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St Francis |
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CSY 44 |
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Files on Our Website
Links to information we frequently reference
Last Updated:
03/24/2023
Pacific Ocean Cruising Guides & Information Useful? Buy Us A Beer
Compendiums: Collection of useful tidbits from other cruisers, our own experiences, and various online sources. Valuable updates to old (but still very useful) cruising guides.
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General Pacific Crossing Articles and Info |
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| Name | Format | Size | Comments |
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Pacific Crossing Considerations and Options (SSCA
Article) Alt: Our SSCA Presentation |
After 5 years bouncing north and south across the
Pacific, here are our thoughts on how to not zoom through the best
cruising grounds in the world. Last Updated Nov 06, 2010 |
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South
Pacific Cruising Strategies (Latitude 38 Article) |
590 K | Article on options for crossing the Pacific and seeing as much as possible | |
| Understanding South Pacific Weather | htm | 2k |
Everything we know about South Pacific Weather -
Links to useful wx info Last Updated Feb 14, 2011 |
| Cyclone Tracks from El Nino and La Nino years | 1 MB | A plot of cyclone tracks from 1959-2009 in the Western Pacific, broken out by La Nina and El Nino years. | |
| Jim Corenman's Letters from the South Pacific | 650 K | (Published in Latitude 38 in the late 1990's, but still relevant) Great info, especially the part on South Pacific Weather | |
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French Polynesia |
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| Name | Format | Size | Comments |
| Timing Your Visit to French Polynesia | Link | Link | When
to go where in French Poly by s/v Pitufa |
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French Polynesia Weather Compendium Version 2.0 Upd July 23, 2021 |
1.7 MB | Brand new, revamped, revised, and enhanced! | |
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The Marquesas
Compendium Rev 2023.1 Updated Feb 11, 2023 |
2.1 MB | Still being updated, thanks to passing cruisers. | |
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The Tuamotus
Compendium Rev 2023.1 Updated Feb 11, 2023 |
4.0 MB | 178 Pages. Still being updated by passing cruisers. |
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The Tuamotus Current
Guestimator for 2022-2023 Apple "Numbers" Version (note 2019 v) |
zip (xlsx) |
400K |
Updated for 2022 Short "How To" Guide Numbers version compliments of s/v Greyhound |
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Fakarava Bommies (gpx) |
zip | 17K |
Supplied by Kevin Hiscox s/v Mat-Lau Short "How To" Guide |
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The Gambiers and Australs Compendium
Rev 2023.1 Updated Jan 9, 2023 |
2.5 MB |
91 Pages Little-visited cruising gems. |
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The Societies Compendium Rev 2022.8 Updated Dec 11, 2022 |
3.7 MB |
178 Pages. Still being updated by passing cruisers. |
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| Jacaranda's Supplemental Info for French Polynesia | Link | Link | Lots of good info from s/v Jacaranda who are in their 5th year in French Polynesia. |
| Clearance Procedures for Tahiti and Moorea | 52K | Information for cruisers on clearance into and out of Papeete and Moorea (2017), produced by Marina Papeete. | |
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Marine Protected Areas in French Polynesia
UPDATED Mar 2021 |
20MB | Information for cruisers on Marine Protection Areas in French Polynesia. | |
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TahitiCruisersGuide.com
(covers all of Fr Poly) |
Link | Link | The guide covers all of French Polynesia, and includes vendors and services. Access online or download as a pdf with gps location coordinates. |
| Mr. John's Guide to French Polynesia | 900K | Last Updated Dec 2008 | |
| Stopover Handbook for French Polynesia (English) 2020-2021 Version | 29 MB | Yellow Flag Guide for Yachts Visiting French Polynesia 2020/2021 version (published pre-coronavirus!!) | |
