The Royal Cruising Club Pilotage Foundation publishes pilotage information through books and a range of media acessible through its own website www.rccpf.org.uk.
Reviews of the most recent RCCPF Publications and other books written by RCC members are shown below.
Mark Fishwick compiled his first West Country Cruising in 1988, and the publication of a Tenth Edition by Fernhurst Books is a testament to its continuing popularity.
Cruising Guide to the Netherlands and Belgium is a new first edition from the Royal Cruising Club Pilotage Foundation.
Skip Novak on Sailing: Words of Wisdom from 50 Years Afloat is a fascinating collection of articles contributed to Yachting World between 2014 and 2023.
A Cruising Adventure and How-To Guide by Nicholas Coghlan
Royal Cruising Club Pilotage Foundation Balearic Islands 12th Edition, David and Susie Baggaley
Andrew Wilkes reviews Marek Jurczynski's publication
Skipper Lynam developed his love of the sea and sailing as a schoolboy at King William’s College on the Isle of Man becoming, in time, a successful canoe sailor.
Review of Royal Cruising Club Pilotage Foundation publication ‘Norway, Mainland coast, fjord and islands, including Svalbard and Jan Mayen’ 4th Edition
Bermuda, Azores, Madeira Group, Canary Islands and Cape Verdes:
Editor: Jane Russell, RCC, RCCPF Publisher: Royal Institution of Navigation, 2020. Available as a free download
Nigel Wollen reviews Mark Fishwick's West Country Cruising Companion
An excellent pilot by Madeleine and Stephan Strobel updated May 2020.
4th Edition. By Rod and Lucinda Heikell. A Review of this welcome update by Will Pedder
This practical guide deserves a place of honour on the chart table of any sailing yacht venturing to the Chilean channels or, as Bill Tillman referred to them, ‘the magical place of the unknown’.
"The book is a triumph, and represents a significant raising of the bar. Jo is to be congratulated, and I do hope readers will be enthused sufficiently to cruise the South China Sea."
This book is a very practical guide to long distance ocean sailing, compiled by a very accomplished and experienced practitioner and aimed at the would-be ocean sailor.
This meticulously updated 8th edition invites the cruising sailor to safely explore numerous exquisite locations, reassured by the author's wealth of experience.
Our review of September 2019 updated to include CCA review as a download. This book is not a “how to do it” manual, more a compendium of the most important issues.....
"I commend Christopher and the RCCPF team on producing an excellent book that will be an invaluable resource to anyone making this trip (Trinidad to Tobago) for the first time"
Reviewed by Peter Bruce who says: "This Second Edition is thoroughly comprehensive and gives those with it a huge advantage over those without."
Reviewer Jay Devonshire writes: "An up to date Pilot Book is an essential, and this latest publication is to to be recommended."
For many a sailor, crossing the Atlantic Ocean is their holy grail, the equivalent of scaling Mount Everest for a climber. Both are immense challenges and preparation is key.
The RCC Pilotage Foundation has recently brought out a fourth edition, published by Imray, of their extensive guide to The Baltic Sea and its Approaches.
‘Gibraltar and the five Mediterranean costas of Spain form the subject matter of this pilot.’
Paul Heiney's lavishly illustrated book warrants a well-deserved place in the chart table and has plenty of general interest for those seeking inspiration for their next cruise.
This is a beautifully produced and extremely well structured guide to this very long and diverse cruising ground. Reviewed by Katharine Ingram
The Canary Islands Guide is very much a guide for tourists rather than a pilot book, but as such it has the information for a touring yachtsman to enjoy these islands.
For such a small country The Netherlands has an amazing 6,000km of navigable waterways and there is something there for everyone.
The revised edition of the Arctic and Northern Waters Pilot is a compelling volume that takes the reader into waters that few will travel, for those who go there it is essential reading.
Reviewers Katharine & Peter Ingram write: "This RCC Pilotage Foundation book is a beautifully produced and extremely well structured guide to the vast cruising area that is the Pacific Ocean."
The 3rd Edition of this very useable cruising companion is brought right up to date (2016) by Derek Aslett. Published by Fernhurst Books and available through Imray and many local chandleries.
The newly published third edition of the RCC Pilotage Foundation Norway pilot book by Judy Lomax is reviewed below by Madeleine Strobel
A Sixth Edition of the RCCPF Atlantic Islands Pilot has just been published by Imray. It is reviewed by Alan Spriggs (RCC) below.
This is the 7th edition of this well-known and popular book. There is much that is new in this edition, all beautifully explored and explained.
The Shell Channel Pilot, 9th Edition, by Rachael Sprot .
Review by Hamish Wilson
This is a lovely book to own. The cover and illustrations make you want to open it, and once inside you will not be disappointed. Since we started cruising in the Solent in 2010, Tom Cunliffe’s Shell Pilot has been our go-to reference, but it is time to give that edition an honourable retirement.
What we loved most were Rachael’s insights into the harbours and ports, some of which make you want to go out of your way to visit. Of Saint-Valery-en-Caux she writes: “The lovely port of Saint-Valery-en-Caux is easily missed … it’s a glorious spot with sheltered marina and attractive town centre.” Honfleur, meanwhile, is “the picturesque Vieux Bassin surrounded by tall narrow half-timbered houses and maze of cobbled back streets [that] are so perfect they could be on a film set.” Descriptions like these make you want to head off and explore.
Rachael also gives a helpful indication of the relative cost of the marinas, which is a welcome touch these days. Her commentary is often pointed, which we loved. Of Bembridge she says: “It’s a well run independent marina with helpful staff, but the pricing is ferocious.”
Her writing style is quirky and humorous, and we enjoyed her turn of phrase, which more than carries on the Cunliffe tradition. It is these descriptions, her style and the illustrations that will give this edition its longevity. Like all pilot books, it will date, but the historical vignettes and portraits of the towns are timeless.
The navigational information is first class. Together with the chartlets and photographs, it gives such full descriptions of each port that first-timers and relative novices (with respect to the RCC!) like ourselves, will feel confident in having a go. We also found the details of shops and local facilities useful, although these will inevitably go out of date.
The book focuses on harbours and ports, and gives full descriptions of the anchorages associated with them, such as those up the River Dart and the Lynher and Tamar, leading into Plymouth. But, we can understand the challenge of deciding what to leave out: Studland and Worbarrow are in, while Mullion Cove, for example, is not. So don’t expect exhaustive coverage of every place you can anchor.
That is a minor criticism, though, of a wonderful book that we will enjoy for many years.
