide (Guia Navegante) Espana, Portugal; ed. Richard Edmund Ashton; PubliNautic (RiInvest S.L.), 11th Ed., 2000; ISBN 84-923577-20-X, CA 15677

The introduction states that this pilot ‘has become the de facto sailing guide to the whole of Spain, Portugal, Cueta, as well as The Baleares’. With one slight reservation this is no idle boast. Getting the reservation over with first, the chartlets of the ports only cover the immediate approach and need a detailed chart or almanac to give sufficient context for a safe landfall. That said the coverage is comprehensive and for those ports I know personally, accurate.

The format is a mixture of pilotage, port information and marine services directory with more pages devoted to the latter. There is, however, sufficient detail of the former to make a useful addition to the navigation station of a yacht cruising in this area. After brief opening sections covering sources of weather information, meteorological conditions, marina rates, rescue facilities and the like, the guide divides the cruising area into twelve parts and deals with each in a similar format. Each part provides port information and cruising details. For each port there is information about navigation lights, number of berths, availability of fuel, craneage and the telephone and fax numbers for the port. All this is interspersed with advertisements for local marine goods and service providers.

The guide, with English and Spanish text, is a useful information source for anyone contemplating an Iberian cruise. Next time I cruise there I will be taking a copy. - CRE

Page prepared 28 March 2000

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