Showing signs of wear and tear — not surprising after suffering a number of knockdowns — Ella’s Pink Lady brings her own lady home safely. © 2010 EPA A grinning Jessica Watson sailed into Sydney Harbor Saturday afternoon to close the circuit on her non-stop solo circumnavigation only to be greeted by tens of thousands of cheering fans. More »

Considering that she slammed her boat into the side of a freighter during her shakedown cruise, Australian singlehander Jessica Watson, 16, has turned out to be one smart and tenacious sailor. More »

We’d like to think our piece in last Friday’s ‘Lectronic contributed in some small way to the 133-ft schooner Adventuress‘s narrow win of the popular vote — and a $125,000 grant — in the Puget Sound Partners in Preservation initiative, a grant ‘competition’ sponsored by American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. More »

Imagine you’re on an idyllic crossing, halfway between Hawaii and Fiji. The sky and sea are impossible shades of blue, the wind fills your sails, and life couldn’t get much better. More »

We neglected to take any photos of John or Lynn or of the Moorings/Sunsail base on Tortola, so all photos that accompany this piece are of The Baths on Virgin Gorda. More »

The human brain has some remarkable ways of dealing with extreme situations. In instances of severe trauma, for example, it seems to shut down certain body and brain functions — such as memory — and switch into survival mode. More »

A day like today makes sailors long to find their pot of gold so they can head somewhere warm. But you can’t have rainbows without a little rain, so while today’s forecast for the Bay Area is drippy, the rest of the week should be sunny and in the low 70s. More »