Written for all those who love to explore in small boats. It is a book that aims to enthrall anyone who is entranced by the peace and solitude of the creeks at night and the moan of the sea on the sands

2007-08-09 How I didn't drown on the Swatchways

This is a marvellous book, especially for someone like me who sails the same area today. Eighty years on and some things have remained the same like the places and the names of the buoys. But some things are very different. Going to sea with no radio, no GPS, no radar reflector (as none of those big ships in the fog who can run you down had radar anyway), and no real weather forecast mean it was much more of an adventure then than it is now and I do think this book is mistitled. I was expecting pleasant tales of drifting up the Blackwater. What I got was ripping yarns of going aground on sand banks, rescuing people in dreadful weather, and generally failing to drown in all sorts of interesting situations. Excellent reading. Every boat should have a copy.