Sea Tales

Twenty years ago—on September 11, 2001—commercial and recreational boaters answered the call and took part in the world’s largest marine rescue.

In the last months of their father’s life, Harry J. Beecham’s sons unravel the truth about an old, oft-told story of an encounter with JFK.

Peter Swanson investigates the history of a motoryacht that carried Castro and his comrades to the fight of their life.

A fisherman goes overboard in the dark of night. What happens in this excerpt is a story of survival, ingenuity, and dumb luck.

A leaky engine, a water-moccasin-filled creek, and a seemingly abandoned ferry boat: Experiencing Northern Florida aboard a Cape Dory.

The lives of superyacht crew have been the stuff of legend, folklore and—most recently—reality TV. The truth is often untold, until now.

Thousands of boats are stolen each year. Max Hardberger recovers some of them using alcohol, witch doctors and other forms of guile.

Capt. Paul Lobo has seen it all—brutal storms, horrendous accidents, and countless hours of drama—in his 31-year career as a San Francisco Pilot boat captain. These are his stories.

In this excerpt from his book, The Hemingway Patrols, author Terry Mort shares the details of Ernest Hemingway’s exploits in the Caribbean during World War II. Get the whole story here.

Learn the facts behind the events that became the Hollywood film The Finest Hours, featuring a dramatization of the most daring rescue in Coast Guard history, from the author who wrote the book.

Snotty Seas, an Earthquake, and a Desperate Mission to Help.

Secret government designs, raw fear, and an unquenchable need for speed.

A surfing safari becomes a cold cry for help.

When the idea of finding sunken treasure entered the agile mind of a problem-solving phenom, there’s no telling what will happen next. Our excerpt of Gary Kinder’s Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea will introduce you to the tale. Enjoy the engrossing story here.

After a high-speed, nighttime boat accident, one lucky captain is thankful just to be alive.

Find out why the entire crew of the Madam and Hooker ended up in a Costa Rican jail cell.

“I had no idea a boat could sink that fast!”

One reader found out the hard way why you should probably just listen to the dockmaster.

Sometimes there's no sense in going down with the ship.

Fresh out of college, Chapman Ducote had the whole world ahead of him. He chose to go to sea without electronics.

One California mariner learned the hard way that staying with your boat in a storm can quickly become a matter of life and death. This harrowing tale will draw you in from the get-go.

The first time Pierre Pierce took out his machine gun it was almost the last thing he ever did.

When a major storm rolled through Catalina Island, the damage was more than anyone could have predicted.

A father reluctantly sets out to take his kids shark fishing and returns with a boatload of memories, and a changed mind.