| Tahiti Tourism Site (several downloads) | 2 MB | Link to Tahiti Tourism website, where they have a number of updated publications. | |
| Dream Yacht Charters Leeward Islands Pilot Guide | 2 MB | Updated June 2014. Contains lots of good info for yachts in the Leeward Islands of French Polynesia. | |
| Moorings Charters Leeward Islands Guide | 2 MB | Downloaded from Moorings Site Nov 2015. | |
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Diving in
Tahiti Covers diving in the Societies and Rangiroa and Manihi in the Tuamotus |
7 MB | Excerpts from an out of print diving guide from 1992 | |
| Charts for Society Islands | Google Earth and other charts for Society Islands (thanks to Stephano) | ||
| Bruce Balan's Chart Locker | link | New mbtiles charts for all of French Polynesia | |
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A great guide to help you get around French Polynesia. More than just "Hello" and "Thank you", it has nautical terms and the French terms for those critical boat parts you may have to go looking for, along with a helpful diagram. A must have in French speaking countries! Click to buy on Amazon | ||
Cook Islands and Samoa Islands and Niue |
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| Name | Format | Size | Comments |
| The Cooks Samoas Compendium (Including Niue) - Rev 2019.1 | 2.0 Mb | As good as it gets, unless we get
cruiser updates. Last updated July 28, 2019 |
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| Mr. John's Guide to The Dangerous Middle | 4Mb | Covers the Cook Islands and Niue Last Updated Feb 2009 |
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| Bruce Balan's Chart Locker | link | New mbtiles charts for all of Cooks and Samoas | |
Tonga |
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| Name | Format | Size | Comments |
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The Tonga
Compendium - Rev 2019.1 |
1.2MB | Getting more complete, still being updated.
Last updated May 5, 2019 |
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| Tonga Diving Information | html | 1.2MB | Getting more complete |
| Mr. John's Guide to Tonga | 14Mb | Last Updated Sep 2010 | |
| Bruce Balan's Chart Locker | link | New mbtiles charts for Tonga | |
Fiji |
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Fiji Compendium -
Rev 2022.3 |
5Mb | Revamped and Updated November 2022 |
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| Fiji Satellite Charts (2012) | Soggy Paws' home-made Google Earth based navigation charts for Fiji | ||
| Fiji Marine Guide 2014 Edition | 11Mb | From Yacht Help Fiji | |
| Fiji Shores and Marina Guide 2020 | 18Mb | From Fiji Marinas | |
| Mr. John's Guide to Fiji | 4Mb | Last Updated June 2011 | |
| A Yachtsman's Fiji by Michael Calder 2nd Edition | 6Mb | Originally published 1987, updated in 1993. Free electronic edition published 2011 |
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| Bruce Balan's Chart Locker | link | New mbtiles charts for Fiji | |
Wallis, Futuna, Rotuma, Tuvalu, Kiribati |
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The Fiji-to-Marshalls Compendium Rev 2022.1 |
750K | Includes Wallis, Futuna, Rotuma, Tuvalu, Kiribati (Tarawa & nearby
atolls) Updated Sep 19, 2022 (Wallis Only). |
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| Mr. John's Guide to Kiribati | 14Mb | Includes Rotuma, Tuvalu, and Gilbert Islands of Kiribati. Last Updated June 2011 | |
| Pacific Cyclone Season, North instead of South | 500K | s/v Streetcar's voyage and info on going to the Marshall Islands instead of NZ for South Pacfic cyclone season. Published on Noonsite July 2013 | |
| Satellite Charts | Soggy Paws' home-made Google Earth based navigation charts for this trip | ||
| Bruce Balan's Chart Locker | link | New mbtiles charts. | |
| PNG, Solomons, Vanuatu, New Caledonia |
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The Papua New Guinea Compendium
 Rev 2022.2 |
5.5MB | 292 Pages Last updated Sep 24, 2022 |
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The
Solomon Islands Compendium
Rev 2019.9 |
3.5MB | More new updates from Honiara north. Last updated Sep 20, 2019 |
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Vanuatu Compendium
Rev 2019.3 |
1.5MB | Getting there. Last updated May 27, 2019 | |
