Sailing podcasts are great company whether you’re doing night watch in the middle of the Atlantic or hundreds of miles inland, sitting in a traffic jam. Wherever you find yourself, here are some sailing podcasts to inform, entertain, and inspire.
On the Wind (Formerly 59 Degrees North)
Grab a mug of tea and get cozy with some of the biggest names in offshore sailing – Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, MAIDEN skipper Liz Wardley, and tech guru Nigel Calder, to name a few. Host Andy Schell asks questions that get at the heart of what make these legendary sailors tick. The conversations are so absorbing and natural that it feels like you’re standing in the room. For those who want even more immersion, the podcast is now on YouTube, so you can “sit-in” on all the action.
The Boat Galley
Looking for quick, practical, tips to help you attain your cruising dreams? Carolyn Shearlock and Nica Waters provide bite-sized, 5-10 minute, podcasts with actionable advice like how to run boat electrical wiring, cook with dehydrated ingredients, and stock up on your favorite goodies. You can trust you’ll get the real low-down from The Boat Galley podcast gals, who have decades of combined of cruising experience.
Ocean Sailing Podcast
Live the excitement of ocean racing and cruising from the comfort of your armchair. David, a self-described sailing addict, introduces his listeners to everyday cruisers and racers who share stories on everything from daily life aboard to surviving near disasters offshore. The perfect podcast for the cruising “dreamer” who’s looking for a dose of real-life inspiration from “doers” and “doners”. With over 450,000-episode downloads, listeners obviously can’t get enough of the Ocean Sailing Podcast.
Boat Radio
Imagine a whole radio station dedicated to boating! The Boat Show Podcast feels something like that. With a variety of hosts (including Carolyn Shearlock, and Matt Rutherford), the podcast covers a broad range of topics from ocean conservation to travel stories to practical cruising advice.
How I Think About Sailing
When you’re planning to go cruising, it can feel impossible to focus on anything else. The prolific Andy Schell brings us a podcast with his ruminations on both the technical and philosophical aspects of offshore sailing. Travel inside his brain into the depths of weather forecasting, watch rotations, emergency preparedness, sail selection and much more.
Sailing Stories
Think Serial meets the high seas. Hosted by Lee Cumberland and produced by Andy Schell and the gang at 59 North, each season is a sailing book, professionally narrated and released week by week. If you’re looking for an ad-free version, you can purchase the compiled season as an audiobook. So far, Sailing Stories has produced “Brave or Stupid”, “Jean-du-Sud & the Magick Byrd”, “80º North”, and “Into the Raging Sea”.
The Bonnie Boat
Meditative musings on the magic of traveling under sail. Chris Smith probes the minds of seasoned sailors seeking lessons learned, driving motivations, and stories untold. He even did a podcast on the backstory behind Waterborne.
Happy listening!
Can you think of other sailing podcasts you’d like to see in this list? Let us know in the comment section.
Fiona McGlynn is an award-winning boating writer who created Waterborne as a place to learn about living aboard and traveling the world by sailboat. She has written for boating magazines including BoatUS, SAIL, Cruising World, and Good Old Boat. She’s also a contributing editor at Good Old Boat and BoatUS Magazine. In 2017, Fiona and her husband completed a 3-year, 13,000-mile voyage from Vancouver to Mexico to Australia on their 35-foot sailboat.