BOOK REVIEWS

THE BALTIC SEA -- compiled by Barry Sheffield. Published by the RCC Pilotage Foundation and Imray Laurie Norie & Wilson Ltd at £29.95. 196 pages (A4 format), with nearly 100 harbour and coastal plans and fifty colour photographs.

The first comprehensive sailing introduction in English to the Baltic is most timely. The well-developed western and northern Baltic cruising grounds have not received the attention they deserve from those beyond the North Sea while, most important, the collapse of the `Iron Curtain' has opened the east and south, formerly under Soviet domination.

The sailing is excellent and the countries abound with marvellous historical, cultural and scenic sites. Their interesting peoples are eager to establish relations with the western world. Unfortunately, the ambivalent position of the authorities of the Russian Federation is still discouraging passages to St Petersburg -- the star attraction of the eastern Baltic -- and to the nautical autobahn which could provide Western yachts with safe and convenient access to the eastern Mediterranean.

Well over half of the book is correctly devoted to the virtually unknown former Soviet republics, Poland and the old East Germany. For pure sailing fun the shores and islands of Finland, Sweden, Denmark and western Germany are undoubtedly superior and easier. But Barry Sheffield's summary -- supplemented as necessary by information from tourist books, charts, local yachtsmen and yacht harbours -- is more than adequate to permit yachts to enter the Baltic and reach the less crowded regions to the east. The list of `Other Ports', their locations and brief descriptions is also useful.

A few harbours could profitably have been added or described in greater detail. Examples include the summer resort of Kolobrzeg in Poland, with a dynamic small yacht harbour; the new yacht facility at Roomassaare offering easy access to colourful Kuressare in Estonia, and the small harbour of Vergi in an Estonian nature preserve which provides a convenient departure point for St Petersburg. The best stop in Poland is the friendly Polski Klub Morski on the Motlawa River in the heart of Gdansk, one of the most attractive cities in the eastern Baltic. The massive sand dunes and forests of Nida in themselves justify a stop in Klaipeda, Lithuania.

A few suggestions are offered for consideration in future supplements or editions: good Russian and Polish charts should be listed in the Appendix; in 1992 shore stations or other local vessels very seldom responded to our attempts to communicate on VHF; it would be useful if all references to plans and inserts showed page numbers; coordinates for some harbours should be double-checked. In 1992 we found the channel east of Vormsi island to be at least 2 metres deep (page 92), but it must be followed carefully, particularly since some of the navigation marks removed by the Russians have not been replaced. Also many foreign vessels, ourselves included, used the passage between Santio island and Vyborg (page 105).

It takes courage to publish a cruising guide to a little-known area which has changed so much and which is still in a state of flux. The author notes that "... this book is an introduction ... there is a great deal more to be found out ..." about the countries to the east, but it should be very successful in furthering the goal of the Pilotage Foundation to encourage the exploration of new areas. The excellent, well-reproduced photographs whet the appetite to see more.

AL

BLUE WATER COUNTDOWN -- Geoff Pack. Published in soft covers by Yachting Monthly (IPC Magazines Ltd) at £12.50. 200 pages with b/w photographs and line drawings.

Ocean Cruising Countdown must have featured on most cruising boats' bookshelves since its publication in 1988. Geoff Pack's style makes for easy reading, and cruising anecdotes abound to enthuse the beginner and remind the old hand. Now retitled Blue Water Countdown and published under the wing of Yachting Monthly (the first edition, in hard covers, was from David & Charles plc), it sports a complete new set of illustrations though much of the text remains unchanged. The format has also been retained -- why alter a successful formula?

The first section covers the cruising philosophy. In `Part 2 - Choice of Craft and Gear' the reader is introduced to components of hull design and construction, deck layout and rig. Ocean cruising experience in both mono and multihulls gives the author a unique perspective, though a new paragraph on in-mast sail reefing might have mentioned the noise!

A review of internal fit out follows in `Part 3 - Preparations'. As well as the more obvious topics, complexities such as watermakers, solar panels and intelligent regulators are covered (where has K.I.S.S. gone?). The section on navigation remains unaltered saving the place of computers aboard! Self-steering is studied post Aries, and the yacht tender compromise tackled. The chapter entitled `Common Worries' now includes a much expanded section on Medical Preparation by Dr Nigel Pearce.

Blue Water Countdown is a timely relaunch of a proven classic. Detail improvements have kept the book up-to-date and justify its purchase by any aspiring ocean voyager.

PBF

SAIL THAILAND -- edited by Collin Piprell, with charts and anchorage information provided by Thai Marine Leisure. Published in Thailand by Artasia Press Co Ltd. Available through Imray Laurie Norie & Wilson Ltd, Wych House, The Broadway, St Ives, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire PE17 4BT, UK, at £12.50 plus p&p. 78 pages of text plus 22 of advertising, full colour throughout.

Sail Thailand is a soft cover, A4 sized cruising guide full of glossy photographs and advertisements. It covers the west coast islands of southern Thailand, using the popular destination of Phuket as its point of reference. The publication of this guide is a reflection of the growing yacht charter business in this part of the world, as well as it becoming a popular resting spot for those cruising yachts planning a northern Indian Ocean crossing.

It is divided into six sections, each addressing a different island group around Phuket -- one can travel as far north as the Surin Islands (925'N) near the border with Burma for superb diving, and return to Phuket (8°25'N) only a twelve hour sail away. The islands groups lend themselves to different activities as a result of the prevailing weather patterns. From May to October the South West Monsoon blows and the only predictable smooth sailing is in the protected Phang Nga Bay, east of Phuket. Here one finds dramatic limestone karst mountains abruptly piercing the sea, but with three major rivers depositing their silt-laden waters the diving is rather uninspiring.