| Satellite Charts for PNG and Solomons | KAP | Extensive Collection from 2019 (note, all our waypoints are in Valhalla's Waypoint files) |
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| Bruce Balan's Chart Locker | link | New mbtiles charts for Solomons and Vanuatu | |
| Valhalla's Charts & Waypoints | gpx & KAP | Extensive Collection | |
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The Micronesia
Compendium Rev 2016.4 |
2.7Mb | Still a little rough, but lots of good info somewhat organized. Updated Aug 20, 2016 | |
| Google Earth Charts | Soggy Paws' (and friends) home-made Google Earth based navigation charts for this trip (still under construction) | ||
| Bruce Balan's Chart Locker | link | New mbtiles charts for Micronesia and Palau | |
| Sherry's Skin Infection Micronesia | zip | 1.2Mb | Sherry got a serious and persistent skin infection in the outer islands of Micronesia. Might have been mycobacterium marinum aka fish tank disease. Here is her research. |
| Marshall Islands | |||
| The Marshall Islands Compendium Rev A.3 | 1Mb | About as complete as it will get unless I get more inputs from others. Updated 15-Feb-2014 | |
| Mr. John in the Marshall Islands | 6Mb | Last updated Nov 2011 | |
| Practical Marshallese | 1.5Mb | WorldTeach manual for Marshallese copyright Peter Rudiak-Gould | |
| Google Earth Charts | Soggy Paws' and others' home-made Google Earth based navigation charts | ||
| Bruce Balan's Chart Locker | link | New mbtiles charts for the Marshall Islands | |
Hawaii |
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The Hawaii Compendium Rev B.1 |
240K | A bit rough around the edges, but lots of useful
information Last Upd June 30, 2014 |
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Philippines |
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Valhalla's Charts & Waypoints Updated Monthly |
web page | Extensive Collection of "How to's", gpx waypoints, & mbtile satellite charts. | |
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The
Philippines Compendium Rev 2021.3 |
4.1 MB | Over 300 Pages! Updated Dec 24, 2021 |
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| Cruising Guide to the Philippines - Conant Webb | 2 MB | Nice guide self-published by a longtime cruiser in the Philippines. Last updated 2009. | |
| Presentation: Cruising the Magnificent Philippines | 17 MB | 180 Page presentation on our 6 month cruise through the Philippines in 2018 | |
Indonesia |
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Valhalla's Charts & Waypoints Updated Monthly |
web page | Extensive Collection of "How to's", gpx waypoints, & mbtile satellite charts | |
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The Indonesia
Compendium Rev 2023.2 Upd 06-Mar-2023 |
11.2 MB | Over 500 pages of useful information
on cruising Indonesia. Totally free, no ads, no gimmicks |
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Notes on Indonesian Clearance 2022 v1.7 03-May-2022 |
1.5 MB | The full process of getting a visa through an agent, and checking in Indonesia. Brand new info from our check-in Jan 2022 and Visa Extensions in March and April 2022. | |
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Indonesian
Immigration Offices 2022 Upd 21-Apr-2022 |
1.4 MB | Scraped from the Indo Immigration Website March 2022, formatted for offline viewing. Organized by region and province. Addresses, phone numbers, websites and email addresses. | |
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Indonesian Immigration
Offices GPX Upd 21-Apr-2022 |
GPX | 45 KB | Rough locations of the Indonesian Immigration Offices (note: does not include the "21 Ports of Entry"). About |
| Dec 2021 Agent Cost Comparison | 50 KB | A spreadsheet trying to compare offerings and costs for various visa agents in Indonesia. | |
| sv Ocelot's excellent notes on cruising Indonesia | Link | Notes, waypoints, tracks, anchorage info. | |
| Rock Art in West Papua | 24 MB | A 2004 publication by UNESCO detailing the "rock art" found in West Papua, Indonesia. Includes maps with locations. | |
| Sail Samal 2 Raja Ampat Rally Info Booklet for 2016 Rally | 1.7 MB | The old Rally Information Booklet, with some useful info in it. There was no Rally in 2017 from Samal (not enough boats). Last updated Feb 2017 | |
Malaysia |
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Valhalla's Charts & Waypoints Updated Monthly |
