Annapolis or Chapman?

[pampasail]

Hey Everybody!

First post here. And as a good newbie I am asking a newbie question.

I got into sailing this past summer and just started a general boating course in order to have a good start next spring. However, aside from my course text book I wanted to expand and do some more reading on the subject.

I have read many threads here about books and it seems like there are 2 "bibles like" books when it comes to seamanship.


- The Annapolis Book of Seamanship: Fourth Edition

- Chapman Piloting & Seamanship 67th Edition


Any major differences between them?...I'm assuming there will be a lot of the same info on both of them, but if I want to get just one, which one you think will be more complete and readable?

Thanks in advance,


Juan.

[bletso]

I have both. Chapman is more general and Annapolis is skewed toward sail. Both are excellent references. Starting out I would go with the Chapman's.

[belizesailor]

Both very complete and readable (as reference books go). Annapolis is more sailing oriented. For that reason I might suggest Annapolis if just choosing one. I bet if you look for used copies in good condition on Amazon you can pick them both up at a reasonable cost.

[RainDog]

I have read both. I think Chapman is better.

[Amapola]

Ditto for Chapman.

[Steadman Uhlich]

Hi,

I usually recommend both to new sailors.

I got my first copy of Chapman's a LONG time ago when I was a boy and read it cover to cover. It became the stuff of many nights dreaming of going to sea.

Then I was given a copy of Annapolis book (in the 1990s as I recall it was newly published) and while I enjoyed it, and found it nice, I felt at the time that the Chapman's book gave me a much broader sense of boating and stuff to know on the water. It does cover subjects that are for both sail and power, but I found that informative and good to know.

Either is good reading for a sailor.

[pampasail]

Hi all!

Thanks for the kind replies.
So just to update, I bought the Annapolis book and I am definitely enjoying it. Although having taken a course on navigation I feel like sometimes skipping some material as it is relevant to me now. On some subjects the book author goes deeply into detail (e.i: sail trimming) but on others I feel he just gives a good overall understanding on the subject (e.i: weather).

As we know there's no one size fits all. This is a great reference book and it has also inspire me to go on and read more about weather and other subjects.

Maybe I will eventually get Chapman's book but again I feel like it will repeat a lot of the same info...maybe some more detailed but I don't know if it's worth it for the bits of info I will get. I am thinking getting some of the Pardey's and Annie hill's books...

[Dennis.G]

I had both given to me a presents. They are very much the same thing. I sold the Annapolis on eBay and kept the Chapman, which seemed just a bit more complete. They are a bit too big to keep both on boat.

If you have the Annapolis, do not bother getting Chapman.

Get PDF of Bowditch instead if want additional reference material.

http://msi.nga.mil/NGAPortal/MSI.por...2&pubCode=0002

[chris07732]

Originally Posted by Dennis.G

Get PDF of Bowditch instead if want additional reference material.

Maritime Safety Information

The link to the Bowditch manual is for 2002 edition. So many things have changed in navigation due to electronic advances, I wonder if it is still a valuable reference.