The most comfortable sailing and the most varied anchorages can be enjoyed between November and April, when the North East Monsoon blows. The winds are dry and the seas calm, as west-bound cruising yachts prepare for departure during the early months of the year. For those interested in around-the-buoys racing the King's Cup Regatta held in mid December has an ever increasing competitive field.

The chartlets of the islands and their respective anchorages are well drawn and printed in contrasting colours, making them easy to read at a glance. Depths are given in metres and a useful set of symbols in the accompanying text indicates the suitability for overnight anchorage as well as the services and activities one might find. However it is no substitute for adequate government-issued charts of the area.

As with any cruising guide, Sail Thailand includes a bit of historical background, along with weather and anchorage information. Being written partially for charter yachts it may also indicate, for the intrepid or those seeking a bit of solitude, the anchorages not to visit.

MWS

VIDEO REVIEW

CRUISING WITH LIN AND LARRY PARDEY -- VOYAGING WITH LIN AND LARRY PARDEY -- THE CARE AND FEEDING OF THE SAILING CREW. Just under one hour each. Produced in Australia by A-V Creative Services, and available from them at AUS $39.95 (approximately £19) each plus postage costs of $12.50 (£6) each or $30 (£14.30) for all three. Also available in the USA through SAIL Magazine. It is hoped that a UK distributor will be appointed shortly.

Members will know the Pardeys from their regular writings in Flying Fish and the Newsletter and very probably from their books as well. They are amongst the most experienced of today's ocean cruisers, having lived aboard for approaching thirty years and built both their own yachts, and are well known for both their cruising narratives and their technical writing.

From their titles one might expect the first two videos to recount actual cruises, but they do not. The main aim of all three videos is to inform rather than to entertain, and this presents difficulties. Too fast a pace and the watcher will be left confused, too slow and they may lose interest. The video equivalent of a `how to' book also hits the problem of continuity -- most people would read piecemeal, so text broken into sections and sub- sections works well. However one expects to put a video in the slot and watch it in one sitting, when frequent changes of subject matter need careful linkage.

Having said that, Lin and Larry do succeed in giving a real insight into the thinking behind their 30ft Lyle Hess-designed cutter Taleisin. Some of their choices -- such as not having an engine -- make Taleisin unusual, and inevitably some of their ideas and modifications would not be widely applicable though all are food for thought. It would also be useful to see a plan of her layout, particularly below, before examining specific areas such as the galley. There are some lovely sailing shots, and though at least half of each video is filmed below decks with very few exceptions the quality of the photography is high.

While the novice or first timer will obviously learn most, even the most experienced should pick up some useful ideas while nodding approval at Larry's serious discussion of ground tackle, hatches, dinghies etc. Lin has shopped and cooked in most areas of the world, and her guidance will be both useful and reassuring to those faced with the task of major provisioning for the first time. However there were one or two surprising omissions, such as retaining egg boxes against those areas where eggs are sold in paper bags...

One particular advantage of the video genre emerged during some shots of work on deck -- unlike a book where only the boat features, on video you get the people as well. Lin (who is distinctly petite) used this to advantage to emphasise the importance of tailoring a boat to her crew, in particular making allowances for differing physical strength. It will be interesting to see what they come up with in the future (see page OO).

AH

CHART REVIEW

IMRAY-IOLAIRE YACHTING CHARTS FOR THE ATLANTIC ISLANDS -- four sheets covering the Azores, the Madeira archipelago, the Canaries and the Cape Verdes. Available from chandlers and chart agents, or direct from Imray Laurie Norie & Wilson Ltd, Wych House, The Broadway, St Ives, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire PE17 4BT, UK, at £8.50 each. Each four-colour chart measures 35.5 x 25 inches (90 x 64 cm) and is supplied folded. Depths are in metres.

As on the Imray-Iolaire chart series of the Lesser Antilles, a great deal is packed onto each of the Atlantic Islands charts and as such they represent excellent value for money. For example, the Azores sheet provides a relatively small-scale (1:759,000) chart of the entire archipelago, plus a plan of the primary harbour on each island except the tiny Corvo. For the skipper planning brief stops in Horta and Ponta Delgada during a transatlantic passage, this chart (preferably accompanied by The Atlantic Islands guide with its latest supplement) represents a major cost saving over the British Admiralty equivalent -- one chart at £8.50 versus three or four at £10.75 each. However the detail is not adequate for coastal sailing, and a longer cruise of the area would certainly require larger scale island charts.

Much the same may be said of both the Canaries and Cape Verde sheets, which are to a similar basic scale and contain seven and eight harbour charts respectively -- fine if just passing through, but somewhat limiting for a longer cruise. However the Madeira sheet, at a scale of 1:170,000, effectively combines the two BA charts of the group as well as featuring harbour plans of Funchal and Porto Santo Bay, and should answer most needs.

Unlike the Imray-Iolaire charts of the Lesser Antilles which contain elements of local knowledge not available elsewhere, it is hard to detect any specialised input on this series. I was also surprised to discover, on the Canaries sheet, a sketch plan of Morro Jable in Fuerteventura which originally appeared in a supplement to The Atlantic Islands -- both are published by Imray, but even so the artist should have been credited.

If ordered from the publisher all Imray charts are hand-corrected to the date of dispatch, though this may not be the case from other sources. Correction notices are available free of charge from the publishers on receipt of the chart number, date of printing and previous correction date.

AH