web page | Extensive Collection of "How to's", gpx waypoints, & mbtile satellite charts | |
| The Malaysian Compendium - Rev 2023.1 | 3.2 MB | A bit rough. Last updated 05-Mar-2023 |
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Sail Malaysia Rally Cruising Guide - Rev
Nov 2019 Alternate Source |
1 MB | Last updated 20-Nov-2019 | |
Thailand |
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Valhalla's Charts & Waypoints Updated Monthly |
web page | Extensive Collection of "How to's", gpx waypoints, & mbtile satellite charts | |
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The
Thailand Compendium Coming Soon |
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SE Asia Facebook Groups |
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| Sail SE Asia | FB | Primary FB group for cruisers in SE Asia | |
| Women who Sail SE Asia | FB | FB group exclusively for women sailors in SE Asia | |
| Sail the Philippines | For cruisers sailing/cruising within the Philippines | ||
Indian Ocean to South Africa and the Red Sea |
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Valhalla's Charts & Waypoints Updated Monthly |
web page | Extensive Collection of "How to's", gpx waypoints, & mbtile satellite charts | |
| Soggy Paws' Red Sea mbtiles | A collection of satellite charts for the Red Sea, including tracks and anchorage waypoints. | ||
| Red Sea Compendium | 6.7 MB | Cruisers notes on passage up and down the Red Sea. Oman, Yemen, Djibouti, Eritrea, Sudan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Jordan | |
| Red Sea Passage Facebook Group | PRIVATE GROUP! You MUST email wade@joana.ca with your boat info and cruising plans to be admitted to this group. | ||
| Indian Ocean Crossing Compendium | 6 MB | Cruiser's notes on Myanmar, Andaman Islands, Sri Lanka, India (Kochin), Maldives, Seychelles, Mayotte, Chagos, Maritius, Reunion, Madagascar, Christmas, Cocos Keeling, Rodrigues, and parts of East Africa. | |
| Crossing the Indian Ocean On Passage Facebook Group | Public Group, apply to join group as normal. | ||
| Indian Ocean Crossing Facebook Group | PRIVATE GROUP! You MUST email sherry@svsoggypaws.com with your boat info and cruising plans to be admitted to this group. | ||
| South Africa Compendium | 1.2 MB | Rough collection of notes from cruisers going via S
Africa, includes some info on Kenya, Mozambique, Tanzania, and
Namibia too. Last updated 2021. |
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| South African Sailing Facebook Groups | There are several, search for them. | ||
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(We spent a LOT of time gathering, organizing and publishing this info for you...)
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| From s/v Sarana Central America Guide Other Free Guides |
May be more up to date than the below Ecuador guide. | ||
| From s/v Serenity, hosted by Noonsite Panama-Cruisers-Resource-Guide |
If link not working, try this one: Noonsite Panama Yachting Essentials |
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| Ecuador Cruiser's Guide (includes the Galapagos) | 740 K | Last Upd October 2013. Also includes some great info on backpacking / touring in South America from Ecuador. |
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Puerto Lucia Cruising Information
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446 K | Updated Info on Puerto Lucia Ecuador from s/v Dreamer 2019, includes info on Fr Poly visa in Ecuador | |
| La Libertad Port Guide | 160 K | Last Upd Nov 28, 2009 | |
| Extending Your Visa in Ecuador | 76 K | Probably Obsolete, Last Upd Nov 28, 2009 | |
Anchoring & Surviving
Hurricanes in Port
Name
Format
Size
Comments
Creative Anchoring by Captain Fatty Goodlander
ebook
A great book on anchoring tactics
from all aspects by one of
the masters of cruising. (Amazon)
How to Prepare Your Boat for a Hurricane in the VI
pdf
6 MB
By Cap'n Fatty Goodlander for the Virgin
Islands
Territorial Emergency Management Agency (Written ~2000)
Presentation on Surviving Big Storms in Port
pdf
20 MB
By Dave McCampbell s/v Soggy Paws. Presented at SSCA Melbourne Gam 2012
Presentation on Modern Anchors and Ground Tackle
pdf
16 MB
By Dave McCampbell s/v Soggy Paws. Presented at SSCA Melbourne Gam 2013
Blogged Summary about Preparations that Work, from Irma in 2017
link
Good stuff here, worth reading.
