MASTERCLASS

Is your fuel gauge accurate? If you need to divert, how many miles can you motor?

Knowing when to turn back, or change your end destination, is as much a part of offshore sailing as executing a perfectly planned passage. Whenever I show new sailors how to fill out the logbook I make a point of heading the page ‘Passage towards’, rather than inserting an end destination. It’s an old habit, but it demonstrates from the outset that it is normal to change plans.

Making the decision to turn back is not always straightforward. When the big stuff happens, say injured crew or a dismasting, it’s an obvious choice to make. It’s the