During the past two years, Mexican government agencies have worked hard to make it easier for recreational boat owners to visit Mexican waters — most notably, by the establishment of two new websites for obtaining visas and Temporary (boat) Import Permits online. More »

Writing about pumping out human waste from holding tanks is almost as uninspiring as actually performing that occasional chore. But it’s a very important topic. First, let us remind you that you can be fined up to $2,000 for discharging untreated sewage into inshore waters or within three miles of the coast — this includes the entire San Francisco Bay and Delta. More »

Soon after Fletcher was finally apprehended by authorities and brought ashore, he laid down on a bench and took a nap — undoubtedly exhausted by his ordeal during the previous week.  More »

San Miguel Island is a lonely place that sees few recreational boaters. When conditions there got dicey yesterday, this singlehander’s only chance of help was activating his EPIRB. © 2016 Courtesy US Coast Guard You may think it was foolhardy for the solo sailor pictured above to venture into the rough waters surrounding San Miguel Island (24 miles south of Point Conception) in his engineless, 23-ft pop-top sloop — especially since he had to be rescued by the Coast Guard. More »

A while back we did a shout-out to young sailors within our readership to learn how they enjoy the sport of sailing, how they got into it, and how they like the content of Latitude 38. More »

These days there are so many worthwhile organizations seeking financial help that it could make your head spin. In recent years, West Marine has taken a creative approach to sorting out which groups it can and cannot support by instituting the BlueFuture Fund, which is accepting grant applications through October 1. More »

What’s the secret to catching awesome sunrise shots like this one? It helps to have a telephoto lens, but most importantly, you need to throw off your docklines and head south. More »

Last week we published a shout-out to young sailors in an effort to learn about their sailing habits, how they got started, and how we can do a better job of entertaining them in the pages of Latitude 38.  More »

About that expired-flare collection drive we announced recently. . . Enough already! You may recall we requested that recently expired marine flares of all types be dropped off at our Mill Valley offices, explaining that they would be used in Mexico by prospective boat captains during training classes.  More »

Although they learned to sail in different countries, with different sailing conditions, the young crews of (left to right) Orkestern, Hydroquest and Ninita all had dreams of bluewater cruising, and worked hard to convert those fantasies to reality. More »