Useful?
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(We spent a LOT of time gathering, organizing and publishing this info for
you...)
Technical Articles on SSB/Ham Radios Afloat--Antennas, Grounding, Tuners
| Name | Format | Size | Comments |
| Stan Honey's Marine Grounding Article | 1.3 MB | Originally published as part of West Marine's Advisor series, an EXCELLENT article that explains the differences between Electrical Grounds, Lightning Grounds, and Radio Grounds, and how to set your grounds up properly. | |
| .15uF Capacitors $.33 ea | A source for the capacitors for the RF Ground Stan Honey Mentions in his article. | ||
| Gordon West on using a Sea Water Ground | 115 K | Stan Honey's idea for a HF ground plane with pieces of metal connected together inside the boat is old and was useful for older HF systems with manual tuners. It is now superseded by Gordon West's testing on using sea water as a much more effective ground plane for modern HF radios with automatic tuners . | |
| Gordon West on Antenna Tuners | 3Mb | A 1987 Practical Sailor Article about Antenna Tuners and how to hook them up on a boat. | |
| Clyde Kirlin on Marine Antennas | 280 K | A few good tidbits in this 1987 article from Cruising World | |
| How Long Should My Backstay Antenna Be? | 283 K | Discussion from SSCA Bulletin Board between experts & newbies. | |
| Using Auto-Tuners | 234 K | Martin-G8JNJ explains the differences between different kinds of Auto Tuners | |
| Icom 802 "Clipping" | 234 K | Discussion from SSCA Bulletin Board about the Icom M-802 Clipping Issue | |
| Perkins Engine Codes | 263 K | How to read the codes on your Perkins engine to determine year and place of manufacture | |
| Spanish Engine / Mechanical Terms | 57 K | Handy reference for Spanish words relating to engines. (For more complete copy: SpanishForCruisers.com) | |
| Links to Engine Parts Suppliers | A collection of links to suppliers of engine parts, transmissions, props, etc. |
Useful?
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you...)
| Name | Format | Size | Comments |
| Identifying Your Lewmar Winch | 134 K | From PYacht.com, how to tell what version of Lewmar winch you have Direct Link to PYacht's Page | |
| Pre-1980 Lewmar Winch Service Manual | 2.6 MB | Has many Vol I and Vol II Winches Thanks Dream Away for letting us scan! |
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| Lewmar Winch Service Illustrated ~1999 | 1 MB | From the Catalina Owner's Association, Lewmar 48's and 30's late 1990's design (no longer online at COA) | |
| Lewmar Winch Parts List v10 1992-2002 | 750 K | Official Lewmar Document | |
| Lewmar Ocean Winch Service Manual 2002 | 500 K | Official Lewmar Document, multilingual "Issue 5" | |
| Lewmar Ocean Winch Service Manual 2005 | 1.6 MB | Official Lewmar Document, multilingual "Issue 6" | |
| Barient Winch Service Manual Model 27 2-sp | 250 K |
Useful?
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Medical Reference Material
| Name | Format | Size | Comments |
| International Medical Guide for Ships - 3rd Edition | 2 MB | Too much info! | |
| Offshore Medicine eBook (Excellent, Simple!) | 3 MB | Excellent, geared for the yachtsman | |
| Where There is no Doctor | 15 MB | Geared for people in remote locations | |
| Where There is no Dentist | 12 MB | Geared for people in remote locations | |
| Your Offshore Doctor (Amazon Link) | ebook | A cruising doctor (circumnavigator) published book |
Useful?
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The New Soggy Paws in Raja Ampat June 2016
